We’re often encouraged to create vision boards and to fill them with everything we want in our future. And one of the things on your vision board may be your dream home.
In fact, you may even flip through design and home decor magazine, cutting out images of your favorite homes, hoping one day to call one your own.
But so much dreaming can be detrimental. In fact, it might be better to stop picturing your dream house altogether. Here’s why.
4 reasons why we dream of a better home
There are lots of different reasons why we picture a dream home. And it doesn’t take too much digging to find out why.
A dream house is on your bucket list
Maybe you grew up without a lot of money, and you’re determined to have something different for your own family. It may be something you’ve dreamt of since childhood.
Or, perhaps, as you got older and built your career, you realized that you, too, could live in a dreamy place.
Your dream house lets you expand or cut back
The idea of a dream house immediately conjures up grand images and estates. But the truth is, a dream house doesn’t have to be an enormous and expensive mansion. Instead, your ideal home might be a small, scaled-back place.
Your dream house lets you live your dream life
Maybe you’re in the city, but long for the countryside. Maybe you want to own a farm. Or, maybe you’ve always wanted a quaint row house tucked away in a city neighborhood. Do you want a lake, a forest, a path, or a string of cute boutiques along your block?
We all have different dream lives, and your dream home is nestled in your ideas.
A dream house improves your current living situation
No one dreams of moving into a new home that will make their life worse. Instead, your dream home is likely to be your heaven on earth.
This will be different for everyone, but at the end of the day, your dream house is a step up, not a step-down.
Practical reasons why you don’t get your dream house
Are these dream motivations bad? Well, the truth is, they’re not wrong, in and of themselves. We humans like to grow. And many of us like to keep reaching higher and higher. So, why don’t we move into our dream houses more often?
The reality is, life happens and other expenses pop up. And even if they don’t, you just might never have enough money for your dream house. Another reason why dream houses don’t always pan out is that they just might not be available at the right place and at the right time.
And so, we dutifully wait for the day until our dream home arrives, but here are five reasons why that’s a problem.
We are addicted to instant gratification
In this modern day and age, we’re used to getting what we want very quickly and pretty easily. But with something like a dream home, we can’t order it on Amazon Prime and have it shipped in two days. We have to wait.
And waiting for a someday-dream home can lead to other problems. When money, time and availability prevent you from getting your dream house, it’s easy to become angry, bitter and despondent.
Dreaming robs you of present moment happiness
The ancient Chinese philosopher, Lao Tzu, said, “If you’re depressed, you’re living in the past. If you’re anxious, you’re living in the future. If you’re at peace, you’re living in the present.” And here’s what this quote means when it comes to dreaming up your ideal home.
When you’re always dreaming of something in the future, it can actually make you feel worse, not better. You may feel anxious that it will never come your way, or that you’ll never have enough money. And all of this anxiety and worry can keep you from experiencing happiness and contentment in the present moment.
Even if the home you currently live in is nice, it will be hard to see this because you’re constantly looking into the future.
Dreaming might keep you from feeling grateful for what you have
When your dream home is your main focus, there’s a good chance you’re not paying any attention to your current living situation. And if you are, you probably look at it with disdain and disappointment.
But why not feel grateful for what you do have right now? Not only is gratitude the most transformative emotion you can feel, but it can also help attract your dream house. Feelings of discontent will only push your dream home farther and farther away.
Dreaming might fuel feelings of envy
If there’s a home you don’t have but want to have, you might have to deal with feelings of envy. That’s because you compare what you have with what you don’t have. And if your friends, family or coworkers have their actual dream homes, guess what?
You’re probably going to feel jealous and envious.
Neither of these emotions are positive and healthy experiences. What’s more, they prevent you from feeling grateful and happy right where you are.
Can you create your dream home right where you are?
Instead of dreaming of that blurry someday, when you walk through your dream home without a care in the world, why not walk through your current home and find ways to make it dreamy anyways?
Without a doubt, your mind will resist that idea. After all, you don’t want to be there and it doesn’t have the features you want. But are there little steps you can take to add comfort, luxury, and pleasure to your home?
Maybe this means repainting the rooms. Maybe it means upgrading your furniture. Maybe it means doing a massive declutter and tidy. Maybe it just means looking at what you have and acknowledging that it’s not that bad. In fact, it might be pretty great if you let yourself see it that way.
And whenever you find yourself annoyed with something in your current home, can you reverse that thought by thinking of something that you like about your home?
Dream homes are beautiful concepts. But spending too much time dreaming about them can make your current life unhappy and unfulfilled. And that’s no way to live, now is it?
