"Follow your dreams".
I am just going to tell you straight off: that is a bad idea. Read on to see my explanation, for today I'm going to challenge the widely-accepted notion that is this popular phrase.
Follow your dreams.
Well, right from the start, you see this statement is a command. The subject, You, is understood. "(You) follow your dreams". The speaker, the issuer of this command, is addressing you, commanding you to follow the dreams that belong to you, the dreams that are in your possession.
So, what is a "dream"?
Well, no one is quite sure what a dream is. It appears to be your brain's attempt at processing random information in a logical fashion as you sleep. Dreams serve no practical purpose. They also, unless you are a prophet, are never seen to come to fruition─they never come true.
And someone wants you to follow dreams? Don't listen! They are commanding you to follow something that is intrinsically incapable of leadership! A dream has no sense of direction, no awareness that you are following it, and no motivation to lead you anywhere.
This is with the context of following a literal dream, however. What if we interpret "dream" as a metaphor? "Dream" as a metaphor represents a desire housed within you. It is a goal that you want to accomplish, usually a big goal. "Dreams" are often manifested as the thing that you want to do for the rest of your life: something paramount and pivotal and moving, like becoming a famous author or musician or performer or movie star or politician, et cetera.
This type of dream is an abstract idea of something in the projected future that has no justifiable quantification. You cannot guarantee that such a dream that such a dream will be fulfilled, and yet someone is commanding you to follow one! Who in their right mind would follow an abstract idea? That's like me asking you to follow the number one! A number is simply an abstract idea that represents quantity and value. It has no physical form, no mental capabilities, no metacognition, and, as before, no leadership skills. This is the case with dreams. You would be following something that hasn't even happened yet─something that might never happen─and people say "follow these"! That is sheer folly!
And even worse than this is a similar phrase:
"Follow your heart".
Let me ask you something: Who wants to follow a blood-pumping organ that is totally useless unless it is trapped inside one's rib cage and attached to a web of blood vessels? If you follow your heart, you will die. This is not a recommended course of action.
I'm being facetious, of course. "Heart" is metaphorical here as well, like with "dreams". Indeed, the heart is the metaphorical seat of human emotion. In this sense, one's heart is all their feelings and emotions. Thus, "follow your heart" really means "be completely dependent on and/or influenced by your illogical, irrational emotions". Letting your emotions determine your choices is extremely immature and incredibly unwise. Your heart cannot accomplish higher thinking. It cannot even think for itself, so what brings you to believe it can think for you? That's pure foolishness!
I think modern culture has it backwards.
Don't follow your heart. Lead your heart.
Let your logical and rational brain make the important choices in harmony with your moral convictions─your "heart", so to speak. If you feel something is good or right, your brain will understand this as a message of the heart, and accordingly come up with an appropriate action to take. Think with your head; feel with your heart.
The same goes for following dreams. That's backwards! Don't chase after an idea that hasn't happened yet. Make it happen! Don't sit around and expect fate to suddenly bless you one day. Make your dreams chase after you. Like before: use your brain to discover what things you want to see happen in your life. Ask yourself, "Are these goals reachable, even if they might be difficult or risky?" If the answer is "yes", then your heart will send a message to your brain saying, "This is a good thing; I have a passion for this", and your brain will execute the proper decision-making tactics.
So, "follow your brain?"
Of course, this is all counting on your brain's reliability. Indeed, at face value, a blob of grey matter on its own isn't capable of leadership either. This is why I do not follow my heart, nor my dreams, nor my head. I follow God, or, at least, I try to follow God.
Now, you might not believe in God, and that's fine. If this is the case, you will not want to follow something that doesn't exist. That is understandable, rational, and logical as well. However, if you do believe in God, as I do (or if you pray to Buddha or Allah or Brahman or another deity), I would encourage you to follow Him (or them) as I am striving to do as well.
A heart should not be followed; it should be caged (hence your rib cage). Dreams should not be followed; they should be lived, propelled into fruition by your merits. Your merits will not fall into your lap, however. You will have to earn your merits, earn your qualifications, earn the skills you need to see your dreams fulfilled. Your determination and work should be such that they send your dreams hurling towards you in the single cataclysmic moment that is known as achievement.
