What is the most impossible dream you’ve achieved, and how did you make it happen?

Question

My new film, RATATOUILLE, is about the unlikeliest of partners accomplishing the most impossible dream. What is the most impossible dream you’ve achieved, and how did you make it happen?

Answer 1

My wife and I wanted a child since before we were even married. Years of trying produced no results, at least, not positive ones. We never gave up...

4 years after our marriage, our daughter, Anna Marie was born. We were blessed in that she turned out perfect. After years of struggling, false hopes and disastrous let downs, our dreams were answered.

Never give up on something you want. Never let others tell you to stop trying, let the nay sayers say what they want, and then forget what they said.

Answer 2

As a young Mother, I was told in public, by my Mother-in Law,
"It's a good thing you only got one kid cause you sure don't know nothin about raising kids"....At the time, I was about 4 1/2 months pregnant, sort of. The fetus had died and in those days they just let things like that "happen naturally". I was devasted. I looked at my daughter and I promised myself that no matter what. I would not repeat mistakes such as the one that had just happened. I left that house after a while for the last time. I was no longer her daughter-in-law. Her son would be staying where he was and I would be taking this little girl of mine (?!) away and be a single Mother!
I spent the next fifteen years with my eye on the prize~ My impossible Dream....To raise a Confident, fine upstanding citizen. She would be loved and able to acept love. She would be a good citizen and a better friend. I would take out all of the ugliness of my childhood and marriage and I would put in things I wish had heard and learned instead. I would never let her feel unwanted or unloved and I would stick up for her and teach her not just to act like a lady, but to be proud to be a lady. Anything else was working to make sure nobody knew how poor we were. Children can be cruel so she needed some things I did not have. I taught her to spend some time just being nice. "Visit the Elderly lady down the street every once in awhile, you'll learn something and it's a nice thing to do, see you later". I remember when she turned 17 we donated blood together. She had the ritz and I had a cookie. It doesn't have to take a lot of time to be a good person, "To thine own self be true"! Made her learn the Artists and Songs and backgrounds and had so much fun, she was the only kid I knew theat could run the BILLBOARD chart....from 1958! We had fun. She became an exchange student and a Star Athelete. She directed "The Blue Angels" into Hillsboro Airpot through The Civil Air Patrol at 15. She was Company Commander at 16. She visited my Grandparents on a whim. I always knew where she was because we respected each other. She paid the Electric Bill with her first check from Baskin-Robbins and all of this was a Dream! Then She graduated and went to College and got her Degree and a Handsome educated loving equal partner of a husband and now I'm a Grandma, twice~! She's In Law Enforcement as a Probation Office for teen Girls. I made it happen because I loved her enough to teach her that she was a wonderful human with the right and the honor of the best the world had to offer. I'm so proud and she's still my girl. Everything else too, but still Ethical, kind, strong, respectful and respected. Guess my Impossible Dream wasn't so impossible after all!

Answer 3

Actually, I don't really have a past experience with achieving impossible dreams, but I am currently in the process of struggling to accomplish something.

Back in the summer of 2000, I was just out of high school, and got my first job, working as a runner for a local hotel. Basically, what I was doing was being an extra pair of hands to help the staff get everything done during the summer rush. When I hired on, it was with the understanding that the job was a temporary position, and after the summer I wouldn't be needed anymore. That was also the last job I ever had too.

I guess, for the sake of argument, I could say my "impossible dream" right now is finding work. That's not as easy a thing as it sounds in the area I currently live. Employers here won't hire unskilled workers, my favorite rejection statement from an interview was: "This job isn't rocket science, but we look for experience." That was for a job bussing tables at a restaurant, a job it would take about an hour to train me to do properly. The state workforce organization (job service) didn't really do much to help either. Temporary agencies around here take applications, but they never refer anyone who'd on file with them to any jobs either.

Since I'm still working toward my dream, I can't really say what steps are the best to take. I can say that I'm taking each day at a time, doing the best I can wiht what I have, and just being viciously stubborn enough not to give up. Eventually I'll either land a job, or I'll get my manuscript published (something else I'm working toward, but that's another rant). Either way, something will happen, I hope sooner rather than later.

Answer 4

Brad,

The first time I truly remember someone asking me what I wanted to be when I grew up (and having a thoughtful answer to the question) was when I was 9. The answer I gave was that I wanted to be an inventor. I had a dream that I would be able to affect the world around me by making my ideas become reality. That dream evolved over time, and became a desire to be a leader in the design world.

While I have by no means arrived at the end point of that dream I have certainly been given the opportunity to live the dream by becoming an Industrial Designer. It took sacrifice and work for sure (giving up atheltics and the typical college experience to study in New York City at an art school, the all-nighters that I have since learned never go away, a harsh mixture of success and failure) and it took the courage to make my own decisions when others thought it foolish or wrong.

Today, after 10 years as a professional designer, I have had the opportunity to touch many different projects, expand my knowledge and leadership ability beyond traditional industrial design, and become a Creative Director for a multi-disciplinary design team.

This is a life-long dream, not one that has a defined end or finish line, but I wake up every day excited and energized that I get to imagine, think, and solve for a living. While I am not yet the household name that some designers become, I am confident that my work has a positive impact on the world around me. That in and of itself is a dream come true for the young kid in me that still yearns to be an inventor.

Answer 5

There is a dream which i hav had 2 times after every 5 years. It is abt saving a school in which some terrorists hav entered. Me and my friends go on a mission to save it. I first had it when i was 5 on thursday. and i again had it when i was 10 on the same day, thursday! this things was really weird bcz it has the place i hav never seen and the school which i think doesn't exist. Actually in thgis long dream, the school i'm saving is the school which me and my friends study and we skipped it the day terrorists entered. The friends it shows r ppl who i dont know, but seem to be my closet and best friends. I am not quite sure how i made it happen. Maybe its telling me a true thing that may ahppen in the future. I do not know when. I am now 13 years old and i hope to achieve this dream again at the age of 15. As a 5year old or a 10 year old isn't smart enough, now if i get it, i will closely study the dream!

Answer 6

While I have by no means arrived at the end point of that dream I have certainly been given the opportunity to live the dream by becoming an Industrial Designer. It took sacrifice and work for sure (giving up atheltics and the typical college experience to study in New York City at an art school, the all-nighters that I have since learned never go away, a harsh mixture of success and failure) and it took the courage to make my own decisions when others thought it foolish or wrong. I handed out food in grocery stores, stocked shelves, put displays together and, if you were in my city and got handed a glass of Brita water, that was me. I even tried to get a job at the zoo-they didn't think I was bouncy enough. What did they know! I finally graduated and graduated magna *** laude. I then paid my dues and worked those horrible little jobs to learn how to apply your trade and finally opened my own bookkeeping service. So now I can work when I want or not. . .and I have achieved a life time goal-to be a beach bum with a bank account. How did I do it? I got a doctor that said if what you are doing is hurting you, stop doing it and your nerves will regenerate and tossed the doctor with the scapel in his hand.

Answer 7

Hi there!
It was extremely difficult not to judge people by their facial expression, or by the clohtes they are wearing or by anything as a matter of fact.
Why and how in the world did I accomplish this? Why: because I had lots of anger and judgements building up inside me and it felt down right dreadful.
How: How I did it is still a mystery to me, but the next time I went grocery shopping and there was a short, overweight saleswoman at the counter with an angry expression, I didn't think what a nasty person this might be, but probably how hard her life is. She's getting paid very little, she porbbaly has a hungry family at home, and she's probably very, very tired.
So instead of being cold to her, I smiled and wished her a great day. Hey eyes quickly became softer and she returned the smile. For the rest of the day I felt elated.
Imagine, that woman will probably give some other people warm smiles, and those people will do the same to other people.
Many people say one person cannot change the world. They, however, are wrong.
They can.

Answer 8

I have had and I still have many dreams. My new dream is to become a professional pianist. I know it is hard and it seems almost impossible, but I have a strong faith in God and I am sure that i will achieve it. My motto is: "Never give up!" I always remember that and it really works! Yes, I will realize my dreams!
Ratatouille is a very interesting movie, it is difficult to imagine a rat being a chef! I would never eat in a restaurant with a rat as a chef! It's just a crazy idea! And I wish you and this wonderful movie only the best!

I'll go for a few tickets right now!

Answer 9

I Used To Work At ''Progressive'' But I New I Hated My Job. Then, I Figured I Really Wanted To Be A Voice Actor For A Small Company Called ''Artisan'' And I Did It With Studying Hard For 3 Years While Working At Progressive And Soon I Will Start On My First Project.
Hi My Name Is Ryan Daniels And I Am A Big Fan Of The Incredibles And Ratatouille
Thank You For Reading

Answer 10

I was in my 30's with an ok job in the computer department of an insurance co. Had this dream ever since grade school to be an attorney. Big problem I did not have a college degree. So I went to Roosevelt University nights, tested through courses, took classes 4 nights a week and on Saturdays. In 3 years I got that degree with a straight A average.

Was accepted into DePaul law school night program. Kept my day job to pay for my education. I graduated and passed the bar first try.

By then I was 40 years old. Sent out 685 resumes to all different types of firms and corporations to get a job as a lawyer. Got 3 responses -- 2 told me I was too old in the interview, one looked at me in the reception area and said no right there. I would not let them stop me from getting my dream.

I created a brochure offering myself as a temporary attorney on a per case or per month basis. Offered to do any lawyer task at a reasonable rate, without the employer paying my benefits. The response was great, I could of worked 24/7. Got tons of experience.

I now have my own law firm, concentrating on employment law. I did achieve my dream by not letting others defeat my enthusiasm, I just found a way around them. I am at www.lawyer4employees.com.

Answer 11

There I was, I pushed life until I was where I wanted to be. Had a pretty good job and one that I liked, had some $ left over at the end of the week so I was feeling pretty good and enjoying life. Then I got hurt and the doctors informed me that I would be paralyzed from the neck down in less than two years. So not only did I lose my job. I lost everything that went with it and my health to boot. What was I to do? First thing I did was get a couple of other doctors to look for better options. I was taking a few college courses for self improvement. I went begging for free money-grants or anything to get a good education. Ok, I was the oldest person in most of my classes but I met so many people and learned so much. At some point I realized I didn't have to live anywhere in particular and could go to school anywhere. I had opened up a whole new world. So I moved to a tropical area, parlayed my house and house payments into a little casita and finished college. When you're in your forties, it is interesting to toss it all and do all those strange little jobs to keep yourself afloat. No job was too small, no job was beneath me; I handed out food in grocery stores, stocked shelves, put displays together and, if you were in my city and got handed a glass of Brita water, that was me. I even tried to get a job at the zoo-they didn't think I was bouncy enough. What did they know! I finally graduated and graduated magna *** laude. I then paid my dues and worked those horrible little jobs to learn how to apply your trade and finally opened my own bookkeeping service. So now I can work when I want or not. . .and I have achieved a life time goal-to be a beach bum with a bank account. How did I do it? I got a doctor that said if what you are doing is hurting you, stop doing it and your nerves will regenerate and tossed the doctor with the scapel in his hand. Then I gathered friends and family around me to help me combat the fear of paralysis. And then I got going. . .