Skip to main content
Reading Time: 3 minutes

Dream Big: Know What You Want, Why You Want It, and What you’re Going to Do About It, by Bob Goff, offers practical encouragement to turning your dreams into realities. Who doesn’t need that??

Some of the most important work you will do is to identify who or what has been keeping you captive and to break free. We can’t fix what we don’t understand.

Bob Goff, Dream Big

I’ve read all of Bob Goff’s books. Everybody, Always has been my favorite, but I think this one just surpassed it. Like Bob’s other works, it’s filled with stories and experiences that will leave you laughing, crying, and wondering how on earth this man has done this many things? Does he ever sleep?!?!

If you want to achieve great things, find a couple of these people to do life with. Also find a couple of difficult people to engage with love. Don’t make them projects; make them friends.

Bob Goff, Dream Big

Big and Practical

Dream Big

Dream Big seems to me to be the most practical of all of Bob’s books. It’s not just about where he’s been or what he’s done. He leads the reader, step-by-step toward their dreams, punctuating the journey with his stories of successes and failures. You can learn from both.

Bob’s outline is superb. He includes important exercises to move the reader toward fulfilling their ambitions and purposes. The end of the book is filled with questions to lead both individuals as well as groups. This would be an excellent book to read in concert with other “dreamers”

God’s not leading us to the safest path forward, but to the one where we’ll grow the most.

Bob Goff, Dream Big

One Big Complaint

My one complaint about the book will likely sound picky, but . . . So what? I’m picky! I have to wonder who did Bob’s proofreading for him. Bob’s a Bible guy, and he’s got plenty of preacher/ministry friends. Did they not spot the goofs that were so apparent to me?

The big one was in chapter 10, where he recounts the story of Jesus feeding the 5000. Bob writes (on page 62), “One of my favorite stories about availability is the two boys who gave their lunches to Jesus to feed the people who had followed Him out into the field.” He continues the chapter, building on the story of these two boys. The only problem is, there was just ONE boy (John 6:9).

Someone at Thomas Nelson should have noticed that. Someone who proofread or wrote a recommendation surely had enough Bible knowledge to spot that!

Maybe I’ll call Bob up and offer my services for the next book. I have his number around here somewhere. Oh well . . . I can always dream!

Update: I actually called Bob on my birthday in 2020 and thanked him for this book. And yes, I mentioned the error about the kid and his lunch. Probably not Bob’s favorite phone call ever. I’ll call him back on my birthday this year and apologize.

As a quick aside, here’s a tip worth remembering if you want to achieve your ambitions. Don’t be so eager to correct people; welcome them instead. Accept them. Love them without any angle or agenda. Start with yourself.

Bob Goff, Dream Big