Forty years. I still can’t believe it’s been that long since I first picked up a microphone and tried to make people laugh. I was just a kid from Cleveland with a crazy dream — no connections, no money, and definitely no backup plan. Just a dream… and a whole lot of fear.

Let me tell you something: fear is LOUD. It’ll tell you you’re not good enough. It’ll remind you of every mistake you ever made. It’ll whisper that you’re too old, too young, too broke, too late, too different. And if you listen to it, fear will paralyze you. But I learned early on that your dream has to be bigger than your fear — because fear don’t ever go away. You just have to get stronger than it.

I remember I got on stage one time and I bombed. Not a single laugh. Just silence and a whole lot of crazy looks. I walked off thinking maybe I wasn’t cut out for this. But something in me — that little voice of faith — said, “Go back. You got something.” So I went back the next night. And the night after that. I just kept showing up, even when it didn’t make sense. That’s the thing about chasing your dream — it rarely makes sense until it works.

When I talk about having faith, I’m not talking about wishing on a star. I’m talking about *real faith* — the kind that makes you move even when you can’t see how it’s all gonna come together. There were nights I slept in my car because I didn’t have gas money to make it to my next show. I’d wash up in hotel bathrooms, praying nobody walked in. I was broke, hungry, and tired — but I wasn’t broken. Every single setback became a setup for something greater.

God has a funny way of testing your courage before He delivers your blessing. I didn’t know it then, but all those tough years were preparing me. They were shaping my character. Because when you finally get what you prayed for, you gotta be ready to carry it.

Now here I am — forty years later — looking back at a life I couldn’t have imagined. From stand-up stages to TV shows, game shows, radio, books, and business ventures… all of it started with a scared kid holding onto a dream. And you know what? I’m still dreaming. I’m still learning. I’m still growing.

I want somebody reading this to hear me clear: you can’t let fear talk you out of what God put in your heart. If it’s in your spirit, it’s there for a reason. It might take time. It might not look like what you expected. You might have to cry a few nights, lose a few friends, and start over more than once — but that dream you have is proof that something greater is waiting on you.

You can’t live your whole life on “what if.” You gotta jump. You gotta trust. You gotta keep walking, even when your knees shaking. Because when your dream is bigger than your fear, the impossible starts looking possible.

Forty years in, I still wake up grateful. Not because I made it, but because I never quit. And if you’re reading this right now wondering if you should keep going — let me save you the suspense. Yes, you should. You’re closer than you think.

Keep the faith. Keep your vision. And make sure your dream stays bigger than your fear.

#SteveHarvey40