Lotteries are ubiquitous in our culture. They are accepted as harmless. They have been criticized morally but my critique is entirely practical. We are killing our dreams by wishing on impossible processes. Stop wishing on the lottery and start dreaming and pursuing your dreams. Ask yourself a big and important question about your future and start to actually take steps to discover the answer. Even if you discover that the particular dream you were dreaming is not possible for you, the process of attempting to make it come true will set you up for your next dream. It’s not “never give up on your dreams.” It is instead “never give up on dreaming.” Derek is an award-winning filmmaker and created a number of short films that were screened at Film Festivals throughout North America. His original work on the music video honoring veterans, “Never Been to War”, won him multiple awards including “Best Music Video”. He is a passionate entrepreneur and is involved in several community causes. Derek is also an award-winning illusionist, winning such honors as the 1st Prize at the Canadian Magic Championships and “The People’s Choice Award” at the world championships. He has performed around the world, from Las Vegas to Malaysia and on television, including his most recent performance on the CW Network’s hit show “Penn and Teller: Fool Us”. In all aspects of Derek’s professional life he has sought to create excellence and to encourage and inspire those around him not only dream … but dream big. He realizes that no one wins on their own. And indeed … it all starts with a dream. This talk was given at a TEDx event using the TED conference format but independently organized by a local community. Learn more at https://www.ted.com/tedx