Every single one of us has a dream, a perfect life. Be it rich, famous, to prove others wrong or simply… to be happy with your family somewhere far away.

Yet for most dreams remain just that, imaginary thoughts that once blossomed in the mind, never to be made real. If you want to be successful then the question you must be asking is… Where is it, that most people fail?

Not knowing what you want

“If a man knows not to which port he sails, no wind is favorable.”- Seneca

Continuing the metaphor, you are ultimately the captain of your ship. The course of your life is yours to choose and only yours. Other people (especially parents, even with the best intentions) may try to guide you but all they can do is lead you to THEIR DREAM, not yours. And that is a key distinction. Before realizing your ideal existence, you must know precisely what you wish to create. Believe it or not, this is actually the hurdle that most people living or dead, never overcome.

‘I know what I want’

Welcome to the automatic ‘this doesn’t apply to me’ thought process. We’ve all been there, when the advise just seems to good to be true, too simple and of course… you know what you want right?

I want you to think about it…

Do you really have a clear picture in your mind of your ‘Dream Life’. How much money you have? Or is it just ‘rich’. Where are you living, or is it just ‘somewhere nice’. What things do you own, or just ‘fast car/nice watch’. You are like a sailor with a vague sense of the course you wish to take, expecting to somehow reach Paradise. It doesn’t work that way.

Precise, definite answers to these questions are your co-ordinates to success in life, if you are not even willing to spend one evening with a pen and paper planning exactly what you want, then you will simply… never achieve your dreams.

Not knowing where to start

A major stumbling block is simply now knowing where to start. If you ever feel you really want to change your life but don’t know how or where to start, this is a direct result of your vaguely described goals and ambitions mentioned above. Every athlete wants to achieve the pinnacle, but they must for choose a sport and a niche that suits both their natural talents and their own interests. It is exactly the same for any pursuit in life.

Narrow down exactly what it is you desire. Boxing world champion? Well then, the first steps appear right in front of you. The human mind natural instinct is to immediately begin evaluating possible routes. What do other World Champions do? They train, they run, they eat/sleep right. They don’t smoke or drink. They commit their entire lives, but the reward for success is even greater than their sacrifice. Choose your goal, be intentional, be specific, and then…

Take the first step

Life is a funny thing. For whatever reason the first step is actually more difficult than the 9,999 steps that follow. If you are out of shape, going for a run for the first time in years seems like the most daunting task in the world. You worry others will see you, you stress that you won’t make the finish line. And no surprise, you’ve just thought your way out of that opportunity to start changing your life

No one, I repeat NO ONE loves going up a long flight of stairs. It’s much easier to avoid the staircase and to remain walking on flat ground. Flat ground however is exactly what is sounds like… A dull existence when you were too afraid to take the risk and challenge yourself and must live out the rest of your life with deep regret. And flat ground is precisely where 95% of people remain. But by simply taking the first step suddenly, you have surpassed the greatest hurdle.

Make it a habit

The good news is, habits are easy to make. The bad news is… habits are easy to make.

Your life will never be decided in a single evening. It is a direct result of your day-to-day routine. Most people have far more bad habits than good. It is your job to change this balance over time.

To make a good habit, it must first be of very little resistance to start. Take an activity you wish to incorporate into your day-to-day life, something bite-sized like 15 minutes of reading and allocate the activity a very specific time slot.

A good example is ‘I will read for 15 minutes after every shower’. By allocating a very specific time slot you are significantly increasing the likely-hood of that habit becoming permanent. This new habit will also attach to your already formed shower habit. You will not succeed everyday but, eventually you will realize that the first thought you have after finishing your shower is ‘I need to read’. This is a concrete sign that your new habit is taking root.

New habits should always be added one at a time. If you try to change everything in your life overnight, you will fail. And not just you, even the most disciplined, strong willed individuals would fail, if not for their very intentional and well crafted habits, at the right times to keep the good momentum rolling.

Good Momentum

There is no feeling like positive Momentum. One good action after another and it all feels effortless. Its life surfing a wave that’s carrying you right to your dream life. Once you begin taking steps, pro-actively adding new habits and fine-tuning them in a way that they remain a part of your day-to-day life, you are holding the Winning Ticket. Just don’t let go! At any cost.

Bad momentum is as easy to create as good momentum. One bad decision followed by a poor meal, leads to staying up late, to waking up feeling sh*t, to missing workouts, and on we go… You are back to the depression carousel. DO NOT LET GOOD MOMENTUM GO TO WASTE.

This is the challenge I had to battle with the most. As soon as i felt I had ‘done enough’ I would immediately slide down into a vicious spiral of self-sabotage through old habits. All those things you said you would give up, when good momentum is broken… the flood gates of bad decisions are open.

The Pay-Off

Eventually… all of those things that once seemed daunting begin to form a regular days work. All those habits that once took immense effort are now just ticks on your To-Do list (another excellent tool). All of those old habits you thought you’d miss and couldn’t live without, become distant memories of a time when you were far less impressive than you are today. Boom.

In the eyes of others, you have achieved Overnight Success. Only you know what it really took. The long nights spent tossing and turning away from your bad decisions. Unable to sleep as failure claws at your consciousness. The monumentus effort it took to establish new habits, to develop yourself slowly, over time into a formidable and reliable productivity machine.

Trust me, it’s worth it. The juice is worth the squeeze. It may not seem like it when your working hard and life seems to remain the same. But work is never in vain, and it’s the only commodity that life accepts in return for success.