Whenever we have a big goal, it is easy to get lost in the “hows” (How will I ever make this happen?) and the “what ifs” (What if my dreams don’t come to pass?). You can get so caught up in those concerns, that you can become paralyzed by them.

The key is to take life and goals in small pieces. You just need to focus on your life today.  I recently saw a wonderful quote in this regard:

“Do something today that your future self will thank you for.” – Unknown

That is how to effectively approach any big goal. Each day, you want to do something that Future You will say, “Hey!  Thanks for not giving up!  Thanks for working hard and doing the right thing, even when it all seemed hopeless.”

That is how people achieve their dreams. They take a leap of faith and do little things each day to achieve their goal, even when they have no idea how it will work out.  J.K. Rowling didn’t write the first Harry Potter book knowing that it would be an international success.  She took a leap of faith.  Luciano Pavarotti didn’t know that he would become a world renowned tenor.  He simply practiced, auditioned, and worked hard.  He took a leap of faith.

It is those daily leaps of faith that will get you from Point A to Point B. Now when you take daily leaps, other people may accuse you of wasting your time.  However, you can’t worry about what other people think.  If you are going to write the Great American Novel, your family members may roll their eyes when you get up at 5 a.m. every morning to write your daily two pages.  If you want to create an amazing invention, your neighbors may not understand all the puttering that you do in your garage.  However, people who achieve great things don’t worry about what everyone else thinks.  They are too busy working toward their goals.

If you work at a goal in small pieces, you will be amazed at how those pieces will snowball. Once you start consistently working at a goal, your skills will become fine tuned.  Opportunities will appear because people will be become increasingly aware of what you are trying to achieve.  And you will develop a momentum that is unstoppable.

Even 20 minutes a day spent on a big goal is enough to get the ball rolling. You have 20 minutes.  More importantly, you deserve to spend 20 minutes of your day doing something that is in pursuit of a goal that is important to YOU.  Your Future Self will thank you.