I have made plans and failed at following them.

I have set goals and did not accomplish those goals.

I failed but I also succeeded. Not at the same time though.

What changed?

I learned my lessons.

I noted what went wrong at the times when I failed. And, then made sure that I avoided those mistakes. There were times when I made the same mistake twice. Even then, I achieved what I was after.

For pursuing bigger goals, I also employed some ingenuity.

Through all these ups and downs, I have realized that following four forces are at play when it comes to accomplishing our goals.

• Skills
• Plan
• Consistent action
• Intensity

First three are enough to find success. Add intensity in case you want to do anything fast.

It took me nine years to go from ‘dreaming about becoming an author’ to become a ‘published author’. First, seven of those nine years were spent wishing and dreaming. Last two years were a mix of using my skills (writing) that I had developed by then, planning to not fail, and taking consistent action.

When the time came to write my second book, I finished in about a month. I did it fast because I took the time to create a plan, took action on the plan, and did it with intensity.

Natural intensity is better than forced intensity. You actions automatically become intense if your goal is exciting. An exciting goal stirs your thoughts and increases blood flow through your body.

So, to live the dreams you dream – start with an exciting goal, combine it with skills, make a plan for consistent action and execute with intensity. Chances are this way you will find success more than you’ll meet failure.

What big goal do you want to accomplish?