I was recently listening to a great goal setting program which was an interview with John Goddard, the World’s #1 Achiever. At the age of 15, John wrote a list of over 100 things he wanted to achieve in his life. The very first item on that list was to travel the whole length of the Nile River which had never been done before. It’s over 4,000 miles long and John achieved that goal with 2 other explorers by kayak. That achievement alone would have been astounding as a life goal for anyone else. And not only did John Goddard complete that whole list, he’s completed over 400 more and today he’s in his 70’s and is still going strong. He’s a man who doesn’t stop at anything. One thing he said in the program was, "The spice of life is goal setting and goal achieving." I couldn’t agree with him more.

Listening to him is amazing. Just by him talking about everything he’s done makes your heart pound. The first time I listened to the program I started recalling a bunch of dreams I had 10-15 years ago that I gave up on. I gave up on them for one simple reason - because I didn’t keep them out in front of me. When you don’t review your goals and dreams they escape you. Sometimes for years on end. I started a new list this past week and I’m not done yet.

There’s nothing more important than keeping your dreams in front of you. Listen, I understand. I know stuff happens and we shelf our dreams for a while. The death of my wife in 2005 was the single most horrific experience my family has had to go through. Sometimes, with the big struggles, you have no choice but to shelf your dreams for a while. But don’t forget them. They truly are the spice of life. They make life interesting and keep you going despite your struggles. Even the big ones.

John says, "People go through life satisfied with a vanilla existence." That means that their lives are "ho-hum". Don’t let your life be ‘ho-hum". Vow today that you will dig out your dream list and re-write it if necessary. Times change and so do dreams. After you write them again, keep them in front of you. Make a dream board over your desk at home where you can post pictures of your dreams and goals. Keep looking at them on a daily basis. Make it so that if someone asked you, "What’s your dream?" you can rattle off 5 or 10 things that you want to do in life. Big things.

Finally, remember what Mark Twain said, "Twenty years from now you will be more disappointed by the things that you didn’t do than by the ones you did do. So throw off the bowlines. Sail away from the safe harbor. Catch the tread winds in your sails. Explore. Dream. Discover."

I know you can do it and I definitely believe in you!