Write It Down, Make It Happen

A lot of people only have vague ideas about what they really want. They desire more money, a better job, someone to love or the chance to travel somewhere exotic.

You may have similar desires of your own. But if you want to make them a reality, you need to be precise.

So rather than saying “I want money,” say, “I want exactly enough money to open a restaurant.” And when it comes to love, figure out exactly what you’re looking for. Maybe it’s someone who is funny, kind and doesn’t mind that you don’t want to have kids.

Being so specific might sound extreme, but if you want to reach your goals and not veer off course, you need to know exactly what it is you want.

Once you’re clear on your goals, write them down on paper.

There are a number of success stories that show the power of writing down our dreams.

Jim Carrey has a famous story of writing himself a check for $10 million, when he was just an aspiring actor. Sure enough, years later, he was earning $10 million per film!

Then there’s the football player Lou Holtz, who had not one but 107 different goals for his life – and he wrote down each and every one of them. He did this in 1966, when he was unemployed and just 28 years old. Among his goals were to meet the president of the United States, coach a football team and hit a hole-in-one golf shot.

Amazingly, now 50 years later, Holtz has fulfilled nearly every goal. On his website, you can see photographs of him shaking hands with both the president and the pope; as the coach of the University of Notre Dame football team, he won the 1988 national championship; and as for his luck at golf, he’s managed to hit not one, but two hole-in-one shots – so far.

When you set concrete goals for yourself, there is no limit to what you can accomplish. But you may harbor some doubts, so let’s take a closer look at the power of pen and paper.