The #1 Thing That's Helping Me Achieve My Goals

Achieving your goals, creating your dream life, and chasing your vision can feel overwhelming.

Many of my clients come to me saying:

“I know this can’t be IT! I’m just not sure what ‘it’ is… or how to get there. I just know that I’m meant for more than this. I have untapped potential, and I know I can succeed. But what’s the first step?”

If this sounds like you, my biggest piece of advice is this: forget about the first step.

Seriously. Pretend it doesn’t exist.

To reach your goals, you need to start at the end.

Why Start at the End?

How can you take a meaningful first step if you don’t know where you’re headed?

Think about it: Would a builder ever lay down bricks without a blueprint? Would a knitter just start looping yarn without an idea of the pattern? Of course not.

So why do we so often demand of ourselves: “Just start!” without first clarifying what we’re working toward?

The real question to ask is:

• At the end of my journey, what will I have accomplished?

• Who will I be?

That vision becomes your blueprint, your guiding star.

Envision Your Future Self

Starting at the end means envisioning your future self.

Close your eyes and imagine what success looks like for you. Picture your life when you’ve achieved your goals.

• What do you see?

• Who are you with?

• What are you doing?

• How do you feel?

Write your answers down — let them take shape on paper.

When I first began my personal development journey, I had no idea what concrete goals to set. I only knew the feelings I wanted to embody: I wanted to feel deep love for myself. I wanted to feel purposeful with my time. I wanted to feel confident in who I truly was.

Anchoring into those feelings became more than enough to keep me moving forward. My goals grew from the soil of my desires — not from what I thought I “should” want.

Reverse Engineer Your Success

Once you have a vision of your future self, work backwards.

This process — called reverse engineering — allows you to break down a big, overwhelming dream into manageable steps.

For example, if your vision is to feel confident and in control of your life, ask yourself:

• How will I know I am in control?

• What evidence will be there?

From there, you can map out milestones. Each one is like a stepping stone that moves you closer to the life you imagined.

Stay Focused on Your Why

Your “why” is your anchor.

Two people can pursue the same goal with completely different reasons. One might want to run a marathon to prove something to themselves, while another might run to feel strong and alive in their body. The goal looks the same, but the experience will be completely different.

Your “why” is what will keep you committed when it’s inconvenient, hard, or messy. It’s the fuel that powers the journey.

Take Consistent Action

Once your vision and “why” are clear, then it’s time to act.

Not with grand gestures, but with consistent, deliberate steps.

• Celebrate the small wins. They build momentum.

• Choose actions that embody the person you’re becoming, not just the task you’re completing.

• Remind yourself: each step is not just movement, it’s alignment.

Check Yourself

This is where most people trip up.

Self-sabotage, fear, excuses, and old patterns sneak in. You’ll know it’s happening when you start procrastinating, telling yourself “just one more day,” or convincing yourself that comfort is safer than growth.

This is where support can be a game-changer. For me, having coaches who called me out — with both love and truth — kept me on track when fear wanted to win.

But even on your own, you can pause and ask: Am I acting from fear, or from my highest self? That moment of honesty can shift everything.

Final Reminder

The journey to achieving your goals doesn’t begin with the first step. It begins with a clear vision of the end.

When you start with your future self in mind — when you reverse engineer, anchor into your why, act with consistency, and check yourself with honesty — you stop wandering aimlessly. You begin walking with purpose.

Remember: your dream life is not built in a day. It’s built in small, intentional choices that add up to something extraordinary.

So stop worrying about “where to start.”Start at the end.And let your future self guide you home.