How to think big and realise your goals

“People who are successful know themselves, and that means knowing what their talents are, knowing their ambition and their capacity for work,” says Quinlan.

Fear of failure? Big thinkers know nothing about it. Stubbornness? Big thinkers know a lot about that.

“You’re going to stumble; you’re going to run out of money; people are going to try to talk you out of what you want to do,” says Quinlan.

“And you have to be willing to push through.”

“Write down your goals, then say them out loud to yourself and to anyone else who’ll listen. That makes it harder to back out,” says Quinlan.

“Making it public also increases the chances that you’ll find other people who can help you make your big idea a big reality.”

“High achievers think they can do anything. No matter what task you put in front of them, the response is, “How hard can this be?”

They assume they can climb Everest when they’ve never even gone on a hike.

“I don’t think I ever thought twice about failing,” says Quinlan.

Nevertheless, she adds, “you have to be humble enough to know what kind of help you need, to get where you want to go.

“When I joined a writers group, I had already run an ad agency, but here I was, sitting around a table with people who had successfully published books. It was like being in first grade again.”

“When you have a big idea, 99 percent of the people you encounter will tell you why it’s a bad one,” says Victoria R. Brown, founder of bigthink.com, a global ideas forum.

Sometimes it is a bad idea. The trick, says Quinlan, is to “know the difference between those who are jealous of your drive and those who wish you well and truly want to help by pointing out the pitfalls.”

“Mostly, people are just throwing their own fears on you,” says Quinlan.

“Immunise yourself against naysayers by doing your homework. See who else has succeeded in your area of interest. What did they learn along the way? Do you yearn to be an entrepreneur?”

“Before you invest a lot of time or money, make sure that the product or service you have in mind isn’t already on the market.”

“Then, once you’re sure your big idea is also a great one, roll up your sleeves and get to work.”

All content taken from Life: The Reader’s Digest Version.