Life goals are good to have because they provide direction, but they can also trick you into taking on more than you can handle. Daily habits — tiny routines that are repeatable — are what make big dreams a reality.

What if you started thinking of your life goals, not as big, audacious things that you can only achieve when the time is right or when you have better resources or when you finally catch your big break … but instead as tiny, daily behaviors that are repeated until success becomes inevitable?

Do I like failures? I detest them. The point isn’t to glorify failure or to use it as an excuse, but rather to acknowledge that achievements usually follow it. So if it happens, let it teach you, and then allow the experience of overcoming it to energize you and lead to success. Failure only becomes something positive when you take the lessons and turn them into action.

We also changed the way we assessed the outcomes of our work at the Case Foundation, instituting a green, yellow, and red assessment scale. Green indicates that things are humming along, and yellow shows that we need to make adjustments. Red flags signal an effort that may fail.On one annual review when I saw no reds, I was concerned. I had a frank discussion with the team, pointing out that if we didn’t see at least some reds in our portfolio, we weren’t bold enough. We at the Case Foundation dislike failure as much as anyone, but we know that if we chase extraordinary outcomes, we must take risks.

It Doesn’t Have to Be an Everyday ThingI read a lot, but not usually every day. I do most of my reading when I travel, when I binge on books. Trying to force myself to read every single day (or for a set amount of time or a set amount of pages) would not be as productive or as enjoyable as periods of three to five days of really heavy reading (where I might finish three to five books). Binge reading may not be the right thing for everyone, but not every good habit has to be part of a daily routine. Sprints or batching can work too. What matters is that the results average out.

Setting a schedule doesn't make you a professional, following it does. Don’t be a writer, be writing. Don’t be a lifter, be lifting. For one week, do the things you want to do without letting life get in the way. Next week, start again.

Becoming a pro doesn't mean you're a workaholic. It means that you’re good at making time for what matters to you — especially when you don't feel like it — instead of playing the role of the victim and letting life happen to you.

Professionals stick to the schedule, amateurs let life get in the way.

“I’m setting this aside as important and nonnegotiable because it’s going to [bring me success].”

What do all success cases share in common? Action. Success is the result of action. What sustains success? Sustained action.