We talk a lot about goals here at MNTR. Business goals, professional growth goals, and work-life balance goals. But sometimes we have goals that go beyond launching a business. They’re big, bucket list dreams we want to accomplish for ourselves. Last year, Shane completed one of his bucket list goals by completing an Iron Man. Here are his seven tips to get you from step one to the finish line.

1. Share your goals with somebody else.

People genuinely want you to succeed. When you share your goal plan with others, they’ll cheer you on along your way. The more people you tell, the more people will be engaged with you on your journey (and, politely, put a little healthy pressure on you to finish).

2. Engage the experts.

By expert, we mean anyone who has done it before. For the Iron Man, any time Shane caught wind of another person who had also completed the Iron Man, he reached out and asked them questions. When you’re learning how to do something for the first time, it’s invaluable to have a person who is just a little further ahead of you who can help you with any questions. Facebook groups are another great avenue for finding experts. There’s a niche group (or 10) for everything under the sun.

3. Chunk it down.

Break down a big goal into bite-size, manageable pieces. If you’re looking at a year or years-long plan, try breaking up your goals by quarter. If you have a months-long goal, try breaking it down by week.

4. Identify the first step, and put yourself on the clock.

Once you break down your goal into more manageable pieces, figure the first step and give yourself a deadline. Shane’s first 90-day goal for the Iron Man was to buy a professional bike. He spent the 90 days researching bike options and talking to other people about which bikes worked best. At the end of the 90 days, he purchased his bike and was ready to move on to his next step and goal.

5. Put time on task…

Making a master plan and a manageable to-do list is essential prep-work for achieving a big goal, but ultimately you have to put time on task. Plans, strategy, and research don’t matter if you don’t put your head down and knock out your action items. Shane’s purchasing his bike was a great first step; but if he never made time to go out and start to ride the bike…none of it would matter.

6 …And then put it on your calendar.

If you don’t put your time on task on your calendar, something will always come up. Put it on the calendar, communicate your schedule with your support system (like your spouse and kids), and allow little to no exceptions.

7. Celebrate wins.

Within your big goal, set small goals; and as you hit them…celebrate! Celebrating a small win fuels you to keep going. Then, you can have a big celebration when you finally complete your bucket list goal.

Bucket list goals might not always be related to your business or professional aspirations, but making time to complete a goal just for yourself can fuel your passion and purpose in every area of your life.