You have your vision. You have clarified what you want and why it matters. You may even have a plan on paper. That is an important step, but it is only the beginning of how to achieve your goals.
The real work starts when vision turns into action.
This article is about that moment. The moment after the excitement of goal setting fades and commitment is tested. The moment when progress is determined not by what you planned, but by what you are willing to do next.
Before you go further, it is important to set the right context. This article is designed as a follow up to my earlier post on goal setting for 2026. If you have not read it yet, I strongly recommend starting there first. It lays the foundation for everything we are about to discuss, including defining your North Star and creating goals that truly matter.
These two posts are meant to work together. The first focuses on vision and direction. This one focuses on execution.
Vision Requires Action
The goals I am talking about here are not small or comfortable. They are bold, challenging, and often a little intimidating. They are the goals that stretch you beyond who you are today and force you to grow into someone new.
And because they are new, they require new actions.
You cannot achieve a new goal or outcome by repeating old behaviors. Vision without action stays theoretical. Action is what turns possibility into progress.
New Goals Demand New Behaviors
To become a Navy SEAL, I had to learn entirely new physical techniques. Obstacle courses. Combat swim strokes. Swimming with my hands and feet tied together. None of it felt natural at first.
The same pattern showed up when I started and grew a company. Hiring. Leading. Building culture. Innovating. Making decisions with incomplete information. Every major goal in my life demanded that I learn new behaviors and develop new skills.
Take a moment and think about your goal. If it is new to you, then the actions required to achieve it will also be new. That part is obvious. What surprises people is what comes next.
You Will Not Be Good at First and That Is Normal
When you try a new action you have never practiced before, you are not going to be good at it. In fact, you may be terrible at it. That does not mean you are failing. It means you are learning.
I have failed far more times than I have succeeded for this exact reason. Learning anything new takes practice, patience, and persistence. Too many people quit early because they mistake discomfort for incapability.
That is a fear based trap.
You are not going to fall into it.
Instead, when you stumble, remind yourself that every imperfect action is still progress. Every attempt is a step forward.
Beliefs Drive Action
Action is always a byproduct of belief. A belief is simply something you accept as true.
If you believe you are bad at something and repeat that belief every time you try, your effort will reflect it. You hesitate. You hold back. You stop early. I know this because I have lived it.
Limiting beliefs quietly cap commitment. Empowering beliefs unlock it.
Achieving any goal requires full commitment. Anything less slows momentum. And over time, it stops progress altogether.
How I C.A.N. Achieve My Goals:
You achieve your goals by building belief that fuels consistent action, not by waiting for motivation or perfect conditions. The I CAN Loop shows you how to strengthen that belief through daily action, reflection, and persistence so you keep moving forward, overcome setbacks, and turn your vision into measurable progress.
If you remember nothing else from this article, remember this. You must believe to achieve. And the most critical belief is believing that you can do it.
Vision gives you direction. Belief gives you motion. The I C.A.N. Loop is how you turn one into the other.
The I C.A.N. Loop
Over the years, I developed a simple system to help me move from vision to action, especially when learning something new. It is built around the most important belief anyone needs.
Challenge yourself and the old belief
Your ego will not be easily convinced that you are suddenly capable of something new. The old belief will push back. You may think, “I am still me.” But you are not the same person anymore. Your old self believed you could not. Your new self is learning that you can.
This is where challenge matters.
Every time you take your new action, go just beyond what your old self would have done. Do one more rep. Take the action when you are not forced to. Smile while doing it. Say it out loud if you have to.
You are teaching yourself that you are capable of more than you once believed.
Assess your progress with your new belief
Nothing fuels momentum like seeing progress. In the beginning, progress may show up only as fatigue or soreness. That still counts.
With time, you will notice small improvements. Actions feel easier. Confidence grows. Effort becomes more consistent.
Progress does not need to be dramatic to matter. Look for it. Acknowledge it. Celebrate it. Every small win strengthens your belief and makes the next action easier.
Neutralize the old belief with the new one
The fastest way to neutralize a limiting belief is to replace it with proof. Action is proof.
Laugh at the old belief that said you could not. Reinforce the new belief every time you take action. If you are consistent, the old belief fades quickly. It loses its influence.
You have now proven something important to yourself.
I can take the actions necessary to achieve my goal.
How to Achieve Your Goals: Use The I C.A.N. Loop
Vision alone does not change your life. Action does.
Your dreams only work if you do the work. And doing the work requires beliefs that support new behaviors. Every meaningful goal demands the same thing.
Persistent action.
If at any point you feel stuck, uncertain, or misaligned, go back to the beginning of the journey. Revisit how you defined your vision and clarified your North Star. That foundation matters more than you think, especially when execution gets hard.
If you have not read it yet, I strongly encourage you to start with my original article on goal setting for the year ahead. It lays the groundwork for everything discussed here and will help you reconnect your actions to a clear long term vision.
You can read it here:
https://www.alden-mills.com/blog/goal-setting-for-2026
Vision shows you where to go. Action is how you get there.
Charlie Mike.
Alden
