Look at this face. What do you see? The face of a dreamer or an achiever? For thirty-five years, Diana Nyad has planned and persevered while others observed in wonder and disbelief as she pursued her dream to swim from Cuba to the Florida Keys. Even if you didn’t understand her dream, you had to respect her ambition to achieve it.

Accomplishing this amazing feat was no accident. Nyad consistently did five things that are actionable for all of us to achieve our dreams:    1) She didn’t repeat the past. 2) She talked about her dream and and shared it. 3) She never quit on it. 4) She shared her success and failure openly. 5) She lived in the present; doing what she could each day to move closer to her dream.

I believe that big goals require us to be both dreamer and achiever. It might feel counter-intuitive to talk about a dream while you’re driving for metrics. Even so, live with intention. Take actionable steps to achieve your dream. Find a way.