Most people fail at big goals for one reason:

They try to jump from A → Z. But progress doesn’t work like that.

It works like this: A → B → C →D→…→ Z

Small steps are what create the real momentum.

Vision is valuable when it’s specific enough to generate a plan.

Where do you want to go? What does success look like?

Once you define Z (the destination) and A (where you are now), you can work backward to design the path forward.

Here’s the mistake that many people make:

They look for shortcuts. They want the leap, that will get them straight to Z.

Real progress comes from identifying the next smallest step.

Not A → Z. Let’s take the small steps that get us from A → B. Then B → C. Then C → D. And so on until you get to Z.

Don’t forget to reflect through the process. Reflection helps you determine are you doing the work? Are you making progress? And, most important - has your “Z” changed?

Think of the last time you played the board game, the GAME of Life. was there a shortcut that got you from the beginning to the end?

No, why search for shortcuts in your success? You know there is an order of events, an order of operations. Here are some questions that might help.

Ask yourself:

You don’t need the whole roadmap before you move.

Try this simple framework:

Then repeat.

Plan → Do → Reflect → Learn → Act.

Every letter you complete builds momentum. And momentum, once it’s running, becomes its own kind of fuel.

We’re willing to bet that you’ve felt it before. That restless, middle of the night energy where you can see the future version of your business so clearly that it feels real. You know what you want to build. You know the kind of leader you want to become. You can picture the clients, the revenue, the impact.

And then Monday morning comes.

And somehow, you end up buried in your inbox, putting out fires, moving fast but not forward. Weeks blur into months and that vision? It sits dusty on the shelf.

Vision without a bridge to action isn’t strategy, it’s just a dream.

Entrepreneurs and business leaders who close the gap between where they are and where they want to be aren’t smarter, better funded, or more talented. They have simply translated their vision into a system. A repeatable process that converts clarity about the future into movement in the present.

Let’s break down how to do that.

Most planning frameworks tell you to start where you are. Map your current state, assess your resources, identify your gaps. It seems logical. But, it’s also why business plans die in a drawer.

The better move, in our opinion, is to start at the end.

Define your Z state - the fully realized version of what you’re building. Not a vague aspiration like “grow my business,” but a concrete picture.

The more specific your Z, the more useful it becomes. You have given yourself a point to design backward from.

This is design thinking: you work from the end state back to where you are today, identifying every condition that needs to be true in order to reach your destination.

Don’t forget a timeline. They matter because your Z state in twelve months looks different from your Z state in five years. Defining the when isn’t just calendar management, it tells you how many steps you have, how fast you need to move, and what resources you’ll need to acquire along the way.

In 2004, Howard Schultz stepped down as Starbucks CEO. By 2007, the company had expanded aggressively. By every metric, they were moving fast!

Schultz watched in growing alarm. The stores felt different. The culture was diluting, Customer experience was slipping. The vision - Starbucks as a place of human connection, craft, and community, was getting lost in the noise of expansion.

The problem wasn’t effort or execution. It was the fact that the company had confused motion with progress. They were moving from A toward something. But the something had drifted too far from Z.

The lesson? When you lose sight of Z, motion becomes the enemy of progress.

Plan → Do → Reflect → Learn → Think → Act → Repeat

It sounds simple because it is simple. But most entrepreneurs skip the middle three steps entirely.

They plan. They do. They plan again. And they wonder why they feel like they’re running in circles.

Reflection is where the gold is. After taking your three steps toward B, stop and ask: Am I where I expected to be? If yes, what made it work? If not, what got in the way?

Was it a decision-making challenge? Did you stall because you didn’t have enough information or because you were afraid to commit?

Was it a distraction challenge? Did urgency cannibalize importance? Did other people’s priorities displace your own?

Was it a resource challenge? Did you overestimate what you had available? Time, budget, energy, support?

Naming the friction isn’t a sign of failure. It’s data. And data is what lets you recalibrate before you compound the problem across the next twenty-five transitions.

Entrepreneurs who build momentum aren’t the ones who never struggle. They’re the ones who struggle, reflect, learn, and adjust faster than everyone else.

One last thing, the Z you define today is not a contract. It is not set in stone.

What you wanted in your first year of business may not be what you want in year five. You change. Life and circumstances change. You might bring on a partner, lose a mentor, discover a market you didn’t know existed, or realize the thing you were chasing wasn’t what you wanted after all.

That’s all part of growth.

The process of designing backward and executing forward works regardless of where Z is. You don’t have to get the vision perfect before you start. You do however, have to get it clear enough to move.

The gap between vision and action isn’t closed by working harder. It’s closed by working with a system. One that keeps your destination visible, your next step clear, and your learning loop open.

Ready to accelerate your movement from vision to impact? Work directly with Mike.

Struggling with your Job? Let’s build your Career GAME Plan.

Working with Leadership Masterminds

One of Mike’s favorite environments to work in is a leadership mastermind or peer advisory group. The rooms that bring together experienced leaders who are willing to ask better questions, challenge assumptions, and work through real business problems together.

Mike regularly facilitates interactive strategy sessions for mastermind groups and executive peer forums focused on leadership alignment, communication, and execution. These are practical, discussion-driven conversations designed to help leaders diagnose where execution slows down and how to get teams aligned again.

If you’re part of a mastermind group or know someone who facilitates one and they bring in outside perspectives, just reply to this email and we’ll connect.

Did you know that we are relaunching the Leader Lab?

The first iteration of this relaunch starts on Thursday with a special call focused on the skills that will help prepare you for the emerging and enablement technologies that continue to evolve. Specifically A.I.

Please email us back if you want to join.

Keep putting one intentional step in front of the other - the view gets better and better as you climb.

We’d love if you would share this with someone who is ready to build their sprints for the new year.

The Find My Catalyst Team