I know many highly successful people who write down their goals for the year ahead on New Year’s Eve. Are you one of them? I have achieved great results with this approach. Two years ago, I wrote on New Year's Eve that my book In Defense of Capitalism should be published in 20 languages. My goal was to sign all 20 contracts within the next 12 months. That was ambitious, because my most successful book to date (Dare to be Different and Grow Rich) had been published in 15 languages, but that took twelve years, not twelve months. I’ve achieved my goal. In fact, I signed 30 contracts for my book on capitalism and now have 25 translated editions of the book sitting on my bookshelf. I visited most of these countries this year and last, which was also my goal.

So, I have once again confirmed: It pays to write down goals and it pays to set ambitious goals. There is no 100 percent guarantee that you will always achieve your goals, but this approach does increase the likelihood significantly. Of course, if you don’t set yourself any goals in the first place, you can’t fail. At least that’s what many people believe.........

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