Vision and strategy are both important. But there is a priority to them. Vision always comes first. Always. If you have a clear vision, you will eventually attract the right strategy. If you don’t have a clear vision, no strategy will save you.

I have seen this over and over again in my professional and personal life. Once I got clear on what I wanted, the how almost took care of itself. Let me give you an example.

Several years ago I went through a fairly significant examination of life, work, family, art and where it all was headed. I had just ended a pretty intense season in which I found myself spread thin and a little over-extended, and I knew that I couldn’t sustain the pace indefinitely. Still, it was a critical juncture in my life and career. I was looking for some insight on how to stay engaged and keep moving forward.

During that season, I was in a meeting in which a South African friend asked, “Do you know what the most valuable land in the world is?” The rest of us were thinking, “Well, probably the diamond mines of Africa, or maybe the oil fields of the middle east?”

Gail and I are currently on a sabbatical. It has provided me with a great opportunity to review my goals and set new ones. As I have been doing so, I have realized once again, the incredible power of committing your goals to writing.

I have done this for years. I have written my goals on yellow legal pads, on black notebooks, in special goal-setting software, and now in Evernote, alongside my Life Plan.

People with dreams are a dime a dozen. I meet them all the time. So do you. Some even start organizations. But few ever have the impact they initially hoped for. They just can’t seem to get their project to the next level.

Enter Praxis, a new non-profit organization set up to help social entrepreneurs build high-impact organizations. What does the name mean? According to the Merriam-Webster Dictionary, praxis is the practical application of a theory.

I know lots of people with big dreams. But they are afraid to pursue them. They are unwilling to take the plunge, waiting until they reach the point of absolute certainty. But it never comes. And it never will.

This is the problem with commitment. You must act on limited information. Whether it is marriage, starting a new career, or leaving a good job to pursue your dream. You do your best to gather the best information you can, but then you must act. If you don’t, you risk “dying with the music in you.”

When my husband and I first considered adoption, we were confronted with the daunting reality that it would be incredibly expensive. We knew that there was no way we could finance it on our own.

As we talked about raising the necessary funds, my dream was that a loving family member or friend would lead us to a quiet corner, put his arm around us, and whisper that he wanted to write a check for the entire amount. That was my idea of God showing up for us.