I awoke this morning to the dragon’s hot breath on my face. I was disoriented, not quite knowing where I was. I struggled to open one eye. Then another.

And there he was. A dragon. A very big dragon. With three heads. Sitting in my bedroom, like so many mornings before, he was waiting. His heads swerved back and forth, dancing in the dim light. Each head alternately belching fire and hissing smoke.

Several years ago, I wrote out a list of “100 Things I Want to Do Before I Die.” It’s really an amazing, audacious list. Whenever I review it, I am both inspired and stunned by how many of the items I have already accomplished. And yet, there is so much more. The list keeps growing.

I’ll bet you have a list, too. Perhaps you’ve written it down; perhaps not. Regardless, you doubtless want to accomplish things—probably a lot of things. Really important things. Unfortunately, life is short. I have more to accomplish than I could probably do in seven lifetimes.

Over the course of my life, I have worked with a lot of planners. As a corporate executive, I worked with strategic planners. As a speaker, I work with event planners. And, as the father of five daughters, I’ve worked with my share of wedding planners.

But I have met very few life planners—people who have a written plan for their lives.

Yesterday, I wrote about how the mindset of a successful creative differs from less successful ones. I listed thinking big as the #1 characteristic. Several of my readers commented that they struggled with this.

I certainly understand why. When we are young, parents and teachers tell us we can do anything and become whatever we want. But as we grow older, these same people tell us we must be more realistic.

Several weeks ago, I had the privilege of hosting the Chick-fil-A Leadercast Backstage program. I interviewed several notable authors as they came off the stage, including Seth Godin, Sir Ken Robinson, Dan Cathy, Suzy Welch, Frans Johansson, and John Maxwell. I am continuing to share these on a weekly basis.

In this interview, I talk to John Maxwell, New York Times bestselling author and uber-popular leadership speaker. I first met John in 1998, when I came to Thomas Nelson as the Senior Vice President of Marketing for the Nelson Books division. John’s breakout book, The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, was one of my first projects. He has since become a good friend and mentor.

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.

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.

I have always believed that you are more likely to accomplish big goals if you declare them publicly. My rationale has been that this creates the accountability you need to follow-through. But now I am not so sure.

Derek Sivers makes a compelling case against going public with your goals in his short talk at the 2010 Ted Conference. (The talk is only a little over three minutes long.) His basic premise is this: telling someone your goals makes them less likely to happen.

I have a confession to make. Until about eight years ago, I didn’t floss. In fact, I hadn’t been to the dentist in a decade. My last experience had been so negative, that I just kept finding excuses to procrastinate.

For the last few days, I have been thinking about how to achieve really big goals. How do you do really hard things? How do you push through the inertia that threatens to keep you in your current state? How do you increase your probability of accomplishing what you set out to do?

I love the week between Christmas and New Year’s. For me, it is always a time when things slow down. I can reflect on the past year and look forward to the new year. I especially enjoy the time with my family and reconnecting with what’s really important.

In my last post, I talked about bringing closure to the previous year. I really think it is important to do this at every significant milestone, especially quarter-ends and year-ends). Otherwise, you end up dragging your unfinished business into the next year.

Twenty years ago, Robert Wolgemuth and I started a publishing company. We had a dream to publish books that truly made a difference, in people’s lives and in the overall culture.

I have met very few people who have a plan for their lives. Most are passive spectators, watching their lives unfold a day at a time. They may plan their careers, the building of a new home, or even a vacation. But it never occurs to them to plan their life. As a result, many end up discouraged and disillusioned, wondering where they went wrong.

But it doesn’t have to be this way. You can live your life on purpose. It begins by creating a “Life Plan.” This won’t insulate you from life’s many adversities and unexpected twists and turns, but it will help you become an active participant in your life, intentionally shaping your own future.

I have written much about planning and goal setting. It would be easy to get the idea that if you just plan well enough or persist long enough you will succeed. Frankly, I don’t think this is enough.