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Welcome back to Dream Toolbox.\xa0 We have talked a lot about changing core belief systems, visualizing your dream and making it real in your mind, as well as creating useful waypoints to make sure you stay on track.\xa0 There will be more to say about each of these as we go along.\xa0 They are the critical pieces in making any dream come true.But now it is time to talk about more mundane things. \xa0 The first of which is just getting started.\xa0 For most people, dreams remain just that\u2014dreams\u2014and are never realized because of a critical missing piece:\xa0 those who had the dreams simply never took the first practical steps to make them a reality.\xa0 So let\u2019s talk about those steps.1.\xa0 Take a hard, realistic look at where you are in life and where you want to go. If you have no money and perhaps belong to a minority race or have any of many other obstacles in your way, don\u2019t pretend those obstacles are not real.\xa0 Instead, start thinking about what you will have to change about you, your surroundings, your education, or your lifestyle to turn those obstacles into stepping-stones to success.\xa0I know that I have said that those kinds of obstacles do not define you or prohibit you from achieving success.\xa0 But, and this is a big \u201cbut\u201d, if you don\u2019t address them realistically, they can block your success.\xa0 I\u2019ll give you a trivial, but illustrative example.\xa0 I had a business partner a few years ago who was an incredibly talented black man.\xa0 I noticed that when we went to business meetings, he was inevitably the best-dressed person in the room and then when we traveled together he always carried a travel iron and pressed his clothes before each new day. \xa0I asked him why, and his answer was simple and insightful.\xa0 He said, \u201cAlthough I am confident of my ability, I know that in any meeting I may encounter those who expect me as a black man to be less capable.\xa0 Being always the best-dressed person in the room helps to keep that issue off the table and requires very little effort on my part.\u201d\xa0 I asked if he resented having always to be just a little bit better than his competitors.\xa0 His answer was wise and accurate.\xa0 He said,\xa0\u201cEveryone has obstacles to overcome.\xa0 Mine just happens to be skin color, but the things I do to make sure that is not a barrier to success can also give me a better chance of success even if my skin color would never have mattered in any particular meeting. So, by solving one problem, I have created extra opportunities.\xa0 Why should I resent that?\u201d2.\xa0 Prepare to succeed.\xa0 Begin by doing the things we have already discussed and whatever else you have determined need to be done for success.\xa0 Above all, remember the words of John Wooden, perhaps the most successful basketball coach of all time, who said, \u201cFailing to prepare is preparing to fail.\u201d \xa03.\xa0 Finally, just start.\xa0 That sounds simple, but when any of us faces the uncertain future and the risks that are involved in trying to make a dream that matters to us come true, it is very easy to say, \u201cI\u2019ll start first thing tomorrow.\u201d\xa0 Procrastination is the greatest thief in the world; it steals our lives, one day at a time.\xa0 Whatever your age or circumstance, you have the power right now to begin reshaping your life for success.\xa0 Just begin\u2014now.