Imagine you’re working hard, and making steady progress toward a major goal.

The many amazing events of the Winter Olympics provide great examples of this.

Now imagine that you’re finding this path is turning out to be a much bigger challenge than you expected.

And then, imagine that something throws you off-course.

Perhaps in the example of the Olympics, a competitor does much better than you expected.

Or your own qualifying time for an event put you in first place – and you typically perform better farther back in the pack, when you’re chasing the leader.

And in the process of the surprise you’ve experienced, your confidence and the rock-solid assurance you felt that you’d be successful…suddenly…drains away or even dissolves.

Confidence has its own ebbs and flows as you make your way over, around, and through the barriers that crop up sometimes on the way to reaching a major goal.

Confidence is partly the result of believing in oneself, partly a matter of preparation and persistence, but largely, it’s earned as a result of one’s interim successes on the way to that big goal.

Here are a few things you can do to increase the chances of success, and to create the steady flow of confidence you need to reach your ultimate goal.

1. “Pre-experience” success

Imagine it in detail. What do you think success will be like when you reach it?

And what will it be like, all along the way to your goal?

For example, what do you think you’ll see?

What will you hear?

What do you imagine you’ll feel?

2. Activate and energize

Pay close attention to what happens, as compared to what you think will.

Update your vision, as you go.

Repeat your process of “pre-experiencing” success, and do so regularly.

3. Learn from others who have gone before you

Talk to others who have traveled this path, achieved this goal, or made this change, too.

Their experiences may be far different from your own, but your research can help you anticipate and be prepared for what might happen, both the highs and the lows of the experience.

4. Take action

Get started.

Keep moving.

Actively monitor, manage and adjust your progress, priorities, enthusiasm, energy and reserves as you go.

5. Evaluate

Be an active learner.

When things are going well, notice why that’s happening.

And when circumstances need to improve in order to make your way through a challenging time, notice that, too. And notice why it’s happening.

6. Keep a journal

Keep a learning journal that helps you understand and manage the experience.

It also becomes a great resource when you want to pursue your next major goal.

For example, record your goals, assumptions and plans when you started.

Note, also, what actions you took, what adjustments you made, and the results you achieved, all along the way.

If you found this post valuable, please share it with friends and colleagues who can use this information, too. You’ll also like the free weekly newsletter I publish every Tuesday. Sign up for the newsletter here.

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