3x3: On Turning Dreams Into Reality, Succeed From Failure, and the Exponential Power of Consistency

Hi, it’s Tom.

In this edition, I’ll show you how consistency creates exponential results, my process to turn dreams into reality, and how failure is necessary to build sustainable success.

Let’s dive in.

1. How to Turn a Dream Into Reality

A dream stays a dream until you take action. The secret is to transform it into a goal, break it into steps, and back it with daily action. Here’s how:

• Step 1: Write down the dream: “I want to write a book.”

• Step 2: Set a deadline: “I’ll complete it in six months.”

• Step 3: Turn the dream into a goal: “I’ll write 60,000 words.”

• Step 4: Break the goal into steps: “I’ll write 500 words every day.”

• Step 5: Take action and time-block: Spend 30-45 minutes daily writing, no matter what.

At the end of six months, you’ll not only have a completed book but also a process you can use to achieve any goal.

Big dreams only come true when broken into small, achievable steps and supported by consistent action.

Question: Take a piece of paper or open your notes app. What’s one dream you’ve been postponing? Write it down, break it into a goal, a plan, and a daily action you can start today.

2. Failure is the Cement of Success

Failure isn’t just a roadblock. It’s the foundation that makes success sustainable.

In 1985, Steve Jobs was fired from Apple, the company he co-founded. Many would have given up. Moved to a quiet village to raise goats and live a simple life. But Jobs didn’t quit. Instead, he built NeXT and Pixar, sharpening his vision and learning how to build even stronger companies.

When he returned to Apple in 1997, he brought back the lessons from those failures. He then launched the iPod, the iPhone, the iPad, the MacBook Air, and one of the most successful turnarounds in business history.

Jobs didn’t succeed despite his failures. He succeeded because of them.

Failures teach you what works, what doesn’t, and how to adapt. Without them, success has no foundation to stand on.

Question: Think back to a failure in your life. What specific lessons can you learn that makes you stronger or more capable now on?

3. Consistency Unlocks Exponential Growth

Consistency doesn’t just create progress. It multiplies it.

As an avid runner, I experience it all the time.

Let’s say you’re a complete beginner who starts running twice a week:

• Week 1: You run 4km total at a slow pace. It feels hard, and recovery is tough.

• Month 1: You’ve gained endurance, increased to 5km runs twice a week, and now log 10km weekly.

• Month 3: You’ve improved your pace by 20%, recover faster, and run 3 times per week. Now you log 15km weekly.

• Month 6: You run 10km with ease, increase frequency to 4 times a week, and log 40km weekly.

In six months, you go from struggling to run 4km weekly to logging 40km with confidence. That’s a 10x improvement.

With consistency, recovery improves, pace quickens, efficiency grows, frequency rises, and volume increases. The effort compounds, turning small weekly runs into milestones that felt impossible just months ago.

Consistency isn’t about doing the same thing forever. It’s about sticking with it long enough to see the results compound and benefit from exponential progress.

Question: Where can you start showing up consistently to unlock exponential growth in your life?

Something New is Coming!

Since Christmas, several of you have kindly reached out asking to buy my illustrations for their spaces (gyms, home offices, classrooms, meeting rooms, etc.).

It always makes me feel so great when I see my illustrations in your spaces. Knowing they inspire you in your daily life means a lot to me and is part of why I’m doing all this.

As handling these requests one by one is getting time-consuming and not the best use of my time, I’m working on a solution to simplify this process.

Soon, you’ll be able to purchase HD versions of my illustrations to print and frame for your space more easily. I’m also considering offering screen wallpapers if that’s something you’d be interested in (??).

For now, you can continue messaging me directly through Instagram or replying to this email. Have a great week!

À la semaine prochaine,

Tom