Week 8: Taking the First Step — How to Break Big Goals Into Actionable Steps and Build Momentum

(If you’re new here, this post is part of a 12-week series: The SONG Framework for Living Your Dreams. You can catch the introduction here.)

“Rome ne fu pas faite toute en un jour.”

We’ve all heard the saying Rome wasn’t built in a day, but the story behind it is quite fascinating. The phrase goes back to the 1100s in medieval France, appearing in a collection of proverbs. These proverbs were simple life lessons passed on within communities—truths that helped people navigate work, family, and ambition.

The inspiration behind this particular saying comes from the rise of the Roman Empire. Rome didn’t start as a grand, sprawling city. It began as a cluster of small settlements along the Tiber River and expanded slowly over centuries. Roads, aqueducts, temples, and entire cities were built brick by brick, often by hand, generation after generation. The sheer scale of this growth became a metaphor for patience, persistence, and the power of consistent effort. Over time, the saying spread across Europe as a reminder that meaningful achievements—whether empires or personal dreams—take time.

And that’s exactly the spirit of this week.

Start Small

This strategy works in almost every area of life. Any financial advisor will tell you that wealth grows from small, consistent investments rather than sudden leaps. Fitness trainers say the same—start with push-ups from your knees before progressing to full ones, or build up to 10km runs by first mastering five.

Why?
Because the compounding effect never lies. Small actions done repeatedly have a way of adding up quietly and powerfully.

Last week, you identified your goals and chose one to begin with. If you did your homework, you also listed three starter actions and tried out at least one. That was your first micro-step. Now we build on it.

Translate Your Big Goals Into Small, Stackable Ones

Setting goals is energising—you can almost feel the future calling you. But the excitement fades quickly once you realise the amount of work required to bring that vision to life. That’s where overwhelm shows up.

Breaking your big goal into small, achievable tasks keeps you moving forward without triggering panic or procrastination. Instead of facing a giant leap, you’re simply taking the next step.

Think of each action as a single brick. You don’t build a city by raising a cathedral—you start with one brick. And then another. And another. Over time, something remarkable takes shape.

The Snowball Effect

Those small wins matter. Once you begin ticking off tiny tasks, a snowball effect kicks in. You gain confidence. You pick up speed. You begin to trust yourself. Suddenly, you’re not just progressing toward one goal—you’re showing up differently in every part of your life.

You transform into someone who follows through. And that identity shift is where real, lasting change happens.

A Word on “Big” Steps

While small steps are your foundation, let’s acknowledge something else: sometimes the action you need is not small at all.

There are moments when the only way forward is a bold, uncomfortable leap.
Ending a relationship that drains you. Stepping away from an environment that no longer aligns with your growth. Saying no to commitments that keep you stuck.

These actions don’t have micro versions. They require courage, clarity, and a deep sense of self-honesty. And that’s okay. Small steps build momentum, but brave steps create transformation. Both matter in the journey.

Your Homework

What is the smallest possible action you can take today that moves you closer to your goal?
Name it.
Then go do it.

You’re building your Rome—one intentional brick at a time.