Former Philadelphia Eagle Vince Papale knows more than a little about motivation (his incredible underdog story proves that). For him, attacking obstacles is as easy as the three As:  analyze, adapt and achieve. Follow his advice, and you’ll be one step closer to your dream.

Analyze

“Get as much information or data as you can for the challenge that lies ahead of you. Use whatever resources you have, such as the internet. Understand that sometimes the challenge is within yourself, and you’ve got to have yourself prepared in order to take on that challenge.”

Adapt

“You’ve got to come up with a game plan, to use a football metaphor. But realize that with a game plan things change all the time. It’s not just going in a straight line from A to B. There are a lot of zigs and zags. Have more than one game plan and within each plan you have to be flexible enough to call an audible. You have to be able to improvise.”

Achieve

“The third ‘A,’ achieve, is getting the ball into the end zone, making it happen. It’s the finality of the dream, goal or challenge. You have to be willing to pay the price to achieve the goal. My high school football coach, George Corner, was my mentor growing up. When I was trying out for the Eagles, a lot of people were questioning my sanity and said I couldn’t do it, because it had never been done before. I hadn’t even played college football. My coach gave me this quote: ‘Happy are those who dream dreams and are willing to pay the price to make the dreams come true.’ You can dream all you want, but those who aren’t willing to take the risks are the posers who always have excuses for not achieving anything. If you’re not willing to sacrifice, persevere and commit to something, it’s not going to happen.”