Radical. Boy, there’s a word. A powerful word. An emotional word. One of those words that tends to generate an immediate, almost involuntary response in people.

Did you feel something when you read it? A little apprehensive, a little resistant? Well, for just a moment, let’s set aside all the negative associations that can accompany this word and look at what it really means. Because the fact is, it’s one you should get comfortable with.

According to the very first reference Google served up to me, the word radical refers to “change or action relating to or affecting the fundamental nature of something.” And good old Merriam-Webster defines radical as describing something: “very new and different from what is traditional or ordinary.”

Affecting fundamental change? Different from the ordinary? By that definition, just about everyone I’ve ever admired is radical. Everything I have any interest in being a part of is radical. I am completely, totally, utterly radical.

And do you know what?

I have a sneaking suspicion YOU are on your way to becoming radical, too.

Are you ready to get RADICAL?

You become radical the minute you step over the line that separates who you were and are from who you WANT to be, and decide to never look back.

Here are four simple ways you can make that move today:

1) EXPECT something radical

I’ve talked before about the power of expectation. When you begin your day with the conscious, deliberate expectation that all of your outcomes are going to be successful and profitable, you are altering the very foundation of that day: you are being radical.

Tonight, before you go to sleep, set an outrageously good expectation for tomorrow. Decide that everything you have to do is going to turn out spectacularly well. When you wake up, do the same thing. And at every single turn, in every moment and every interaction, expect to get what you want. It is a radically different way to approach your life—and you will be amazed by the way it changes it.

2) IMAGINE something radical

I know there’s something bigger, better, MORE you want to be doing or experiencing in your life. But is it big enough? Would it not just improve your life, but change it in a fundamental way? Is it RADICAL?

Think of one thing you want right now, and take it to its extreme. For example, do you want more money? Add a bunch of zeroes to the dollar amount you think you can realistically hope for, and spend some time really picturing and feeling yourself living life with that level of financial abundance. Saturate your mind with the sensation of being radically wealthier than you are right now, so thoroughly that the previous limit you placed on your potential is no longer fathomable to it.

3) READ something radical

The Internet, the newspaper, email, advertisements—all day, every day, you’re confronted with messages that remind you of your life as it is now, and keep you tied to the status quo.

You may not be able to eliminate all those words from your daily life. But you CAN make some space for reading that presents your mind with a radically different proposition for what you are capable of being and becoming. I suggest starting with the book that started it for me: Think and Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill. There are plenty of other options out there, too – you can start right here on this very blog! Actively combat the messages that confirm what is, with messages that reveal what is POSSIBLE.

4) DO something radical

There are few things more powerful, more fundamentally life-changing, more radical than committed action. When you decide what it is you want, and move your whole self—mind, body, and spirit—towards achieving it, forces come to your aid that will absolutely astonish you.

What does committed action really mean? It means believing so strongly in your goal, you’re willing to give it your most valuable resources. It means doing things you’ve never done before. It means being accountable for your thoughts and actions in a way you’ve never been before. It means taking a radically different approach to success. If you’re ready to do that, this is a fantastic place to start.