Unsure about your future? This guide shows how to set long-term goals with small steps, reflection, and gentle structure.

Let’s talk about one of the worst interview questions ever:

“Where do you see yourself in 5 years?”

If that sentence, like me, has you going – “hell if I know, there are so many outside factors, how can you possible know???.” Same. But it’s hard to set any long-term goals if you can’t see your future, so let’s talk about what you can do to at least narrow in the vibes.

You can download the companion worksheet (or just grab a piece of paper) and follow along.

Start at the End

This exercise begins backwards. Imagine your future self way, way ahead if you want. What kind of life have you lived?

• What did you build or create?
• What are you proud of?
• What do you wish you had more of?

Go deep, even to the end of life if you are comfortable with it. From there, we’ll reverse-engineer your long-term goals.

What did your life look like?

Family

• Do you have kids? A big extended family? Chosen family?
• Are you the host-home or more private?
• Unsure? Make a “what if” column for both paths.
• Are you a social goblin with a cottage in the woods? 🙋‍♀️
  

Relationships

• Are you with a partner? What are they like?
• How do they treat you? What’s your vibe together?
• If you’re solo, what does your support system look like?

Work & Career

• Are you running your own business?
• Working in nonprofit? Corporate?
• Climbing the ladder fast or building slow and steady?

Don’t worry if you don’t know the specifics, this is a long-term goal plan you can really go with vibes on. You can always change it, and it’s never to late to restart or try again.

Home & Lifestyle

• What kind of space do you live in?
• Do you want a yard? A condo in the city? A tiny home in the woods?
• What’s your daily life like?

What If You’re Unsure?

That is super normal, long-term goals are hard. There are many options – it’s similar to that question you got as a child “what do you wanna be” – its so hard to answer and it changes regularly. It’s hard to set long-term goals because we know how much the future is in transition – especially in our timeline. Take your time, and come back regularly – it may change year over year.

This is why I advocate or lots of goal reviews! Priorities change.

Why This Exercise Works

Starting with the end in mind helps with any long-term goal because if you have the vision of what it looks like – be it your life or a deck – you can reverse engineer it. If you are building a deck, you start with what it looks like then break it into parts. I need so many 2×4’s etc. Shapes, all that jazz.

Same with your life. If you want to be a Doctor, you have to do certain steps. How do you get to those steps? What do they require? Etc. Work backwards on really hard goals.

Free Worksheet

I think this is a great journalling prompt you should do for each category of your level 10 life – or even periodically each year, but want a printable to use in your planner? I got you.