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| Where will your life path take you? |
I've written about this future-planning method often. It's one of my favorite strategies for identifying what I want to do and why. Simply, you write a description of your life ten years from now. If you're older, you may choose to do a five-year description instead. Once you've identified where you want to be in ten years, you work backwards to identify what it is you have to do to get there. This has been a mostly successful strategy for me; a strategy that's helped me achieve some of the difficult and inviting goals I've had in life.
These are a few tips for creating your ten-year plan.
Where you want to be in ten-years?
To specifically create a scenario of where you want to be in ten-years takes some good time and thought. You can do this with words, images, audio, collage, and/or video.
Begin with place--what kind of place do you want to live in? Where is this place and what does the place look like? Prioritize the objects in the place? For example, I know I want to live in a cozy, welcoming place.
Next, think about the people that surround you in ten-years. You can't predict who will be in your life, but in your plan, you can make space for the people you want in your life.
And, consider the type of activities and schedule you'd like in ten years. For me, I want to have a positive level of healthy activity that involves contribution, community, the arts, creativity, and discovery.
Finally, who do you want to be? What personality traits do you want to nurture; and what weaknesses do you want to strengthen. Most of us want to be healthy, so think about how you will achieve or retain the health quotient you desire. What kind of a family member and friend do you want to be?
How to get there?
Once you've created the scenario you hope for in ten years, then, by working backwards, create a plan to get there. How do you do that?
First, consider what elements in your ten-year plan are already in place in your life. For those elements, you simply have to plan to retain those elements. Then consider the elements that you desire, but don't exist. Think about what you can do to make those elements a part of your life in ten years.
Can you realistically plan for the future?
We truly don't know what will happen in our lives in ten years. While we can imagine a good plan, we can't plan for the unexpected. That's why we have to regularly review the ten-year plan and make adjustments related to the unexpected changes in ourselves and our world that occur.
Also, while the ten-year pan includes specific events, activities, and places, what's more important are the values and ways of being those specific events, activities, and places represent. For example, I can imagine the specific places I'd like to live in, but what's most important to me about where I live is that the places are cozy and welcoming. I can also imagine the specific people I want in my life, but what's most important is that the people are people I truly love and enjoy a mutual give-and-take relationship with. As for activities, I have specific activities I can imagine myself doing, but what's most important is that I have the opportunity to engage in creative endeavor, positive challenges, camaraderie, and contribution--that's what brings me happiness.
Know thyself
Making the time to create a ten-year plan helps you to know yourself well, and knowing yourself well helps you to create a fulfilling, positive life. Onward.