How To Create The Perfect 5 Year Plan

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STREAMLINING YOUR GOALS

When I first stumbled across the idea of creating a 5-year plan, I thought it was silly. 

What did I need a 5-year plan for when I wrote down my new year’s resolutions once a year?

But, when going over those lists of goals at the end of each year, I realized something.

Hardly anything had been checked from the list; in fact, I had almost completely forgotten ALL of them. 

I knew something needed to give, time was just passing me by, and I was done idly watching as it did so. 

HOW IMPLEMENTING A 5 YEAR PLAN WILL CHANGE YOUR LIFE 

Long-term goals are often the hardest to accomplish; we lose track of them or maybe get discouraged since the finish line is so far out, and sometimes we forget about them altogether. 

This is why creating a 5-year plan is the perfect way to keep track of your goals and push you to work toward your dreams continually. 

A 5-year plan can help you,

• Find structure in your daily life.
• Create a clear plan of action for tackling your goals
• Have a sense of pride as you accomplish the things you have set out to do
• Give you a sense of fulfillment and happiness 

“Two roads diverged in a wood and I  took the one less traveled by, and that made all the difference.”

—Robert Frost

WHERE DO YOU WANT TO BE IN 5 YEARS? 

Ask yourself, where do you see yourself in 5 years?

What will make you feel happy and fulfilled? 

Break it down. There are many different categories in which we must plan ahead. Such as, 

• Health
• Relationships
• Career
• Finances
• Personal development
• Environment
• Adventures 

These are just a few important categories to think about as you craft your life plan. 

CREATING A 5 YEAR PLAN 

When creating a 5-year plan, it is essential to break those goals down into short-term goals and those short-term goals down into smaller, more actionable steps. 

I find that breaking my 5-year timeline down into 1 year, 6 months, 1 month, and 1 week helps me stay on track to accomplishing long-term goals.

Now, grab some paper! It’s time to do a massive brain dump! Take the paper and divide it into 5 sections.

Label them accordingly, 5 years, 1 year, 6 months, 1 month, and 1 week. 

5 YEARS 

We are going to start with the 5 years section first.

This is where you jot down where you would like to be 5 years from now. 

Don’t worry about filtering; just write! You can worry about the logistics later. 

What would your ideal life look like? Write it all down!

By the time you are finished, your 5-year plan section should read something like this, 

• Fluently speak a second language
• Purchase a new property
• Publish a book
• Start a small business
• Travel abroad 
• Start a family 

How many long-term goals you list is entirely up to you. 

1 YEAR

Now we move on to the 1-year section.

When brainstorming where you would like to be a year from now, also be sure to refer back to your 5-year goals.

Ask yourself what must happen for you to accomplish your 5-year goals?

Are there any steps that can help you achieve those goals more quickly?

Once you have evaluated your 5-year goals and broken them down into 1-year steps, it’s time to brainstorm and add goals you wish to accomplish within the year.

Your 1-year plan ought to look something like this,

• Complete a Spanish course 
• Download and maintain a 200-day streak on Duolingo 
• Save for a downpayment on a new property
• Save up 3 months of living expenses.
• Complete novel manuscript
• Choose an editor and begin the editing process
• Choose an agent to represent my book
• Research and create a thorough business plan
• Save up for, plan, and go on at least 2 vacations abroad
• Improve flexibility
• Practice more mindful eating
• Find more time for nature/go hiking
• Create a more minimalist lifestyle
• Make more time for art
• Get in shape  

6 MONTHS

Now let’s break down our 1-year goals into 6-month actionable steps as well as additional smaller goals that we wish to accomplish in 6 months or less. 

• Research Spanish courses
• Create an action plan that ensures the manuscript will be finished by the 1-year mark
• Calculate precisely how much money will be needed to purchase the new home as well as have 3-months of living expenses set aside/create a plan for doing so
• Research editors and agents in my genre
• Brainstorm what kind of business to start 
• Research and plan 2 vacations
• Practice stretching/research attending a yoga class
• Create a clean meal plan
• Go for a hike at least once a month
• Marie Kondo the house
• Replace media time with something artistic
• Commit to working out at least 5-days a week

My 6-month section generally breaks down into a lot of researching the things I wish to accomplish. Which is okay; research is an essential part of the process. 

1 MONTH

Now we break the goals down even further! 

Where would you like to be a month from now? What steps will you take to propel you toward your long-term goals?

• Research and enroll in an online Spanish class
• Download Duolingo and add 15 minutes of Spanish practice to the daily routine
• Set aside time to write for at least 30 minutes every day
• Budget and set money aside for savings
• Plan vacation number 1, i.e., costs, itinerary, and timeframe 
• Implement yoga into your self-care regimen
• Plan a hike
• Choose a home improvement project to tackle
• Take up painting in the evenings rather than mindlessly scrolling through Facebook
• Find time in your daily routine to lift some weights and get your heart rate up

1 WEEK 

Now it’s time to choose a few of the tasks we wish to accomplish during the week.

You don’t need to do them all at once. Instead, you should split the tasks up over the month.

• Duolingo every day for 15 minutes
• Create a writing plan, start on the backstory for the characters and setting
• Practice yoga for at least ten minutes every morning
• Re-finish old dresser
• Create a beautiful painting for the bedroom
• Create and stick to a workout plan

Start small; try not to overwhelm yourself, especially since there are already many things to do on a routine day. 

Plan out which days you will accomplish what task, and try to evenly distribute the tasks throughout the week. 

If you need a little help with creating a healthy routine, be sure to check out my article, How To Create The Perfect Routine. 

NEXT

Once you have finished filling in your 5-year plan, you should post it somewhere it will be seen often. 

I love turning my plan into a vision board, which I have placed in my office, where I will see it every day.

This helps remind me of what I am working toward. 

My husband and I also will sometimes write our goals out on the bathroom mirror with dry-erase markers!

This is a great place to put your goals since it is a room that you will frequent often. 

A FEW TIPS TO REMEMBER WHEN IT COMES TO ACCOMPLISHING GOALS

Tip 1

The most important key to success is CONSISTENCY!

If you have a bad day, that’s okay; we ALL have off days! Tomorrow is a new day, so try again. We only fail when we stop trying! 

Tip 2

Cast aside self-doubt.

Now, this isn’t always easy, but we must keep moving forward even when we fear failure.

Tip 3

Behave as if you have already achieved your dream life.

Act, dress, think, be who you wish to be.

Start living the way you want to live, start being that person you wish to be 5-years from now, and the rest will follow. 

It is a lot like how they say you should dress for the job you want, well the same goes for living for the life you want! 

Tip 4

Create and implement healthy routines and positive habits to set yourself up for success.

Tip 5

Regularly set goals and evaluate your 5-year life plan. 

YOUR TURN

I challenge you to sit down and create your 5-year plan this week! I promise you won’t regret it.

It is so much easier to accomplish goals when there is a clear map of getting there. 

Implementing a 5-year plan has changed everything for me, which is why I created an awesome Printable 5 Year Plan to help keep me organized. Be sure to check it out!

5 Year Plan Printable

My long-forgotten new year’s resolutions are no longer idly growing dust on some crumpled piece of paper in my nightstand.

They are real actionable goals that I grow closer to reaching each day! 

Start small, but start! YOU’VE GOT THIS!

“Life is not about finding yourself. Life is about creating yourself.”

—Lolly Daskal

Want to learn more about working for yourself and achieving your best life?

Stick around for future articles and be sure to SUBSCRIBE for our FREE mind reboot camp, as well as receive an easy printable goal breakdown worksheet! 

What are some things you like to do to stick to your long-term goals?

What are some of the biggest obstacles you face when it comes to accomplishing long-term goals? 

I’d love to know. Let me know in the comments below!

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Have a bright day!