How to Create a 5 year Plan That Will Motivate You All Year Round

It’s a new year and with that comes the pressure of new year resolutions but this post will show you how to create a 5 year plan that will actually motivate you all year round!

I don’t know when my obsession with a 5 year plan began. It’s kind of a running joke between me and our friend group that I plan the next 15 years of my life out. I’ve found so many revised versions of various plans in random journals, planners and old school papers.

The best thing about a 5 year plan is that, when it’s done right, it’s super motivating and feels GREAT to look back at!

5 Helpful Tips to Create a Motivating 5 Year Plan:

1. Think Big Picture and Aim High. 5 years is a long time so dare to dream BIG. Where do you truly want to see yourself in 5 years? What salary would be amazing for your family? What business goal would make you feel like a huge success? Write it down! One of my favorite quotes is: “A dream written down with a date becomes a GOAL. A goal broken down into steps becomes a PLAN. A plan backed by ACTION makes your dreams come true”. Maybe a little cheesy but SO true! My husband and I are constantly amazed at how we are able to achieve big goals we set years ago way faster than our plan even said once we buckle down and work for those goals!
2. Your goals should be SMART. This is goal building 1:1. SMART goals are: Specific, Measurable, Attainable, Realistic, & Time bound. Keep these 5 things in mind with every single goal you set! For example if a professional goal you have is “get your doctorate” but that’s not financially realistic within the next 5 years, then make the goal ”begin saving for grad school” or “begin researching admissions requirements”, etc…
3. Set Goals for Each Area of Your Life. This is a big one for me and you’ll see how it fleshes out in my FREE download linked HERE and below! This is the top tip I have to keep your goals organized and realistic. I have always separated my goals into a few categories such as: personal, financial, relationships, family, health/fitness… But you can definitely get even more specific with this!
4. Accept that your 5 Year Plan is Meant to be Revised. Life changes SO much. Sometimes I laugh when looking back at some of my 5 year plans. A lot of the things actually happened like adding to our family, buying a house, etc… But some of the things I have no interest in anymore and that’s ok too! Overall making revisions isn’t a failure. It actually shows growth!
5. Don’t Be Afraid to Give Yourself Some Small Wins. Dream big 100%, but also give yourself some smaller more easily achievable goals. Often the biggest motivator is small wins that slowly give you momentum! For example if a goal you have is to run a marathon, set your goal for the first year to run 3x a week no matter the distance. It’s a smaller goal that you will feel amazing about when you look back!

Let’s Get Started!

1. Let’s start by downloading my FREE 5 year plan guide HERE! This download breaks your life down into 5 categories with several goals each! The categories I typically use when creating a 5 year plan are: Personal, Financial, Spiritual, Family and Bucket List. If you have more goals for each year than the spaces provided, that’s ok! You can print as many of the guides as you need!
2. Understand where to group your goals by category. Personal goals are things like: read 25 books this year, start therapy, run 5 miles a week, start my own photography business, get my master degree, etc. These goals are very specific to YOU! Financial goals are more obvious such as paying off debt or increasing your income/investing. I add spiritual goals but you can look at this category as a humanitarian section as well. Your goals could be something like: Attend church every week, give to charity, volunteer 3x a year, etc… Family is a category for your relationships. Your goals here could be to start dating again, get pregnant, spend more time with your kids, etc… Finally my personal favorite: Bucket List! This is an awesome category where you can list vacations, dreams, etc.
3. After you determine your top goals for each year, write down the date or a date range when you want to start or complete each goal. Remember SMART goals are time bound!
4. Lastly, create actionable steps for each goal. For example: If your goal is to run 5 miles a week, some actionable steps would be to purchase good quality running shoes, find accountability partners and set your alarm/reminders daily!
5. Start working your steps and watch the magic happen! Time flys and before you know it, you’ll be looking back at these goals, revising your plans and feeling great about what you’ve achieved!

Create your 5 year plan NOW!

I’d love to hear what your goals are for 2023 and beyond! Drop a comment below!