What Amazons Want – 5 Years Out

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January 15, 2013 by Darlene McC

Howdy Amazons!  It’s the 3rd week of 2013 and I’ve been asking you to do a lot of thinking about the future.  Today’s exercise is predictable if you’ve been following along.  So far you’ve created a focus statement, sketched some categories for goals, picked some things you want in life, learned the rules of long-term goal setting, and where you want to be in 10 years.  If you’ve skipped a step I’d suggest going back to catch up.

So, Where Do You See Yourself…

…in 5 years?  Has your boss (or a potential boss) ever asked this?  Have you ever had an answer that you didn’t pull out of your ass?  It’s time to start crafting one.  Take a look at the things you’ve decided you want in 10 years time.  How can you chunk them up to make progress in the next 5 years?  Where do you need to be and where do you want to be?

This is also a good time to think about fun stuff.  If you’re young, you wont be young forever.  Anything you want to do before you’re too old or settled?  Races you want to run?  Travelling you want to do?  Sky diving before you’re a mom?

If you’re a little older and your kids are going to be a fun age, or they’re going to be out of the house, what about the freedom that’s going to afford you?  Are there big trips you want to save and train up for?  Be sure to add them in, even if they’re not part of some larger goal!  It can’t all be about the finish line, some of it has to be about your journey.

Process It

Whether you’re using Freemind, a spreadsheet, or good ole pen ‘n’ paper, set up your next tier and break down to where you want to see things in 5 years.  As we work back to 2013 it can feel like a lot of pressure to accomplish something, so on Thursday we’re going to talk about picking 1 year benchmarks in a reasonable, reassuring way that will allow you to set 2013 goals that don’t feel like a cinder block on your head.  For now, just sketch out where you think you want to be.

Remember to bounce your goals at each stage off your focus statement.  Just run them through the filter of what you think your life is really about and see if they square up. Be sure to refer to the rules as needed: Be Willing to Throw Things Away, and Customization is Key.

Of course, feel free to email me at darlene@urbanamazon.net with any questions, comments, or feedback.  We’re almost there!

Update:

You can find the next step in our January 2013 Goal Setting Extravaganza at

What Amazons Want: 2013 Goals