Building Your Five-Year Career Plan (with PDF Worksheet)

The following post explores Building Your Five-Year Career Plan (with PDF Worksheet).

Success sometimes happens by chance – but it’s usually the result of careful planning. Much like a road trip, your career journey benefits from a clear destination and a well-thought-out map to guide you along the way.

Read: Understanding the Hidden Job Market

Related: Mapping Your Professional Network (with PDF Worksheet)

Of course, five years can bring incredible change. Change that may be impossible to predict. While you can’t know all that the future holds, you can begin to work on creating a clear vision for what you want.

Here’s what you need to know.

Overview

At the bottom of this post is a fillable PDF for you to download entitled the ‘Five-Year Career Plan’ worksheet.

This worksheet is a brainstorming exercise. There’s no ‘right’ or ‘wrong’ to the brainstorming process. The goal is to take stock of your current situation and to also think about the big picture.

There are five steps on the attached worksheet for building your five-year career plan.

Step #1

Write about your life, goals, passions, and dreams. Reflect on your finances, relationships, personal life, health, and the activities that bring you joy.

Step #2

Write about the things that motivate and inspire you – the thoughts that frequently occupy your mind. Reflect on what drives you to improve, strive for more, and become the best version of yourself.

Step #3

Describe in vivid detail where you want to be. What will you be doing, and what will your life look like? Imagine the sights, sounds, and feelings—paint a clear picture of your future. What does your career entail? Where are you living? What shape are your finances in? What activities bring you joy? How do you look and feel in this ideal future? Be as descriptive as possible to bring your vision to life.

Step #4

Describe where you are in life right now. What skills, knowledge, and experiences will help you reach your goals? Consider your strengths, weaknesses, opportunities, and obstacles. Is your current job aligned with your career aspirations? Do you have savings or retirement accounts? How does your health compare to where you want it to be in five years?

Step #5

From your list in step 3, choose three long-term goals to work on and a deadline of when you want to have them finished. These may or may not be your five-year goals. They could be smaller, milestone goals that you need to complete in order to reach your five-year goal.

Key Considerations

• Consider where you are now vs. where you will be when you complete these goals. What steps or actions do you need to take to get to where you need to be?
• From the list of actions above, what do you need in order to complete each step? (skills, experience, resources, finances, tools, assistance from…, etc.) Where will you get these
• What could possibly go wrong with this plan? What obstacles might you face? How will you handle these?
• How will you stay motivated while working on these goals? How will you handle times of stress, frustration, or lack of motivation?

In Conclusion

In conclusion, I hope this worksheet serves as a valuable tool for your brainstorming process. Kudos to you for dedicating the time – it’s an investment in your future that you’re sure to find helpful in the long-run.

Download the ‘Five-Year Career Plan’ Worksheet (in Fillable PDF)