Entry # 2. My five year plan...

• What is a five-year plan?

1. A five-year plan is a list or a roadmap of professional and personal goals that a person wants to achieve with

   in the next five years. These goals include career, health, relationship, finance, or familywise. Need help setting up yours? Here's a link to aid you in the right direction: 5-Year Goals: How to Create a 5-Year Plan
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• The Goal Today 

The objective today is to give my readers an example of what someone's life might look like moving five years forward from today using the blog/weblink provided above, step by step. Come along with me!

• Step 1: List your values: 

"In terms of personal fulfillment, it’s crucial to have a sense of your personal values. A personal value is a worthwhile idea or behavior that guides short-term decisions and long-term goals. Personal values may include integrity, compassion, stewardship, and authenticity." 

My values: Determination and Compassion

-Determination is someone's purpose to do what they want to do. My purpose to keep going and reach my goals include success. Success is not only money and happiness. I can be happy having a family with a roof over our heads, my dream home, and some money of course. At the end of it all, I will be happy and grateful for anything I can grasp on to.

-Integrity is the idea of consistently keeping up with actions, values, methods, morals, measures, principles, expectations and outcomes. I plan to follow my parents' morals and principles in order to reach the goals I want to reach because they have taught from wrong and what is expected of a child who wants to be successful. For example, they have always told me that I have to go to school first, have a career, and start a family to be in their shoes. I consider my parents successful people because they have everything they've ever wanted and are grateful for what they have. Sure, they are not rich, but they are happily living their lives to the fullest.

• Step 2: Consider your career:

"Many five-year plans will focus on career goals. Whether you are starting a journey toward a new career path, or looking for advancement in your current line of work, setting goals is crucial. Set SMART goals (specific, measurable, attainable, relevant, time-bound) and include goal breakdowns for how you will achieve your overall objectives. This process can also be helpful in job interviews—a common interview question is “Where do you see yourself in five years?”"

-If you don't have an idea of what career you're interested in, take this quiz to help you out: Career Interests Quiz

My Career: Architectural and Civil Technology. 

My SMART goals and how: 

-Specific: I will finish my education and gain a career in architectural and civil technology. 

-Measurable: This can be tracked and proven with the degree I will gain in college, or university. 

-Attainable: I will go to school as required to gain a degree and/or certificate, I can also intern or shadow with companies to gain experience. 

-Relevant: This is relevant to what I am studying for in college, as well as to what I am interested in. 

-Time-based: I will finish college by next year 2025. I can go to university to get a higher degree, which will last me up to around 2029-2030.

• Step 3: Think about your personal life:

"Five-year plans can go beyond the workplace. Personal goals may involve relationships with friends, families, and partners, as well as personal goals for your health, living space, finances, and recreation. You can also include personal development goals, such as learning new skills."

 

-Moving forward, I will include everyone in my life, as well as new friendships I gain in the future into my life five years from now. I will be as healthy as God grants me the will to be. I will live in a positive environment with good energy around me. I will not struggle financially, as long as I am responsible with my money. Lastly, I will have as much fun and happiness with my loved ones. I used "I will" statements instead of "I want" to gain a better mindset of what I plan to achieve in the near future. 

• Step 4: Set you goals:

"Create a goal plan template and a running list of objectives when setting goals. Continue to refine, revise, and solidify the measurable goals you’re pursuing."

-I used the SMART goal plan method to set my goals, but there are also other ways to do this as well. Here are some links and a video to help you out:

• Top 9 Free Goal Setting Templates (Excel, Word, PDF)
• 10 tips to set goals and achieve them
  
• Goal Setting: A Scientific Guide to Setting and Achieving Goals

• Step 5: Make an action plan:

"Research the necessary steps to reach your goals. For example, identify the critical skills needed to pursue a new job and the educational requirements if you want to make a career change. An action plan might include professional development, like completing a certification program or attending a conference. Your action plan for learning a foreign language might include signing up for a language class or traveling abroad."

-Need help creating an action plan? Indeed has templates and examples here: How To Write an Action Plan (With Template and Example)

 

My career action plan: Architectural Technologist

-Obtain a high school diploma

-Pursue a post-secondary education

-Gain practical experience

-Professional certification

-Continual professional development

-Build a portfolio

Job searching and networking

-Apply for positions and interviews

-Continuous learning and growth

• Step 6: Set annual goals:

"The central units of your five-year plan should be in twelve-month increments. Ideally, each year of your five-year plan will have objectives that build toward your ultimate goal."

My five years:

-2024: Give birth to my beautiful baby in April. Finish my second semester of school. Find a job. Move into a new apartment.

-2025: Start my third semester of college after taking a small break in 2024. End my college life with the fourth semester and get my associate degree.

-2026: Get a job with the career I am interested in. Own a home with my partner for our family of three (as of now).

-2027: Go back into education and go into a university to further my knowledge.

-2028: Hopefully, move back to California or Mexico with my family and continue life there.

• Step 7: Break goals down into milestones:

"Setting short-term goals with timelines of a week or month can help you stay on task."

My short-term goal examples:

-Wake up every day, thank God for another day of life, go on about my day.

-Take a one hour walk 3 times a week to better my health.

-Go to work every day and make my money.

-Post on my blog weekly.

• In Conclusion...

setting a five-year plan can clarify your goals, confirm that the goals are something you really want, and create organization in your life. It allows you to stay on path that aligns you with what you are achieving.