Five-Year Plans

By Caliber Creative

Have you thought about where you’ll be in five years?

This spring marks five years since I graduated from my beloved alma mater, Augustana. In that time, I moved; I travelled; I got married; I switched jobs; I ran a few road races (not all in that order), but all of those things happened.

While you’re in school, time is structured with definite starts and stops very different from ‘normal’ life: the first day, midterms, finals, and summer break. At each of those milestones, professors and teachers encourage you to make plans, to read the syllabus, to set goals and to test yourself in the time (semester) allotted.

What I’ve found since graduating five years ago is, as you grow older, time moves faster. When definite points aren’t mapped out, like they were in school, daily accomplishments become blurred, or forgotten; years could slip by without a change of scenery; and the grind can wear down your spirit.

Growing up, my dad used to say that if you don’t make plans, nothing will happen. As I’ve been ‘out on my own,’ this truth has only become clearer. It would be easy to move through days, weeks, and years without diverting from routine. I think many people take this easy route, and ultimately feel, or get, stuck. That’s why I’ve made it an important part of my life (both personally and professionally), to make plans, make lists and make great things happen for myself, for my family and for my place of work.

My ‘five-year’ milestones listed above were all plans, or at least visions or dreams I had for myself. I moved downtown; I got to visit great cities including London, Paris and Napa; I said “I do” to my best friend; I accepted a position at Caliber Creative; and I ran a half marathon. All of these moments helped structure my time; helped me feel tested, challenged and ultimately accomplished.

Five-year plans might sound scary or boring or worthless, but they’re not. You won’t want to look back and think: where did the time go? What did I do? Did I do anything at all? You’ll want to look back and list everything you did, everything you felt challenged by, and everything you conquered. These are the moments that matter and that shape who you are.

Don’t wait a lifetime – plan, go and do!