This is one of the most popular exercises my clients complete when they’re struggling to figure out what they want to do. 

Sometimes we’re so focused on the granular question at hand, “What job would be best for me?” we forget to zoom out, and tap into the vision of the broader life we want this next career step to be a part of — the life we want to move towards creating.

Once we have that vision in mind, it becomes easier to assess which potential next steps would (and wouldn’t!) lead us there.

This exercise guides you to creatively envision a day in your ideal life, five years from now. 

Here’s how you do it: 

First, pull out a pen and paper, or open up a new document on your computer. 

Then, close your eyes, and take three deep breaths. Start to imagine yourself opening your eyes and waking up in the morning, on a random work day five years from now, in your ideal life. 

After you’re done taking those deep breaths, start writing, from start to finish, what that ideal day would look like. Follow the below prompts to envision and describe what that life vision looks like.

*To note, if you’re feeling stuck in this exercise because you’re considering multiple visions of what your future could look like, try creating a narrative for each of those different possibilities, so you can look at them side by side. Give each of them a name, for instance, you might have a “Climb the ladder” path and a “Start my own business” path, or a “Stay at home with the kids” path and a “Become a poet” path. Try exploring the possibilities from the lens of what each path would actually look like on a random Tuesday, to figure out which one(s) you’re most drawn to exploring further.

• Where do you wake up? What time is it? When you roll over and open your eyes, what do you see? What kind of a place and space are you living in, and who or what is there with you? What do you do first? What does your morning routine look like? 

• How do you get to work? Where is it? What does your work space look like, and who is there when you get there? 

• What kinds of work do you do? What kind of company or organization are you working  for? What’s the pace of the day like? What kinds of tasks or projects are you working on? Are you working with individuals? By yourself? Groups? What is the bulk of your day spent doing? What are you trying to accomplish? 

• When do you stop working, and where do you go? What does your evening look like? When do you go to bed? How do you spend your weekend?

Once you’ve completed the first part of your exercise, reflect on what you can learn from what you’ve written. 

• What does this vision tell you about what’s most important to you in life (your values)?

• How does this vision compare to your life today? What elements exist in your current life, and what’s missing? 

• For the elements that are missing, what might it take to incorporate them into your life? (Bonus points if you separate these elements into two lists titled “minor effort” and “major effort”)

• If you were to move towards that vision starting today, which elements would you most want to focus on building? What would it take, and where would you start?

Keep in mind, you’re not making any promises or committing to this vision today. This is part of a larger exploration process to help you uncover insights about what you do and don’t want. And even if you came away with a remarkably clear vision today, that vision may change as new experiences, people, and needs come into your life. 

But hopefully by the end of this exercise, you have a better idea of what parts of your 5-year vision are already present in your life. Those are the pieces to be grateful for, and to thank yourself for building thus far. 

I hope you also gain a clearer understanding of the kind of life you want to build towards — what’s missing, and which steps would and would not help you move in that direction. 

And last, I hope you feel inspired by spending a moment trying on what it feels like to wake up in that happiest of places. I hope you feel how possible it would be to achieve what you want, or at least get a whole lot closer than you are today. Make that vision your north star, and get moving! Every step you take in that direction is a step in alignment with your authentic happiness, and as long as that’s what you’re doing, you can’t go wrong.