Creating a life plan can help you feel more in control of your life and provide a clear path toward the things you want. The process of making a life plan starts with creating a document to record your thoughts and ideas either with pen and paper or electronically. However, you choose to document your life plan, make sure it is easily accessible where you will remember to review it often. Use this guide to help you make a life plan.

What is a life plan?

A life plan is a roadmap for your life that helps you prioritize what is important to you, make decisions based on your priorities and move toward the life you want. It should provide a clear path for your life, but it should also be flexible. As your life changes, your values and priorities may also change. A life plan is a living, breathing document that requires periodic attention to ensure it accurately reflects your life. It is your own personal guide to how you want to live, what is important to you and what you need to do to achieve the life you want.

1. Take stock of where you are now.

• Rate your current life on a scale from 1-100, with 100 being the best possible life.
• List the realities of your life such as your responsibilities, funds available, things that really make you happy or things that make you unhappy.

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2. Create a ‘snapshot’ in the mind of your ideal life.

• Remember to think big! The sky’s the limit so don’t be afraid to be bold. List anything and everything that gets you excited about your life like hobbies, early retirement, family time, charity work etc.
• Think about those things that you really love to do and notice any themes that might be recurring.

3. Take an inventory of your skills and talents and experience, listing all of your professional and personal accomplishments.

• What are you really good at?
• What are you happy to do for the rest of your life without getting paid?
• What are the highlights of your life so far?

4. Create a manifesto or personal vision statement, so you can boldly proclaim your wants, needs and desires.

• Take into consideration the snapshot of your life and what you deem important.
• This statement should be all-encompassing and it should reveal everything you have already discovered about yourself, bringing it all together in one clear statement.

5. Hold this vision in your mind by contemplating it for a few moments, each and every day.

• This is an important step in the process because you are essentially reprogramming your mind towards this new way of life. The more you imprint this image in your mind, the more your mind will reveal.

6. Take small, actionable steps so you can begin moving towards this new goal.

• If you take time to focus on your new way of life every day, your mind will begin to create ways for you to get there.

While these may seem like very simple steps, you just might be surprised at how far they can take you. The worst thing we can do is aimlessly drift and complain along the way. The best thing we can do is to empower ourselves by creating a plan that can help us bring our dreams to fruition. This kind of smart and savvy planning will go a long way in helping us create our ideal life.