Areas to consider when planning your long term goals

April 16th, 2008 by Klaus Wiedemann

Dustin Wax over at Lifehack.org mentions a few interesting aspects to consider when contemplating your “Where do I want to be in 5 years from now?”-question.
He uses the business approach of an “individual development plan” and applies this thinking also to the private/personal space.

When you plan the conccrete steps how to reach your goals step by step, he suggests to consider these areas in your planning:

• Courses and workshops: From formal university instruction to extension classes to one-off events like seminars.
• Reading: Books, magazines, websites, newsletters, trade journals.
• Networking: Don’t neglect the value that building
  connections within your current niche or your desired one can bring.
  Figure out who in your field is worth following, and how to get close
  to them.
• Mentoring: A special kind of networking; consider asking a leader in your field to “take you under their wing”.
• Ride-alongs/shadowing: Hands-on experience is
  invaluable. Ask to spend a day with someone whose knowledge and skills
  you admire, learning their work from their perspective.
• Outreach: Form or join a group devoted to your topics.
• Reassignment/move to a new job: Ask your employer
  to shift you into a different department or position, or find work that
  better matches where you want to end up.

I just would add you should reserve the required time well in advance to avoid your short-term priorities are dominating your calendar. Budgeting time and scheduling time-slots in your calendar can help you with that.