10 Questions to ask your future self

Imagining about what you want to be in the future can be difficult. But it’s important. Thinking about our future goals can help us decide the actions we should be taking right now.

You don’t need to work out every tiny detail of your future – even if you do, sometimes things happen that you don’t expect, and that’s okay. But having a plan can help you navigate any bumps along the way.

What should I ask?

 Here are 10 questions you can ask yourself to start thinking about possible futures:

1. How would you describe your future self?
2. Where does your future self live?
3. What job is your future self doing?
4. How much does your future self earn?
5. What does a typical day for your future self look like?
6. What hobbies does your future self enjoy?
7. How does your future self handle conflict?
8. What do other people say about your future self?
9. How does your future self feel about themselves?
10. What has your future self achieved?

Once you have the answers to these questions, you can start working backwards; think about what you can be doing now to make this future a reality.

What do I do next?

So, for example, if your future self is a veterinarian, what can you do right now to achieve that goal? You could start looking at potential university degrees, and you’ll need to make sure you’re getting good enough grades to get in. So, here is what we can do right now: build good study habits.

Reverse-engineer each answer until you get to what you can do now for each. If your future self is kind and generous, maybe think about doing volunteer work. If your future self wants to run a marathon, start exercising and getting fitter.

Every now and then our goals might change – this is fine! Just revisit these questions again and see what you can do differently to work towards these new goals.