5 Reasons the 5 Year Plan is Bullsh*t
Photo Credit: Kyle Weaver
“WHERE DO YOU SEE YOURSELF IN 5 YEARS?”
This is undoubtedly, unequivocally, absolutely, the worst interview question ever. I hate this question, especially as a student.
ACTUAL INTERVIEW I HAD EARLIER THIS YEAR:
Interviewer:
“Where do you see yourself in 5 years?”
Me: *annoyed, but flashes a fake smile and nod*
“I think this is a tough question to answer because the truth is that my “5 Year Plan” has already evolved and changed so much in just one year, but I think that my long term goals are to continue being curious, to work extremely hard, and to strive to be the best in whatever industry, company, and position I pursue.”
WHAT I WANTED TO SAY:
Interviewer:
“Where do you see yourself in 5 years?”
Me:
“WHEN YOU WERE 21 YEARS OLD, WHERE DID YOU SEE YOURSELF IN 5 YEARS? 10? HOW ABOUT 20? HOW DO YOU PICTURE YOUR CAREER ENDING ONE DAY? WHAT WILL YOU EAT FOR BREAKFAST ON JUNE 6, 2030? WHAT? YOU DON’T KNOW IF YOU’LL HAVE EGGS OR OATMEAL? WHY NOT? “
Okay, exaggerated language. I blame the dramatics on my theatre background.
I understand interviewers and professors ask the “What is your five year plan?” question to get a general sense of what your future goals are and to encourage you to ask yourself what you want for your future. What’s not commonly emphasized is that it’s okay to not stick to that plan. Your 5 Year Plan should serve as your rough draft, not table of contents. Although I get the concept, I can’t get behind it.
HERE ARE MY FIVE REASONS WHY I BELIEVE THE FIVE YEAR PLAN IS COMPLETE B.S.!
1. THE 5 YEAR PLAN DISCOURAGES EXPLORATION
It’s one of the main ideas of this entire platform: Career exploration is inevitable and should be encouraged. The Five Year Plan prompts students to think up their “dream” job and plan to attain it. How many individuals, as a freshman in college, 1. Decide they want to be a specific position at a particular company? And 2. End up in specific role at exact company five years later? The answer, I don’t know because I haven’t met anyone yet. I invite you to comment and share if you know of someone. Give them my number, please. Offer them a position as my new life coach.
For some, like those in the medical field, or law discipline, or others, their “paths” are a little more standard. As Freshmen in college, most Biology majors and aspiring doctors predict that in five years, they will be in medical school, and most end up there. For us Business majors, though, where there are countless opportunities across many industries, cities, countries, companies, and disciplines, the possibilities are endless. Isn’t it silly to choose an end before exposing yourself to all of the opportunities you haven’t yet encountered?
2. THE 5 YEAR PLAN FEELS BINDING
Young professional is to a “5 Year Plan” as convicted felon is to a life sentence in prison. Alternatively, at least, that’s how institutions make young people feel. We already feel enough pressure to decide a college at 18 years, and choose a major, and create a right answer for the “What do you want to do in life?” question by others. We should not have additional pressure to put pressure on ourselves to make a plan for the next five years, let alone feel like we must adhere to it.
3. IT’S MORE IMPORTANT TO LIVE IN THE MOMENT
It’s much more important to live in the moment than to have your life clearly spelled out. You have to take advantage of opportunities when they present themselves and follow opportunities that might lead you off the “5-year path.” When I quit my job in Finance to work at a nonprofit for a summer, I derailed my 5 Year Goldman Sachs Financial Analyst Plan. It turns out, the nonprofit led me to tech, where I hope to go somewhere completely different next.
Now you tell me: How did that factor into my 5 Year Plan? Answer: it didn’t. However, that summer, I took a different route that taught me about a new sector of the business world and led me to connections more valuable than the finance circle I defined in my original plan. If you come across an opportunity that doesn’t align with your five-year plan, embrace it. Consider it. Decide if it will be beneficial for you, now, at this time in your life. Once I started living my life with ONLY the present in mind, opportunities that were meant to be followed me without me having to chase them down necessarily.
4. PLAN FOR NO PLAN AT ALL
Many of us have had to “fill out” worksheets like the above in a class or as an activity. The truth is that no one knows what tomorrow holds. We can fill out this sheet every week, but there’s no reason to plan for five years when things can honestly change in an instant. The people you meet each day, the classes you take each semester, the experiences you have with different subjects (both positive and negative), THEY define your plan, and they help define you. How can five years be a standard benchmark when we are all growing at different rates in different environments? Grow at your speed. Do your own thing. Let life lead you. Screw a “five years from now” mindset. If you died tomorrow, would you be proud of where you were and what you did today?
Copy of a Graded Handout I was assigned in my “University 101” Course in College.
5. THERE IS NO CERTAINTY IN THE NEXT 5 YEARS
The truth is that even Bill Gates can’t tell us what five years out will look like. Sure, with technology, predictions and projections of the future have increased in accuracy, but nothing is ever guaranteed. Will that “dream job” of yours even exist five years from now?
Tony Khuon for “Agile Lifestyle,” a blog about how to achieve success and develop personality in an ever-changing social and business landscape, writes:
“Fifteen years ago, dot-coms were all the rage while most people were still getting on the internet through dial-up modems and Napster was going to revolutionize the music industry. Ten years ago, the housing market had nowhere to go but up, and almost no one owned a smartphone. Five years ago, the Euro was going to be the currency of the future, and Twitter was a punchline on late-night comedy.
What do we know for sure today that will be invalidated five years from now? Or ten? When people and businesses write down their five-year plans, it’s to feel in control of a world that is rapidly changing. It’s not a serious exercise in predicting the future.”
DISRUPTIVE INNOVATION MAY DISRUPT YOUR 5 YEAR PLAN
Entrepreneurship has never been so socially supported. Additionally, Clayton Christensen, a Harvard business professor, coined the term Disruptive Innovation which he defines as:
“...A process by which a product or service takes root initially in simple applications at the bottom of a market and then relentlessly moves up market, eventually displacing established competitors.”
Who’s to say a new product or service that changes our world won’t be developed tomorrow? Who’s to say that disruption won’t affect the industry in which your comfy five year plan is sitting waiting for you? Business is trendy. Attainable goals in the present are timeless.
It’s essential to have an idea of where you want to go, but don’t pass up opportunities which can help you where you are today. Live in the moment and plan for your plan to change. I promise it’s comical to look back and say, “Remember when I thought I wanted to…” at least this is true for me.
Make a plan for TODAY, not for five years from now...NF
