Introducing clarity and purpose into your life begins with a clear vision of who you want to become. Future Authoring is a structured exercise that helps you write your future into existence.
You can use this exercise in three ways: on your own — self-guided using the framework on this page; in the Career Clarity Workshop — guided as part of the monthly group session; or as part of the Career Accelerator — where we build on your Future Authoring work throughout the program. It's not gated behind any paid service. Start here.
Most people drift through their careers reactively–responding to opportunities that appear, avoiding discomfort, following paths others have laid out. Future Authoring flips that: you define where you want to go, then work backward to figure out how to get there.
The Problem with Goals
Traditional goal-setting often fails because it's too narrow. "Get promoted" or "earn more money" are outcomes, not visions. They don't tell you what kind of life you want to live, what kind of person you want to become or what trade-offs you're willing to make.
Without a compelling vision of your future self, goals feel arbitrary. You achieve them and feel empty. Or you don't achieve them and feel like a failure–even though the goal was never the right target in the first place.
Future Authoring starts with vision, not goals. Goals come later, as milestones on a path you've consciously chosen.
The Exercise
Future Authoring asks you to write a detailed description of your ideal future–typically 3-5 years out. Not a fantasy, but a realistic best-case scenario. A future that would make you proud, that aligns with your values, that you'd be excited to wake up to.
Part 1: The Ideal Future
Imagine your life in 3-5 years if things went as well as they reasonably could. Consider:
- Career: What are you doing? What's your role, your industry, your daily work?
- Relationships: Who are you spending time with? What do those relationships look like?
- Health: How do you feel physically and mentally? What habits support that?
- Finances: What's your relationship with money? What does security look like?
- Growth: What have you learned? What skills have you developed?
- Impact: What contribution are you making? Who benefits from your work?
Write in present tense, as if you're already living this life. Be specific. The more vivid the picture, the more motivating it becomes.
Part 2: The Future to Avoid
Now imagine the opposite: what does your life look like in 3-5 years if you let your worst tendencies win? If you avoid hard decisions, stay in your comfort zone and let inertia take over?
This isn't about being harsh with yourself–it's about honest recognition of what's at stake. The future to avoid is often more motivating than the ideal future, because loss aversion is powerful.
Part 3: The Path
With both futures clearly defined, identify:
- What specific changes need to happen to reach the ideal future?
- What obstacles–internal and external–stand in the way?
- What's the first concrete step you could take this week?
Why Writing Matters
There's something about writing that forces clarity. Thoughts in your head can stay vague and contradictory. Writing demands that you make choices, that you put stakes in the ground.
Research supports this: people who write about their goals are significantly more likely to achieve them. The act of articulating a vision makes it real, makes it something you've committed to.
"I'd had vague ambitions for years, but they never felt real. Sitting down and actually writing out what I wanted–in detail–was uncomfortable. But once it was on paper, I couldn't unsee it. The gap between where I was and where I wanted to be became impossible to ignore."
– Accelerator client
Going Deeper
Future Authoring is powerful on its own, but it's even more effective with guidance. In the Career Accelerator, we use your Future Authoring work as the foundation for everything that follows: setting concrete goals, identifying obstacles, designing action plans.
The monthly Career Clarity Workshop includes a guided Future Authoring session for those who haven't done it yet or want to revisit and refine their vision.
Get Started
You can do this exercise on your own. Set aside 90 minutes. Find a quiet place. Open a document or grab a notebook. And start writing.
Don't edit as you go. Don't judge what comes out. Just write. You can refine later. The first draft is about getting the vision out of your head and onto paper.
Your future is waiting to be authored. The only question is whether you'll write it or let it write itself.