A Template for Setting 10-Year Dreams & Goals

A favorite family photo from this decade

Setting annual goals is valuable, but I’ve found the greatest benefit from setting longer term goals.

On my 40th birthday I prayerfully wrote a list of dreams, goals, and hopes for the next decade for me, my marriage, our three sons, my work, our finances, etc. I return to this decade document often. It operates like a North Star for my annual goal setting. I’m nearly six years into this 10-year document and I’m certain I’ll write another 10-year dreams and goals document when, Lord willing, I turn 50.

Give this a try. I think you’ll like the clarity of desire, thought, prayer, and action that this type of long-term document requires and surfaces. Below is a template to get you started, a copy and paste of my 10-Year Dreams & Goals Document. I’m obviously not sharing the intimate content of this document (except I included the content of my final category + the Friendships category because most men are really hurting here and I want men to see how to dream and think about this neglected category of life), but the structure, theme, and 13 categories of this simple framework are all here. Let me know if this template helps you!

10-Year Dreams & Goals Document

The Buzzard Family in 10 years: ages 50, 49, 22, 20, 18. *I started by visualizing each member of my family 10 years from now, at a totally different stage of life.

These are dreams/prayers/goals, much of this is out of my control. 

THEME: A Decade of Extraordinary Enjoyment & Flourishing. Luke 19:13-17. *I chose this theme for our decade, and this text of Scripture to anchor this decade.

My Heart/Relationship with God: *For each category I wrote just one paragraph, just a few sentences outlining who I wanted to become/what I wanted to see happen over the course of the next 10 years.

Physical/My Body:

Marriage/Taylor:

Sons/Family:

Home:

Friendships: I’m a rare 50 year-old man who is rich in friendship—friends I see, go deep with, and adventure with regularly. I enjoy many friends, but I especially enjoy 2-5 friends I am 100% safe with, can share everything with. I enjoy friends who initiate with me.

Work/Influence:

Entrepreneurial Endeavors:

Finances:

Rest/Rhythms:

Hobbies:

Wild/Stretch Dreams:

Strong Probabilities: We likely experienced 2+ significant deaths in the family, 2+ big sufferings we never saw coming, 2+ big blessings we never saw coming, some surprising world and economic news that greatly altered things, and issues/frustration with aging.