Replace the 5-Year Plan | Why linear goals fail in nonlinear lives

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You’ve meticulously crafted the perfect five-year plan, only to watch life crumple it up like yesterday's newspaper. Maybe you've found yourself questioning whether you're off track because nothing is lining up the way it "should."

Here’s the thing…

Clarity doesn't always come first.

Maybe you're not behind schedule—you're just moving to a different rhythm. 

Planning has its place, but reality often moves more like a spiral than a straight line.

Sometimes the detour, the thing that feels like a kink in the railroad tracks, is the direction. And sometimes, a rigid timeline can feel more like a prison than a path forward.

Lasting change begins not with forcing ourselves into plans that no longer fit, but with recognizing the season we're actually in.

This week, Karlee shares her own story of a carefully constructed plan that got swept away in life’s wake—and how that interruption created space for what ended up laying the foundation for her work today. 

In this episode, you’ll hear how the space between the moment you’re in now and the clarity you’re looking for can harbor the unexpected. You'll learn to identify whether you're in a season of replenishment, emerging ideas, building, or harvesting wisdom, and how to take grounded actions that match.  You'll also learn how the concept of "spiral mapping" can help you make the right-sized movement that respects and honors the season you’re in now.

If you’re ready to embrace what’s outside of the linear and see what presents itself in the spiral, then this episode is for you.

What You’ll Learn in This Episode:

• (0:53) When life interrupts your big plan
• (7:26) The problem with planning
• (8:31) Recognizing the season you’re in 
• (11:22) The concept of spiral mapping
• (14:23) 3 prompts to get started

Resources Mentioned in this Episode:

Workshop: Navigating Change: Steering Toward Your True North June 21–23

Book: Working Identity: Unconventional Strategies for Reinventing Your Career by Herminia Ibarra

Episode 181: This Was Supposed to Feel Better | What real change stirs up

Episode 177: Rooted, Not Rattled | Leading with a Unified Power When Others Push for Control

People Mentioned in this Episode:

Dr. Maria Sirois

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Messy and Magnificent is produced by the folx at Ginni Media.