The five-year rule

Last year, I reexamined my priorities. In the process, I came up with a guideline to help me establish what I need to do and how quickly I need to do these things. I called it the five-year rule


The five-year rule was primarily created to address the uncertainties of life. We never know when our time will come, and I feel that there are things that I need to accomplish before I die.

The general idea is simple. Live the bulk of your life as though you have five years left, but don't give up on hope beyond those five years. Obviously, this rule is not rigid. It's more of a flexible guideline.

What I'm trying to do is push myself to do what I feel I need to in life. Five years is fairly short when you look at the bigger picture, but it's long enough to avoid unnecessary and excessive stress.

If I became too strict with the five-year rule, I could get myself into a lot of trouble. For example, I would run out of money, a necessity in modern America, if I quit my job and spent based on a five-year estimate. I must hold onto hope that I have more than five years.

Keep in mind that this is the five-year rule, not the 2020 rule. 2020 would be my target for completing my goals when I created the rule. As of January 1, my goal completion target will be 2022. This allow my goals to evolve without adding panic due to increasingly tight time constraints.