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Choose • Explore • Adjust
My Five Year Flexible Plan
Michael Cornwall, PsyD, PhD, LPC, LCSW
A direction for your life, with room to adjust
Making a plan invites you to consider what matters to you and how you would like to use your time, energy, and resources. A broad five-year direction can help you connect everyday choices with longer-term interests. Small steps give you something practical to try, and regular reviews give you an opportunity to learn from the experience.
Life does not follow a fixed timetable. An unexpected illness, a change in employment, a loss, a new relationship, caregiving responsibilities, financial pressures, or an unanticipated opportunity may alter what is possible or what matters most. A useful plan makes room for these events. You can change the pace, seek support, choose another route, preserve what is working, or pause a goal.
Adjustment is part of planning. Ask yourself: “Given what is happening now, what is a useful next step?” The purpose is to support a meaningful and manageable life. Your worth does not depend on completing a checklist, and a revised goal can be more appropriate than an original one.
This quiz turns your choices into suggested priorities and a broad plan. Revisit it every three months, or after a significant life event. Treat later-year milestones as possibilities to review rather than deadlines you must meet.
Development, identity, and a changing life
These questions draw on Erik Erikson’s psychosocial development theory: identity and a sense of self; closeness with others; contribution and care; and reflection on the meaning of one’s life (American Psychological Association, n.d.). The adult answer options offer several ways to explore these themes through learning, relationships, work, creativity, and community.
You do not need to marry, become a parent, hold a particular job, or meet an age-based deadline to create a meaningful plan. These themes can overlap and be revisited. Select what fits your circumstances. The quiz does not determine your developmental stage or assess whether you have “passed” one.
Answer 46 multiple-choice questions across ten areas of life. Your choices create a broad plan with suggested priorities, first steps, and flexible milestones for the next five years. Allow about 10–15 minutes.
Who is this quiz for? Designed primarily for adults ages 18 and older, including people exploring education, work, relationships, retirement, or a new direction in life. Older adolescents may prefer the version for ages 12–18. At age 18, choose the version that best fits your circumstances. This is a suggested audience, not a validated age range. Its usefulness depends on your interests and circumstances as well as your age.
Choose the closest answer. For an area that does not apply, choose “Not a current priority / not applicable,” then the closest remaining answers; it will not become a suggested focus. There is no passing score. Maintaining what works is a worthwhile goal.
Emotional intelligence (Ei) goals with Cornwall Counseling include recognizing emotions, examining assumptions, managing uncertainty, practicing self-acceptance, and communicating thoughtfully. Potential benefits vary; this exercise does not promise treatment results.
A reflection and planning tool, not a validated psychological test or a clinical assessment. Answers are processed in this page and are not submitted to Cornwall Counseling. This tool does not save answers after you leave or refresh; print or save your results. Choosing professional support does not book an appointment.
0 of 46 questions answered.
Developmental foundation
American Psychological Association. (n.d.). Erikson’s eight stages of psychosocial development. APA dictionary of psychology.
The quiz questions, planning categories, and scoring rules were created for this exercise. They are not an Erikson inventory or a validated measure of psychosocial development.