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How to Figure Out Where You'll Be In 10 Years A method to envisioning your future, and working towards that vision.

By Keith Ferrazzi

This story appears in the March 2022 issue of Entrepreneur. Subscribe »

Nicolás Ortega

Successful people, and successful companies, tend to follow a similar path: The changes they make from year to year seem orderly, but over decades, the changes can take on an unexpected, nonlinear shape.

For example, I began my career as an entry-level analyst at Deloitte. Now I run a thriving growth-coaching business. The leap directly from one to the other seems absurd, and looking back, I couldn't have foreseen or planned it. But broken down into smaller steps, it makes sense: One job led to another, and an opportunity here created a logical new opportunity there. This is the magic of uncertainty: Our paths are forged in satisfying but unknowable ways.

But it can be hard to know what to do with this knowledge — because nobody likes to feel adrift, and especially not entrepreneurs. Leaders shouldn't be content to just see where things go. They don't leave their businesses to chance. They want to anticipate changes, plan for the unexpected, and plot a course into tomorrow. Is any of that possible?