Feeling stuck or uncertain about your next steps? Stanford professors Bill Burnett and Dave Evans have created the Odyssey Plan — a set of three reflective questions designed to help you envision multiple possible futures and regain confidence in your life choices.
- Visualize multiple futures to find clarity
- Overcome your inner critic with bold ideas
- Shift mindset from ‘got to’ to ‘get to’
What happened
Stanford professors Bill Burnett and Dave Evans, authors and leaders of the Stanford Life Design Lab, developed a reflective exercise called the Odyssey Plan. It centers around three questions that encourage people to imagine where they could be in five years, envisioning multiple life paths rather than getting stuck on one possibility.
The professors recently discussed this approach on The Mel Robbins Podcast, emphasizing the importance of expanding your range of ideas and confronting your internal doubts. Their goal is to help people move beyond their fears and negative biases to explore new opportunities and directions.
Why it feels good
The Odyssey Plan is designed to quiet the internal critic – that voice telling you a big dream is unrealistic or ‘crazy’ – by encouraging you to embrace a ‘wild card’ question that pushes your imagination. This mindset shift helps people remove the barriers of fear and hesitation, opening up hopeful and exciting possibilities for the future.
Additionally, the exercise invites reflection on how time is spent daily and suggests redirecting some moments away from unproductive scrolling or distractions toward opportunities for personal growth and discovery. This intentional self-awareness fosters confidence, inspiration, and renewed motivation in life decisions.
What to enjoy or watch next
If the Odyssey Plan resonates, you might enjoy exploring Burnett and Evans’ book ‘Designing Your Life,’ which further expands on their life design teaching and practical exercises. You can also listen to their recent conversation on The Mel Robbins Podcast for more insights and encouragement.
People inspired by these ideas have shared their own ‘wild card’ dreams online, ranging from opening a cozy bookstore café to pursuing long-delayed passions like medical school or becoming a published author. Let these stories motivate you to imagine your own exciting next chapter and embrace the adventure of designing your future.