When planning, differentiate the 'roadmap' from a simple to-do list. The roadmap should outline 5-7 major strategic shifts or capabilities you need to acquire—such as building a personal brand or mastering paid ads—not just the daily tasks required to get there.

Instead of incremental planning, run "megatrend workshops" to identify major societal or technological shifts 15-20 years out. By working backward from that inevitable future, you can define what your company needs to do in 5 years, and therefore what you must invest in today.

Treat personal and career goals like a marketing funnel. Define the long-term desired outcome (e.g., a 5-year goal), then work backward to map the necessary intermediate steps. This creates a clear, actionable path to success by applying a familiar professional framework to personal growth.

To vet ambitious ideas like self-sailing cargo ships, first ask if they are an inevitable part of the world in 100 years. This filters for true long-term value. If the answer is yes, the next strategic challenge is to compress that timeline and build it within a 10-year venture cycle.

Canva CEO Melanie Perkins plans using "Column B" thinking: envision a perfect, magical future state without constraints, then work backward to build a ladder of small, actionable steps to get there. This contrasts with "Column A" thinking, which starts with current resources and limits vision.

CZI targets a 10-15 year time horizon for its major scientific initiatives. This is a strategic sweet spot, similar to a venture-backed company's lifecycle, which is long enough for ambitious goals but concrete enough for a team to see a project through.

The most meaningful achievements (building a company, raising a family) are multi-year endeavors. In an average adult life, you only have about five or six 10-year slots for these "movements." This scarcity makes the sequencing of your life's major goals a critical strategic decision.

Large goals are paralyzing without a clear path. Instruct an AI to take your five-year vision and break it down into a logical sequence of yearly, quarterly, and weekly milestones. This ensures you do the right things in the right order, preventing wasted effort and making the goal approachable.

Don't let current resources dictate your strategy. Many leaders look at what they have and ask, 'What can we build?' A better approach is to decide on the ultimate goal first ('What do I want to eat?') and then work backward to acquire the specific resources needed to achieve it, shifting from a reactive to a proactive mindset.