Why the five-year question does not help people grow
Asking where someone sees themselves in five years rarely produces an honest or useful answer. A shorter, more concrete horizon tends to work much better.
THE QUICK ANSWER
“Where do you see yourself in five years?” sounds like a development conversation, but few people can answer it honestly. Most do not have a five-year plan, though they do know whether this month felt like progress. Good people often leave for similar roles simply because those roles offer a clear next step. The fix is to ask what skill they want to build in the next 90 days, then give them a project that uses it.
GO DEEPER
Trading “someday” for the next 90 days
The five-year question is familiar from interviews and appraisals, so it can feel like the natural way to discuss someone’s future. It appears to show interest in their ambitions. For many managers, it is simply the question they were once asked themselves.
In reality, most people do not know where they will be in five years, and many give a polished answer rather than an honest one. What they do know is whether their current work feels like it is building towards something. When it does not, they may leave for a job that is not very different, but which comes with a real next step.
The fix is to shorten the horizon and make it practical. Ask what skill they want to build in the next 90 days, then give them one project that actually uses it. That turns a vague conversation about “someday” into something they can act on now.
This does not mean long-term ambitions are unimportant. Some people do have a clear direction, and it is worth knowing. But a series of concrete 90-day steps is often how longer-term goals are reached, and it gives both of you something to review and build on.
KEY TAKEAWAY
“Someday” is not a direction anyone can act on. Ask what they want to build in the next 90 days, and give them work that uses it.
TEST YOURSELF
A manager wants to have a meaningful growth conversation with a team member. Which approach matches the video’s advice?
PRACTISE IT
Try this lesson in the arcade
Quick retro games that start with this lesson’s situations. One thumb, one to three minutes, free.
