9,125 Days

25 years sounds inspiring.

It also sounds impossible.

Where do you even start?

When I first read the question in March 2023, I journaled about it. Felt inspired for a week.

Then life took over. The journal collected dust. I was back to checking boxes without knowing why.

I did this three times over the following months.

Until I finally figured out the missing piece.

The 25-year vision isn't the destination. It's the compass.

You don't plan 25 years. You use the vision to navigate the next 90 days.

Here's the math that changed everything for me:

Read that again.

1% at a time.

Not 12 habits. Not 47 goals. Not a complete life transformation by January 1st.

Just one question:

“What's the ONE thing I can focus on for the next 90 days that moves me 1% closer to my 25-year vision?”

This changes the game.

Instead of drowning in ambition, you focus.

Instead of tracking streaks, you track direction.

Instead of asking “Did I check the box?” you ask:

“Am I becoming who I need to be?”

James Clear calls this “identity-based habits.”

But here's what most people miss when they read Atomic Habits:

You can't build identity-based habits without first knowing which identity you're building toward.

That's what the 25-year question gives you.

First, you define who you want to become.

Then you extract your 90-day focus.

Then — and only then — do your habits make sense.

They're no longer random checkboxes.

They're votes for your future self.

There's one more piece to make this work…