Why You Should Interview Your Future Self

“The best way to predict your future is to create it.” — Abraham Lincoln

If you could sit down with your 85-year-old self today, what would you ask?

Would you want to know if you finally wrote that novel? Traveled to Italy? Forgave that person? Started the business? Or just lived fully—with meaning, purpose, and joy?

Interviewing your future self isn’t a gimmick. It’s a powerful tool for self-reflection, intentional living, and long-term planning. It helps you see the bigger picture, bridge the gap between who you are and who you want to become, and make aligned decisions now—so your future is one you’re proud of.

A 2017 study published in Psychological Science found that people who imagined themselves in the future were more likely to make better long-term decisions today—including saving for retirement, prioritizing health, and investing in meaningful goals (Psychological Science). The study concluded that future-self thinking builds empathy with yourself and boosts motivation.

What Is a Future Self Interview?

A “future self interview” is exactly what it sounds like: a personal conversation with the person you’re becoming. You imagine that you’re living 10, 20, or even 30 years from now, and you ask yourself questions that reveal your hopes, fears, and aspirations.

It’s creative. It’s clarifying. And it’s deeply grounding—especially during times of uncertainty or transition.

1. Choose a Time Horizon That Matters

Will you interview your 10-years-older self? Your 90-year-old self? Your end-of-life self? Each timeline offers different insight. If you’re navigating a career shift, a 5-year check-in may help. If you’re designing your legacy, speak to your centenarian self.

Apps like FutureMe let you write a letter to your future self and email it to you in 1, 3, or 10 years. You can also use voice recording apps like Otter to “interview” yourself verbally.

Action Step: Choose a future age and schedule time this week to “meet” that version of you—pen, laptop, or voice recorder in hand.

2. Ask Deep, Intentional Questions

The magic of this exercise lies in the questions. Good ones help you connect with your values, uncover hidden desires, and imagine outcomes without fear. Here are some prompts to get started:

What are you most proud of?
What do you wish you had done earlier?
Who did you forgive—and who forgave you?
What was your biggest joy in the last 10 years?
What habits kept you strong, connected, and fulfilled?
What risks did you take that shaped your life?

Action Step: Pick 5–7 of these questions and answer them as if you were already that future self. Speak or write in the present tense to make it feel real.

3. Use the Interview to Reverse Engineer Your Present

Once you’ve “spoken” with your future self, reflect: what lessons can you bring back? What regrets did they avoid? What dreams did they act on?

“The distance between your dreams and your reality is called action.”

This is your opportunity to reverse engineer a fulfilling life. If your 85-year-old self is living in a vibrant, walkable community surrounded by friends—what seeds can you plant now? If they published three books—what writing ritual could you start this week?

Action Step: Identify one insight from your future self and translate it into a decision, habit, or boundary today.

4. Make It a Yearly Ritual

Your future self is always evolving—because you are. That’s why this is a practice, not a one-time reflection. The more often you revisit this version of yourself, the more aligned your choices become.

Use journaling tools like Day One or vision board platforms like Canva to make your future-self imagery vivid and ongoing.

Action Step: Add a recurring calendar event called “Future Self Interview.” Make it an annual reflection every birthday or New Year’s Day.

Discussing your future self with family, friends, or community groups can deepen your insight—and spark collective inspiration. You may even encourage someone else to take action on a long-held dream.

Many intergenerational programs, like StoryCorps, use storytelling to reflect on life lessons and legacy. You can even record a message from your future self for your children or grandchildren—something they can treasure forever.

Action Step: Invite a loved one to do this exercise with you. Swap your “future interviews” and talk about what you discovered.

Let’s Reflect Together

What does your future self want you to stop waiting for?
What advice would they give you about your current challenges?
What would your 85-year-old self regret not doing this year?

We’d love to hear your reflections.

Join us in the Age Brilliantly Forum to share what your future self taught you—and how you’re using that insight to live more intentionally today.

Let’s inspire each other to make bold, values-driven choices now—so our future stories are ones we’ll be proud to tell.

What will your future self thank you for? Let us know in the forum.