My 30-Day Plan (And Why I'm Sharing It)
Image created with ChatGPT by the author.
After announcing I was retiring from UX, a lot of people asked me what my plan was. Many knew me for my UX work, so they were genuinely curious about what I was going to do instead of UX work.
They weren’t being skeptical. More like they genuinely wanted to know what my plans were. Many expressed real excitement for me and were just curious. I told everyone the same thing: After years of creating versions of a 30-60-90 plan for others, I’m building a 30-day plan for myself. Some asked me to share it and I said I would once it’s ready.
It's ready.
Before I get into it, a quick note on what this plan is and isn't. It's not a business launch timeline. It's not a productivity system. It's a personal operating plan for the first 30 days of a major life transition, built around four questions I think anyone leaving a long career needs to sit with: What am I still carrying? What do I actually want? What happens when I start moving toward it? And who do I want around me while all of this unfolds?
I’m in Week 2 since retiring from UX, and I’ve written about the ”decoupling” process I went through, separating old work files and office setups for remote work. As such, this 30-day plan technically starts next week.
Here's how the next 30 days are structured.
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Week 1 — Clear the Space
Before I can move toward something new, I have to finish what's unfinished. I’m great at planning and organizing, but often bored with the execution stage. I’ve worked hard to be better about that, so finishing the unfinished is key right now. That means making an honest list of everything I'm still carrying from my UX career, mental loose ends, old stories about who I am, habits that belonged to a version of my days that no longer exists.
It also means doing a real Wheel of Life assessment. Rating my current satisfaction across health, finances, relationships, creative work, and everything else, and paying attention to what surprises me. Not what I hope to find. What's actually there.
And it means starting my daily rhythm experiment: morning movement, writing, meditation, and reading. Not optimized yet. Just started.
The week closes with something I haven't done yet but know I need to: a written closing statement to my UX career. This was an idea I read about elsewhere and I like it. It follows the idea of writing a letter to someone to get your feelings off your chest, but not really sending the letter. Fortunately, this letter won’t be about any gripes and grudges! It’ll be closure about what I built, what I'm proud of, and what I'm consciously setting down.
•••
Week 2 — Imagine
This is the week I write out three different versions of the next five years of my life, called ”Odyssey Stories”. A safe version. A bold one. One that surprises even me. Then I share them with a few people who will be honest, and I actually listen.
For each of my three main areas — coaching, AI consulting, and photography — I'll write a one-paragraph vision of what success looks like in 12 months. Specific and real, not aspirational filler.
The daily rhythm continues. By the end of this week I want a morning structure that feels sustainable, enjoyable and something I look forward to each day. Getting my day started in a positive, creative and healthy way.
•••
Week 3 — Move
Small real actions. One prototype per area.
For coaching, that means two genuine conversations with people navigating their own transitions. For AI consulting, it means identifying one solopreneur or small business I could help and having an exploratory conversation. For photography, it means researching the Tucson art and photography scene, finding one show, one group, one event worth engaging with.
I'm also mapping my local community entry points this week. Art organizations, small business groups, portrait opportunities. No commitments yet. Just getting oriented.
And I'm writing a simple one-page milestone map for each area. Not a business plan. Just: where do I want to be at 30, 60, and 90 days?
•••
Week 4 — Connect and Consolidate
The final week is about people and perspective. I'm reaching out intentionally to five people I want in my new orbit, not networking, genuine connection with people who reflect who I'm becoming rather than who I was.
I'm identifying one community to plug into consistently. Something with a recurring touchpoint that gets me out of my home office and into contact with people doing creative and entrepreneurial work.
And I'm writing a Day 30 reflection. Where did I land versus where I started? What surprised me? What's clearer? That reflection will become a future post I’ll share.
The week ends with something intentional that marks the transition. A long solo photo walk. A day at a museum. A morning with no agenda. Something that says: the old chapter is closed, and I showed up for the new one.
•••
The one rule I'm holding myself to:
No grading myself against a corporate performance standard. Progress here looks like clarity, energy, and honest self-knowledge. Not deliverables shipped on a deadline.
I've spent 35 years optimizing for other people's timelines. These 30 days belong to me.
•••
I'll be back in a week with an honest account of how Week 1 actually went — what I completed, what I avoided, and what I learned. If you're navigating something similar, I'd genuinely love to hear where you are.
