Planning Your Future & Building Your Team
Planning for your future means thinking about what you want and finding ways to make it happen. Planning can help you feel more confident, happier, and in control. It gives you the chance to work toward the life you want.
You have the right to make choices about your own life, but you don’t have to plan alone. You can build a team of people who care about you and want to help. Your team might include:
- Family members like parents, siblings, or other relatives
- People who work with you, like your support staff or case manager
- Doctors or other professionals
- Friends or other people you trust
How to Start Planning
Writing your future plan is a good place to start (people often call this plan a letter of intent). A future plan can help explain things like what you want your life to look like and the support you want and need. This is not a legal paper, but it helps you remember your goals and share them with others.
Talk to the people you trust about what you want for your future. Tell them your dreams and goals. Ask how they can help you. They can give you ideas and help you figure out what’s possible.
Remember that planning takes time, and your plan might change as you grow and learn new things. That’s okay. Planning is something you will keep doing throughout your life.
Some Questions to Help You Plan
Use these questions to help you think about what you want in life and what you want your future to look like.
Making Decisions
Do you need help making big decisions? Who do you trust to help you think through important choices?
Deciding Where to Live
Do you want to live alone, with friends, or with family? Do you want your own apartment or house? What kind of neighborhood do you like?
Paying for Things
How will you pay for things like food, rent, and other things you need? Do you get money from the government, like SSI? Do you want to learn how to manage money?
What You Like to Do
Do you need help making big decisions? Who do you trust to help you think through important choices?
Friends & Social Life
Who do you like to spend time with? How can you meet new people and make new friends?
Why Make a Future Plan?
Learn more about why planning is important and hear from people with disabilities who have started planning.
Other Resources for Self-Advocates
Being your own advocate means sharing what you want and need. You know yourself better than anyone else. Don’t be afraid to tell people what matters to you, even if they disagree. If you don’t understand something, ask questions. It’s your life, and you have the right to have a say in what happens to you.
Learning about self-advocacy and talking to other advocates can help you feel more confident. Here are some resources to explore:
- The Arc’s self-advocacy resources and National Council of Self-Advocates
- The University of Minnesota’s Self-Advocacy Online
- Self Advocates Becoming Empowered (SABE)
- Autistic Self-Advocacy Network (ASAN)