Life design is the practice of deciding, on purpose, what you want your life to become, and then giving it a strategic plan. It doesn't chase one goal at a time. It starts with who you are becoming, names what matters most to you, and lines up your time, energy, relationships and money behind a vision that's truly yours.
In short: a vision tells you where you want to go. Life design gives that vision a plan.
Where I learned this
For 17½ years, my career has centered on one question: how do we take where we are today, define where we want to go, and build a strategy to get there? I've asked it in sales and operations planning for Fortune 500 companies, major healthcare systems and local businesses across North Carolina's Triangle.
Organizations aren't the only ones who need vision, strategy, alignment and an operating plan. People do, too. The women around me were making decisions every single day about their careers, money, health, relationships and calendars. Very few of us had ever been handed a framework for stepping back long enough to ask: What do I actually want my life to become?
That question is life design. It's the work I do now as a life design strategist.
And here's what I want you to know first: life design isn't one more thing on your list. I know what it feels like to feel behind before you've even started. Good strategy should make your life easier, not heavier. As I like to say, the more aligned you are, the more ease you'll feel within your life.
What life design is, and what it isn't
| Vision board | New Year's resolution | Life design | |
|---|---|---|---|
| Starts with | Images of what you want | One goal you want to change | Who you are becoming |
| Gives you | Inspiration | A promise to yourself | A vision and a plan, season by season |
| Covers | Whatever made the board | One area of life | All five life pillars |
| Lasts | Until the board comes down | One calendar year | It renews every 90 days |
I still love a vision board. I make one every year. But a board shows you the what. Everybody understands the what. Then they forget about the how.
Life design isn't therapy, and it isn't legal, financial or tax advice. It's strategy, built with heart and soul.
The three questions at the heart of life design
Every life design starts with three questions. I teach them as Define, Align, Design.
- Define: Who are you, and who are you becoming? Not your title, your roles or what you produce for everyone else. The woman underneath all of it, and the one she's growing into.
- Align: What do you stand for? Your personal mission, your core values and your anchor. When those are clear, decisions stop taking up your whole week, because you know what a yes looks like.
- Design: Where is this season taking you? A 90-day roadmap that turns the vision into direction: one primary outcome, and up to two supporting ones.
The five life pillars
Life design looks at your life the way a good strategist looks at a business: as one system. I use five life pillars.
- Spirituality: faith, inner knowing, connection and purpose.
- Wellness: your body, your energy and practices you can sustain.
- Social: relationships, meaningful connection and boundaries.
- Temporal: your attention, your capacity and a calendar that reflects your priorities.
- Finance: stewardship, resources, choices and freedom.
Wealth is bigger than money. A plan that grows your income and empties your calendar of everything you love isn't a good plan.
Why life design works in 90-day seasons
A year is too long to hold in your hands, and a week is too short to see change. Research suggests habits take about two months on average to form, which is why we work in 90-day cycles. Each season, you choose what matters most right now. Everything can matter without everything being a priority right now.
The longer vision still matters. One of the most common mistakes I see is a five-year goal squeezed into a one-year plan. Life design gives each horizon its own job, so this year can be specific and the bigger dream still has room to breathe.
Who life design is for
Life design is for the accomplished woman: the leader, the entrepreneur, the creative, and the woman just beginning to build. You might be the one everyone calls when something needs to get done. Your calendar is full of other people's priorities. You hit the goal you set, and the moment after is quieter than you expected.
Your life may work on paper. Life design is how you make it feel like yours.
Where to begin
The Activate Her Life Challenge is a 90-minute live life design session on Zoom, held every month. You'll define who you are and who you're becoming, align your personal mission, core values and anchor, and get the tools to design your 90-day roadmap. It's the introduction to Life Design Academy, where women build their extraordinary lives across all five life pillars.
A vision tells you where you want to go. Life design gives that vision a plan.
Join the Challenge →Frequently asked questions
Is life design the same as life coaching?
No. Life design is strategy: getting clear on who you're becoming, aligning your choices with what matters most, and giving your vision a plan. Quinn Alexandria is a life design strategist, not a life coach, and her approach comes from 17½ years of strategic planning.
Where does the term "life design" come from?
Design-thinking programs, such as Stanford's Designing Your Life, made the term popular. Quinn's approach comes from a different discipline: sales and operations planning, the way organizations turn vision into strategic plans.
How long does life design take?
Life design is a practice, not a one-time event. You work in 90-day seasons inside a longer vision, and review and adjust as your life changes. Life Design Academy is where women build it over time, with live masterminds and a sisterhood.
Do I need to know what I want before I start?
No. Getting clear on what you want is where life design begins. The Activate Her Life Challenge is designed for exactly that first step.
