Well, first I always answer with the truth. Whatever that is. And your answer (which seems like the truth for you) is totally acceptable. By answering with the

Well, first I always answer with the truth. Whatever that is. And your answer (which seems like the truth for you) is totally acceptable. By answering with the truth, you ensure that both you and the recruiter (or maybe an executive of a candidate company) are on the same page and you can safely proceed with spending both of your next 5y time together. Now, whether you are confident enough about your answer or you think that you don't know, that's acceptable too. Knowing means that you found your purpose and you are actively going towards it. For me, that was the case from a very early age (literally, I was 12 when I wrote my first app and decided that that was what I wanted to do for the rest of my life) up until my 30th birthday. The answer was this exact phrase: "I want to become a great software engineer that can work for a great company and build great things together. Part of that is the money because I know it's a higly-paid job. The other part is that I'm very passionate about it." After my 30th birthday though, things changed. It's been two years now and while I succeeded in my 5y goal, now I don't really know where I'm heading to. I don't know where I want to be in 5y. I don't stress it though. It all comes down to purpose I think. And short-term goals that serve that purpose.