This guide presents principles of person-centered planning, an approach to organizing and guiding community change in alliance with people with disabilities and their families and friends. The approach focuses on the individual's desired future, his or her present reality, necessary services, and currently available community resources. Individual sections of the guide focus on: foundations of person-centered planning; how person-centered planning influences change; limitations of person-centered planning (e.g., such planning moves slower when the focus person's interests are not clear); controversies among people engaged in person-centered planning (e.g., what can be expected of the family and how much control should the focus person have); the common fear of the debasement of person-centered planning through treating it as a system fad rather than a tool for change; and different approaches to person-centered planning (e.g., individual service design, personal futures planning, and essential lifestyle planning). The guide also provides 21 print references and several organizational contacts. (DB)