I am constantly analyzing how what I am doing now might have in effect on what people are doing in the future. I guess it can be looked at as my desire to leave my mark and feel good about my life’s work but I tend to think that it goes deeper than that. I have always been one to take into consideration how my life goals can be harnessed to effect others in a positive way whether it be now or 10 years after I have passed. You could say that the goal of my goals is to create “something” that has a lasting effect, big or small. I have come to refer to it as thinking one generation ahead.
Think for a minute about what it is that you are doing right now in life. Are you arriving at work each day itching to give 110% in hopes that your hard work will be noticed and you will get that long awaited promotion effectively securing a better life for you and your future family? Are you spending your off hours driving your children to football practice with dreams of them being the next star quarterback in the NFL? Maybe you are up late on a daily basis writing out a business plan for a new non-profit that will help the homeless secure jobs. Whatever it may be, you are doing things that will effect some portion of a future generation either singularly or an a much grander scale. So my question to you is, is what you are doing effecting that generation in a positive way? Are you going to feel good about your “lifes work” when it is all said and done?
How does this apply to business? Well in two ways. One it allows you to set a greater goal than just becoming successful and making a healthy income and two it strengthens your ability to focus. If you begin to examine more closely how your current goals might effect future generations involved you will begin to see a shift taking place. You are no longer only worrying about the current years sales your are now focused on longevity. Your new plan for longevity will now be taken into consideration in the day to day operation of your business, creating a stronger focus on what really needs to be done to complete not just the task of the day but the task of tomorrow.
You may be a solo entrepreneur today but ten years from now you have just handed off the company to a new CEO, you sit on the board of directors and split your days between giving seminars to eager business students at the local college and traveling to the far corners of the world with your husband or wife. Oh and that kid who you left work early everyday to play catch with out in the street is now the starting pitcher on the high school baseball team.
