Life in Perspective Part 3 of 4: Your Future
November 26, 2008 by dr. lam
We talked yesterday about life being a journey and how to savor our present time. However, if life is a journey, where are we going? Some people who relish the present so much in a hedonistic fashion do not prepare for the future or have no idea where they are going. I think part of being on a journey is knowing what should be our life’s destination. Are we moving along a path toward a goal or just going in circles? Sometimes we try too hard to know our future, which is unknowable but I like the saying, “Chance favors the prepared mind.” If you are lackadaisically living entirely within the confines of the moment, you may not have a future that can sustain your present lifestyle.
Also, meaning in our life is defined by having a sense of purpose. We will talk about this more tomorrow. However, in short, we actually derive pleasure in life to know that what we are doing on a daily basis is meritorious and beneficial for others. I think even the most hedonistic, self-centered person can feel a sense of joy in having a defined purpose in life. It can also help us limit our present fears and vicissitudes in our emotions when we know firmly where we are going in life. What are your 5-year plans? What are your 10-year plans? What are your 20-year plans? Do you have them? I do.
Once you define your goals you should then divide them into your BHAG (big hairy audacious goal) — to steal a term from Jim Collins — and your smaller goals. These goals should fit within your vision of what you want to be. (See last week’s blogs to understand what I mean by vision.) Your BHAG is your dream, perhaps unattainable, perhaps unrealistic but who cares. My BHAG is to be a household name across the U.S. and the world in facial plastic surgery. My steps to get there are to continue video production to disseminate my knowledge as an immediate goal; continue to improve my website as a twin goal; write a major laypress book published by a major publishing house to define a new paradigm and aesthetic; and become a speaker in the lay circles (not just academia) in major venues in the coming 5 years. Those goals are my 5-year goals. MY BHAG is my 10-year goal. My 20-year goal is to attain another BHAG regarding expanding my concept of wellness and establishing a model for other surgeons, health-care professionals, and individuals related to the industry to follow. I think wellness is the future of health care in America and for most of the developed world out there. My passion is to see that what I have defined for the Willow Bend Wellness Center can be a replicable model, where we lead the industry by business acumen and vision.
If you laugh at my BHAGs, that is fine with me. I don’t. Discover your BHAGs but don’t live entirely for them. You must define small steps for you to attain your BHAGs, things that are attainable in the short term, measurable steps that are discernible through fixed metrics and time points. Be flexible to open yourself to new BHAGs or replace ones that simply don’t mean much to you anymore but don’t throw a BHAG away simply because you don’t think you will attain it.
Many times a BHAG is defined by money. I would say if you are a company, that may be okay. But I would argue that monetary goals should be short term metrics to attain a BHAG but not a BHAG. A BHAG should be a larger, all-encompassing vision that you as an individual or your company can follow, be inspired by, be motivated by, and live for. I always help those around me who are struggling with their BHAGs to define them by anything but money. I like to say, “Follow your passion and money will come. Follow money, and money will go.”
The core of any individual or business should be a burning passion. I recently had a fireplace with the glass shards (instead of the wood) made by an expert in these kinds of fireplaces. I asked the woman, Nadine, who designed the glass why do you do what you do. Her eyes lit up brighter than the fireplace and she said, “I’m 46 now and the vision came to me at 17 in a dream. I somehow knew that is what I needed to do.” She did not have to tell me that because when the fireplace was lit, I could see this broad beaming smile like a child captivated by her creation. It is the same smile that I have when I see my work.
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Nadine wrote this nice email to me after she read this blog:
I cannot tell you in human words the blessing I have come into, to have had the honor to; 1) create a magical, piece of art in your fireplace, and 2) to have my soul read to the core. It’s so nice to have the pleasure to meet someone, that is more satisfied with the work they do, than the money. I am grateful that Gordon and Janelle came across us, because it has lead us to you! I love your blogs! I’ll be reading them, often. You will achieve your BHAG! You remind me a bit of Henry David Thoreau. Happy Thanksgiving! Thank you for capturing my essence, so simply and sweetly!
Sincere regards!
Nadine & Keith Weaver
Elegant Reflections USA
http://www.elegantreflectionsusa.com
(972)406-9991 or
(214)669-4069