The time is now. Not next year, or six months from now, or at the conclusion of a five-year plan. Success won’t come with the next marketing conference, the new social channel around the corner, the next piece of “game-changing” tech that’s just waiting to be unleashed on the world… or that person you will meet soon who will make it all right. Your future is written largely by what you do today, so the biggest single challenge for us all in 2018 will be staying focused and making things happen… for you and those around you. Stop worrying about what’s next and concentrate on delivering what is now! Business AND Personal.
Yes, the future – and the near limitless possibilities it presents – will always be alluring, and of course it’s a good idea to plan for the future no matter what you have going on in the present. But there’s a big difference between planning for the future, and expecting the cavalry to come save you if you just hold out a little longer… or waiting for the perfect plan and someone else to show you the way. Be THANKFUL for what you have, and start executing on what you want to accomplish NOW.
Unfortunately, it’s just too easy for us all to fixate on the mythical future fix, when most challenges, goals, and concerns are best addressed in the present. So it’s important to keep planning, but never at the expense of the here and now.
I have been sitting here with my Uncle, setting aside all I thought I “needed” to get done this morning. Listening, learning, and embracing the “moment” with him… and hearing all he had to share about family I never knew, family I shared my life with, and insights from his perspective. I am overwhelmed right now with a feeling of gratitude.
One story in particular my Uncle shared with me, about my first cousin once removed, his youngest grandchild Natalya (Nanoush) Rubin (5 years old at the time), prompted this post. My Uncle Harvey and Aunt Judith would pick her up from school. She gets in the car and immediately, jumps in her car seat strapping herself in with the seatbelt, Judith puts hers on, and says… “Harvey put on your seatbelt” he says… “ok.” Natalya chimes in… “Papa, there are two kinds of OK’s… there is ‘OK,’ and ‘OK, I will do it.'”
So be the person, starting now, who says… “OK, I will do it.”
Focus on what you can do today to build better relationships, be a better friend, family member, colleague, advisor, mentor, and general human being… we need it now more that ever. Planning for the future is great, as long as it doesn’t stop you from doing everything you can in the present.