This weekend I read a wonderful post from the always deeply thoughtful Paul Gilbert, called “The Seventy Five Year Career“, in which Paul, who is now 60, asks us to consider what it will mean for the children of today, who will likely live to 100 or more, to consider a career that spans 75 years. He gives us five ideas that he feels will guide us along this longer journey:
- communities and networks will matter more to us than buildings or brands
- we will get even better at valuing everyone and everything at every stage of our lives
- we must learn to celebrate what we can do, and not punish what we cannot do
- we are becoming increasingly aware that whatever job we have, we are just passing through
- leaders and leadership will not be about providing artificial objectives and disconnected financial incentives; it will be about offering learning, growth, purpose and fairness
These are each deep thoughts, so please do read Paul’s piece (full of depth and meaning) and also take some time for yourself to consider the meaning in them for yourself and those you lead.
Meanwhile, this particular golden nugget shone particularly brightly for me from his article.
Let us ask of others what they can do and ask of them to be brilliant at those thing.
This. This is at the core of the leadership of today and for tomorrow. Be that type of leader.