Below is a quick chart that a lot of people can relate to. I call it the Then and Now Chart. It’s not meant to be a value judgment, just a realisation some people have about some of the disappointments they have.
Someone very wise drew this for me in my early twenties (and I can’t for the life of me remember who it was…). I’ve quite a few really good mentors and I didn’t note who said what – I just committed WHAT they ALL said to memory…
Dr Marc Dussault - Then And Now
But here’s the thing…
What my mentor told me is that IF you think ahead (something I now call 20/20 foresight, all you need to do is KNOW where you want to be THEN and plan for it NOW.
I know this sounds complicated, but I’ll give you a very specific example. When I took a sabbatical to finish my doctorate degree, I decided to go work for a company that I selected according to a 20+ point ‘checklist’… One of the conditions I set for myself was that I would be there for 3 years and once I attained my financial and personal goals, I would leave.
It took 3 1/2 years instead of 3, but by the time I left, I had:
- Acquired a post-graduate law degree, an intellectual indulgence that was a ‘reward’ I wanted to give myself if you can believe that. I love learning and love the structured academic environment that forces you to learn things you otherwise never discover on your own – like jurisprudence, the rule of law and its role in the formation and management of society – the Australian Constitution… I could go on…
- I acquired a corporate governance diploma from the Australian Institute of Company Directors (AICD). This was an accreditation I wanted to bolster my CV and my skill set to determine if I wanted to serve on company boards. I tried it and realised it’s a bureaucracy and ‘agency’ relationship I don’t enjoy.
- I got fit, lost 10 kilos transforming from a casual to an elite athlete winning not one, but two squash tournaments out of the first three I entered.
- I expanded my understanding of databases, IT integration, health informatics systems, object oriented and relational database programming as well as web services, XML and a whole bunch of other three letter acronyms (TLAs!).
- I was sponsored by an employer to become a Permanent Resident of Australia and intend to become a Citizen very soon.
What’s the point?
I set out to achieve ALL those outcomes BEFORE I ever applied for a job. I knew THEN what I would want ‘NOW’ 3 years later. I made a pact with myself that I would not ‘sell myself short’ for a job. That wasn’t the outcome I wanted.
With 20/20 foresight it’s easier to PLAN FOR SUCCESS than it is to look back with regret.
I am not saying YOU have regrets – what I am saying is that some people do end up where they don’t want to be and for many, the ONLY reason is because they never set out to be anywhere or anything else.
They ‘evolved by default’ rather than ‘revolutionise themselves by design‘.
It’s easy to hit a target you can see and KNOW what it looks like…
Nearly impossible when you don’t know WHERE it is or WHAT it looks like.
If you’d like to start planning NOW to achieve your life goals and dreams, take a look at my programs – I’ve designed them to be accessible for everyone with a model to fit any budget. Go to www.ExponentialPrograms.com and take a look around at both the Business and Internet Mastery Membership Programs.
I have a very unique and exponential way of seeing the world – it’s a mindset I can teach you, so you start
“Live a life of revolution by design rather than
evolution by default to avoid extinction by stagnation.”
— Dr Marc Dussault —
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