Your Twenty Five Year Plan Won’t Work
but You Can Do Something Now

Tim Cook, the CEO of Apple was asked to create a Twenty Five Year Plan in grad school. His plan turned out to be accurate for only 18 months.

We human beings are really bad at guessing. Even the most successful among us can’t seem to connect the dots about what will happen in the future.

So, what are we supposed to do today to be ready for the unknown, tomorrow?

Skills Matter Now

There are a certain number of skills that traverse most paths in life. Skills such as communication, adaptability, creativity, leadership, and persistence.

There are many more, but these are a few examples.

There are skills you are developing now that you will use and depend on in the future. There are skills you possess now that will be outdated in the next 24 hours.

Change is inevitable.

Businesses change. Technologies change. People change.

“All You Can Do is Prepare”

Many years ago John D. Rockefeller, one of the richest men in history, was asked what he could accurately predict about the stock market. His response? “The market will fluctuate.”

The only guarantee Rockefeller could give was change itself.

As Tim Cook pointed out in the video, the journey is not predictable. What you will do in twenty years is almost unknowable.

But you can prepare.

Find Your Beacon

Your mission is to find your beacon, your north star, your guiding light that will direct your day-to-day, week-to-week, and year-to-year actions.

What does this beacon look like?

From where I am sitting, your beacon will most likely hover around a principle, a purpose, a really big idea that you can’t escape.

Personal development is my beacon. Growth, change, and constant improvement are principles that push me every day.

Ponder This

Do I know where these principles will land me in 25 years? No.

Do I need to know? No.

Do I want to know? Actually, no. I don’t. I really enjoy the mystery of life.

What will I be doing in the near future to prepare for the unknown in 25 years? Developing as many pivotal skills as possible.

Which skills should I focus on? The ones I can’t ignore. The ones others possess that I long to master.

Find your beacon, develop your pivotal skills, adapt, change, and grow.