*“*Life can be much broader once you discover one simple fact. And that is everything around you that you call life was made up by people that were no smarter than you. And you can change it. **You can influence it.” ~Steve Jobs
Most folks who set goals do so in 1 year increments. Which is better than nothing.
But it’s similar to public companies that focus on quarterly results. You risk pursuing goals that don’t intentionally build toward something larger.
They say you overestimate what you can do in a day and underestimate what you can do in a year.
We grossly underestimate what we can do in 10.
If you decided you wanted to become a professor, for example, it’s highly unlikely you’d be able to do that in a year.
But you could absolutely do it in 10. You’d have to identify some intermediate goals along the way (which we’ll do in Week 3). But you probably wouldn’t have chosen those intermediate goals in the first place if you were thinking in 1 year increments. Because they are stepping stones.
Thinking in 10 years not only allows you to dream bigger, it also allows you to be more steady.
1 year thinking leads to trying shortcuts. To bigger, wilder swings. To microwaving results. Like trying to run a marathon after a week of training.
The world is full of weight loss programs that promise incredible results in 12 weeks. Few people actually accomplish it. Those that do usually slide backward soon after.
Compare that to a vision of, say, hiking the tallest mountain on each continent. You could spend the first 3 years simply training to get good at mountain climbing, and still have 7 years to tackle a mountain each year.
As you go through this process, I encourage you to think bigger. You might not know exactly how you’ll get there. You might not even see the path right now. That’s okay. We’ll talk more about how to translate these into concrete plans in Week 3. All that matters is that it resonates with you.
My business made $40,000 its first year in business, with 2 cofounders. It took us 3 years to eclipse $1 million. Took 7 to hit $10 million.
We absolutely could have grown faster. Lord knows we made dozens of mistakes along the way.
But I think rapid success is the exception and not the rule. Accomplishing meaningful, valuable things takes time.
Building a great company.
Launching and exiting a startup.