One of my favorite authors is Dorie Clark. Dorie is an expert in personal branding and leadership and has written several wonderful books (see at the end of this post). Her last book is simply amazing. “The long game – how to be a long-term thinker in a short-term world”.
Today most professionals feel rushed and overwhelmed. Most people work hard and are very busy… but, how can we see the big picture? How can we combine short-term results with long-term goals? In this complicated environment, how can we create a meaningful life? Clark suggests another way of doing things. She argues for doing small things over time to achieve our goals. In the book, she explains several PRINCIPLES ALL OF US CAN APPLY IN ORDER TO REACH OUR GOALS.
- Saying No (Even to Good Things). At the beginning of your career, it is usually a good idea to say “yes”. You probably have more free time and you need to get many different experiences. But as you get older it probably makes sense to be more selective; learning to say no to interesting challenges can be very useful in your professional career.
- Setting the Right Goals. Most people focus too much on lucrative objectives. But Dorie suggests that focusing on the “meaningful goals” is better than focusing on the “lucrative goals”. In this way, understanding your real motivations and following your own criteria can help you choose the goals that best fit you.
- Time to Explore. Clark recommends spending 20% of your time exploring new areas. She says “you have to think in decades; If everyone else is thinking a few months or a few years out, you can create a massive competitive advantage for yourself if you’re willing to go slow in order to achieve much bigger things over a period of ten years or more”.
- Think in Waves. Clark explains that in a professional career there are usually 2 kinds of waves, what she calls heads-up and heads-down modes. She suggests that during the heads-up mode, you should actively seek connections and explore new possibilities. And during the heads-down mode, it’s time to focus and execute.
- The Right People, the Right Rooms. Networking is very important in a long-term career. Clark classifies networking into 3 different groups:
- Short-term networking, when you need something fast, like a job or a client. This is the type most likely to fall into the trap of using people, so do it sparingly and only with people you already have close relationships with.
- Long-term networking, where you develop relationships with interesting people whom you admire and enjoy. These people may be potentially helpful to you in the future, but in indeterminate ways.
- Infinite horizon networking, in which you build relationships with fascinating people in diverse fields that, on the surface, probably can’t help you at all. You’re building the connection out of pure interest in them as a person—and over time, who knows?
- Strategic Patience. Clark explains that “to gain notice in your field, it often takes two to three years of effort before you see any results”. So, you should have “strategic patience”, the rewards need some time to arrive.
- Rethink Failure. All of us will fail sometimes. And when you fail, you have to learn from it. You should identify multiple paths to your goals, so if one path fails you can easily try another path.
- Reap the Rewards. We can train ourselves to be long-term thinkers using the following strategies:
- Get started in a very small way. Any goal can feel overwhelming if you look at it in its totality. But you’ll create positive momentum if you start small and can see your success build.
- Understand what it really takes to accomplish your goals. Too many people get discouraged that they’re not progressing faster, simply because they never took the time to ask questions or discover how long it’s taken others to succeed.
- Setting constraints on the time you spend at work will, paradoxically, make you more efficient. You’ll be forced to devise better systems and processes to manage your workflow.
- If you plan with a longer horizon than everyone else, and you’re willing to endure the ups and downs along the way, you’ll be able to accomplish far more than others.
8 powerful ideas to help you reach your goals in the long term. I finish with a quote from Dorie Clark “Big goals often seem – and frankly, are – impossible in the short term. But with small, methodical steps, almost anything is attainable”.
Dorie Clark’s books:
- The Long Game: How to Be a Long-Term Thinker in a Short-Term World
- Entrepreneurial You: Monetize Your Expertise, Create Multiple Income Streams, and Thrive
- Reinventing You: Define Your Brand, Imagine Your Future
- Stand Out: How to Find Your Breakthrough Idea and Build a Following Around It
- Stand Out Networking: A Simple and Authentic Way to Meet People on Your Own Terms