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“Every man takes the limits of his own vision for the limits of the world." — Arthur Schopenhauer, 1851
Let’s face it: no one knows what the future will bring.
We may have a fairly good idea, based on what we’re told, or what we’ve witnessed previously.
But there’s something that makes a difference in how we chart our own course.
Call it optimism, the power of positive thinking, or belief, it all points in the same direction. Before we reach a future state, we need to envision what the future looks like, and then chart a path there.
What Does Your Future Look Like?
Kate O’Neill, in her book A Future So Bright, counsels us to embrace strategic optimism — not blind faith or senseless optimism. But in a way to approach the future with realism.
Optimism, she writes, is “hope as a service.” But what is it in service of?
I finally got around to watching Ted Lasso (don’t judge), and as you can imagine, I appreciated the episode called “It’s the Hope That Kills You.”
This is a team that has faced the same rival for 60 years, and for 60 years has always lost to that rival. Each year, they get their hopes up, going all-in emotionally, only to have those hopes dashed upon defeat.
The die-hard fans, even with decades of losses behind them (hello, Detroit Lions fans), sputter “Wait until next year!” as a sort of rallying cry to keep morale from completely tanking.
If it’s the hope that kills you, then fans and even players themselves might consider not getting their hopes up, in an effort to save themselves the anguish.
But that doesn’t work for Coach Lasso, oh no. “I believe in hope,” he said. Even more, he said “I believe in belief.”
The Father of Sports Psychology
American philosopher William James studied great athletes, across a wide variety of sports. His goal was to determine what characteristic they all had in common.
He found what he called “precursive faith” — a belief in yourself and your ability to succeed, even if you’ve never done something before. (Hat tip to philosopher Tom Morris for pointing me to this.)
It’s the kind of belief that led Ferdinand Magellan to be the first to circumnavigate the globe. No GPS, no full map system. But a belief that he could.
It’s also what a newly-minted CEO needs to do. They’ve never been in that role before, and while they’ve had mentors and have counselors along, they need to believe in their own abilities to guide them through.
Two Kinds of Confidence
In situations like these, whether they’re physical or psychological, we need two kinds of confidence: initial confidence and resilient confidence.
Initial confidence is the confidence that instills you with the belief that you can try something new, set a record, or do something no one has done before.
Resilient confidence is that confidence that keeps you going, that picks you back up after a devastating setback or defeat.
Together, these two attributes give us what we need to continue to believe. And in doing so, we set the culture for those around us, who in turn will want to believe and want to succeed, regardless of the challenges before them.
I believe in a brighter future. Do you?
“The heritage of the past is the seed of the future.” — Wendell Phillips
If the Past Is Prologue, We’re Screwed
A historian believes he has discovered iron laws that predict the rise and fall of societies. He has bad news. Can history predict the future? (The Atlantic)
Timeless & Timi
The Greek word philotimo has a number of rich meanings: a combination of philos (friend/love) and timi (honor), it connotes decency, dignity, honesty, truthfulness, sincerity, altruism, and a dozen other ideals encapsulating what it means to live with integrity. Successful companies espouse corporate philotimy that drives their ESG programs. (Harvard Business Review)
Learned Hopefulness
Hope is the antidote to helplessness. This is how to cultivate it. (Psyche)
“The future comes like an unwelcome guest.” — Edmund Gosse, 1873
Meta Morphosis
Facebook has had quite a few weeks. The Facebook Papers have been a deluge of negative stories, and of course Facebook has tried to distract us with a name change. Our future, and Facebooks place in it are in the balance. Charlie Warzel asks, “So…what now?” (Galaxy Brain)
Pandemic Lessons for the Future
Leaders can serve as beacons of hope. Reminding us of the past but pointing toward a better future. The values we held in January 2020 will be the values that help us create the “new normal.” It will build upon what we have learned and is enriched by the sacrifices we have made. (SmartBrief)
There’s Gold in Them Thar Ills
Setbacks happen. It’s a leader’s job to help us move beyond them. As Charles Caleb Colton write, “Afflictions sent by Providence melt the constancy of the noble minded but confirm the obduracy of the vile. The same furnace that hardens clay liquefies gold.” (Timeless & Timely)
“Fate leads the willing, and draws along those who hang back.” — Cleanthes, c. 250 BC
🎧 Kate O’Neill joined Timeless Leadership to talk about the power of strategic optimism with a lens on realism. Her B.R.I.G.H.T.E.R. model leaves us with specific recommendations for setting up our thinking to prepare for the best future for the most people.
📚 The average human lifespan is absurdly, insultingly brief. Assuming you live to be eighty, you have just over four thousand weeks. Drawing on the insights of both ancient and contemporary philosophers, psychologists, and spiritual teachers, Oliver Burkeman delivers an entertaining, humorous, practical, and ultimately profound guide in Four Thousand Weeks: Time Management for Mortals. Rejecting the futile modern fixation on “getting everything done,” Four Thousand Weeks introduces readers to tools for constructing a meaningful life by embracing finitude, showing how many of the unhelpful ways we’ve come to think about time aren’t inescapable, unchanging truths, but choices we’ve made as individuals and as a society―and that we could do things differently.
Thanks, and I’ll see you on the internet.