One of my favorite quotes of all time is from Stephen Covey. He states, “The best way to predict the future is to create it.” I love this quote because it takes away our ability to blame how things turn out in our lives on external circumstances; it tears down the idea that we must blindly accept life just as it comes; and it places our future success or failure solidly in our own hands. This statement forces us to step up and take responsibility in our lives and organizations, and provides the fantastic opportunity for us to make the necessary decisions to make our lives what we desire and can imagine.
I embraced this statement as a personal philosophy during a tough time in my professional life when I felt that my circumstances were out of my control. I felt as if I was drifting like a ship with no rudder. I was tossed from one wave to another and I was totally unable to steer my life to my desired destination. Then I read this statement, and I realized that if I was going to thrive, I was going to have stop just taking things as they came, but create the future of which I wanted to be a part. I then began my master’s degree studies and made monumental changes to my professional life as a result of this statement. Even today, I continue to explore new avenues of opportunity and work to build bridges to the future which I hope to see unfold before me. As I spoke of a few weeks ago, I have a clear vision of what my life will become and, in one sense, I can predict the outcome, because I am creating it as I go along.
As leaders, we must do the same for our organizations, our families, and our personal pursuits. Our vision for the future can’t be haphazard or something that we just take as life throws it at us. We must be intentional, which Covey supports when he states, “The successful experiences most of us would like to have in life are rarely an accident.” I want to encourage you to obtain accident insurance for your future by becoming highly intentional about what you will do today, in light of what you want to see happen in your life and organization down the road. Learn to predict the future by creating it today.
Lead well.