Top Five IMMEDIATE BENEFITS of LONGTERM THINKING
Here are five key benefits to approaching organizational development with longterm thinking.
Longterm thinking promotes selfless leadership.
There is much talk about narcissism in business. And for a good reason. One narcissist can wreak untold havoc on company culture.
High achievers are more likely to rank high on the narcissism spectrum. This is because they have high-ego strengths that are well-earned from their performance.
How does the organization reward individual achievers without feeding the narcissism within? Answer: Legacy thinking.
Longterm thinking forces the top leaders to put the focus on the company and others around them. This naturally insulates against selfish thinking.
2. Longterm thinking keeps the focus on growth.
The need to provide growth opportunities for staff is pure motivation.
A quick story: I was hired to help a very traditional organization put together a 10-year growth plan. Because growth planning is somewhat fuzzy, many had a hard time seeing 10 years out. After a few sessions of frustration, one of the key leaders finally said, “Why are we even doing this?!” The President then said, in his calm and measured way, “We need to provide a growth path for our staff.”
That’s it! When you’re looking to develop team players into leaders, you need something for them to lead!
Longterm thinking forces leadership to secure a future for the sake of others’ professional growth.
3. Longterm thinking insulates executives against “the big letdown.”
It’s lonely at the top.
I could flood you with the research. But I think we all know that executives are more unhappy than others. There are lots of reasons for this. One big reason is that individual goal orientation no longer drives the heart when you’ve achieved more than most. What’s next for me? That’s a haunting question.
Humble brag - I have loads of coaching hours logged with top executives. They are more prone to unhappiness in all forms. But the ones that can turn from individual-goal-orientation to people-driven-purpose are more fulfilled.
The THRIVE 365 approach to executives is one that puts the focus on substance within the heart and focus on others-oriented goal setting. This shift brings purpose, and more happiness
Learn more about our Executive approach here.
4. Longterm thinking keeps the focus on Vision and Purpose.
Vision causes everyone to look out and answer: What will it look like to work here 5, 10, or 20 years from now? This is because the longterm approach is naturally future-oriented.
Purpose simply asks the question: Why do I come to work every day?
Numerous studies show that employees eventually lose motivation in their jobs when there is a lack of purpose. The longterm approach already has a built-in purpose: give everyone a growth path. What better purpose is there than that?!
5. Longterm thinking solves major business problems.
We need to cross-reference our blog “Five TODAY problems solved with longterm thinking.”
In summary, here’s a list of problems longterm thinking solves:
PROBLEM #1: It’s expensive to lose leaders.
PROBLEM #2: New leaders often don’t work out. (and what you can do about that)
PROBLEM #3: People explore other options when they don’t see a growth path.
PROBLEM #4: People leave leaders, not organizations.
PROBLEM #5: People struggle to feel a sense of deeper purpose and direction at work.
In Conclusion: Think Longterm!
Our purpose is to see organizations thrive for the long haul. There are immediate benefits and longterm effects that last generations.
So where are you on your journey to transform your organization for now and longterm success? We have a simple diagnostic called the Longterm Leader Compass™. Click here to learn more.
Yours in leadership,
Tony Woodall
