Life Purpose

I just read, Edmund Morgan’s biography of Benjamin Franklin, who after becoming successful in the printing/publishing business in Philadelphia devoted the second half of his life to scientific discovery and public service. The picture we all have of Franklin flying a kite during a lightning storm is balanced by what we know was his service to our fledgling country in the 18th Century.

I love what Franklin wrote to his mother in 1750, when in his early 40s: “I would rather have it said, he lived usefully, than, he died rich.” Franklin had a rare form of insatiable curiosity coupled with a devotion to that which was greater than himself, as great as he was. Not many of us can live the life that Franklin lived, but most of us can think about the type of service he provided to humankind, and how we might find even a small measure of success in giving back the way he did.

While many of us seek to find success in business, we should not fail to find success in life. A life purpose is something to give serious thought to no matter your age or stage in life. What you want to become can also be what you want to be remembered for. I’m not sure which is more important, but I think we would all like to be thought well of while we’re here, and later when we’re not.

So give some thought this week to your life purpose, and drop me a line if the idea stimulates your thinking.

Here are a few Business & Life Tips to think about….

Business Tips:

• A good way to measure success in business is not just with financial performance, but with the quality of new customers you create.
• A key to every business is to stay competitive and to make sure to utilize new technologies in adapting to consumer demand.
• People want in their leader someone they can trust. This is the key component that develops followership and loyalty.

Life Tips:

• The key to achieving almost anything is to know about 50% of what is necessary, and the rest is skill and sheer determination.
• Einstein said that imagination is more important than knowledge because knowledge is in the past. Imagination holds the future.
• When we keep things simple in life, it keeps us calm and clear in perspective and in practice. Peace and joy are the direct result.

Check out another recent article written by Bill in….

July – August 2016 Issue

– Scroll to Page 22 –

Succession Planning and Family Transition

Tags: Advice, Business Tips, Character, Determination, Developing Leaders, Drive, Energy, Knowledge, Leaders, Leadership Excellence, Leadership Problems, Leadership Skills, Life Tips, Motivation, People Leaders, Personal Development, Responsibility, Success, The Mind of a Leader, Vision