Monday, July 12, 1999

The long view

The magnitude of your success and fulfillment will be in direct proportion to how far ahead you consider the consequences of your actions.

If you have no thought or consideration for your consequences beyond the present moment, you’ll be successful on a very small scale, chasing from one immediate gratification to another. As you begin to extend the consideration of your consequences further and further into the future, your level of true success will grow.

Every action has consequences, not only now but far into the future. For a particular action, the immediate consequences may be desirable, and yet the future consequences of the same action may be disastrous. To enjoy the most success, take the actions which have the most positive consequences over the longest amount of time.

Smoking a pack of cigarettes may be somewhat pleasurable today, but it can have very negative consequences on all the subsequent days. Investing a thousand dollars in a mutual fund might be a bit of a sacrifice today, but it can continue to have very positive consequences for a long time to come.

Success consists of thinking ahead, of considering future consequences, and of taking actions based on those considerations. Make the overall, long-term consequences positive and enjoy the benefits long into the future.

— Ralph Marston

The energy of frustration Blame next

Copyright ©1999 Ralph S. Marston, Jr. All Rights Reserved. The Daily Motivator is provided for your personal, non-commercial use only. Other than personal sharing, please do not re-distribute without permission.