“Happy birthday Bob.  How old are you?”

“Well, I’m 25!” was the reply.

Now this did not make sense.  My friend was not totally sure how old his acquaintance was, but he knew for sure he was not 25.  Bob was somewhere in his 50s.  He thought he had heard that Bob was actually turning 60.

So, he called Bob on his declaration that he was 25 years old.

“Bob, I know very well you have got to be in your 50s, if not 60.  Why on earth are you telling me that you’re 25?”

What Bob shared was quite profound.  In fact, it was a paradigm shifter.  His answer created a totally different perspective on aging, on life and on leadership.  His decision on how to calculate his age was not deceptive in any, it was a simple shift in perspective meant to create a significant difference in how he chose to live his life.

This is his thinking:  How long is a typical life span?  Perhaps 85?  Perhaps 80?  You pick whatever age you think you may live until.  Of course we don’t know how many days we will live, but this is simply meant to choose a plausible end point.  Now subtract your current age.  That’s how old you are.

Or more accurately, that is how much time you have left to live and lead.  That is the number of years you have to create the legacy you want to leave.

This little exercise causes us to shift from a backwards to a forwards perspective.  We stop looking in the rear-view mirror and start looking out the windshield.

Profound isn’t it?

By calculating our age in the tradition means of counting the years since our birth, we tend to live in a retrospective mindset.  How much more could we accomplish if we lived looking forward instead of backwards?   I find it creates a sense of urgency that was not there previously.

I figure I am 32.  That doesn’t sound like a lot of time to me.  How much more do I want to accomplish in my life?  Lots.  Well, my critical path is probably no more than 32 years.  How do I need to intentionally step into my passions in order to do what I want to do in the 32 years I have left?

In any effective project management you always look forward.  What needs to be done in the time frame we have to get the project done?  Our promised delivery date is 6 weeks away. (For example).  What needs to be done in that 6 week period?  What sequence of events needs to happen when in order for us to complete the project on time?

Any effective leader is looking forward to what needs to be accomplished, and when.  Sure you take a quick look at the past in order to understand what has been accomplished in order to determine what remains to be accomplished in order to achieve our goals.  And, of course, goals and objectives are forward thinking.

When you’re driving do you spend more time looking through the windshield or in the rear-view mirror?  We need to glance in the rear-view mirror from time to time, but most of our time and effort is spent looking forward out the windshield.

This is a great picture of life and leadership.  From time to time look back at what you’ve accomplished, but keep looking forward to where you want to get to and what still needs to be accomplished.  Ramp up, don’t back down.

Forward calculating your age is a subtle reminder of how much time you have left to do what’s left to be done.  It’s a simple way to keep yourself looking through the windshield of your life, and not get stuck in regret looking backwards.

What’s behind you is behind you: learn from it so you can change what’s in front of you.  Build on the years you have lived in order to create maximum impact and value in the years you have left.  Dream and plan more than you reminisce.

When your memories exceed your dreams you’ve begun to die.

I’m 32 – how old are you?