A Life Defined in Six Words

How would you like your life to be measured?

For what would you like to be remembered?

这个博客的老读者知道我是多么喜欢鼓励人们去思考这些重要的问题. (“Food for Thought,” Nov. 28, 2012)

Recently I was re-reading a famous essay by Clayton Christensen titled “How Will You Measure Your Life?” Christensen is a much-lauded Harvard Business School professor, co-founder of four companies, and bestselling author. 这篇文章源于克里斯滕森在哈佛商学院2010年毕业班上的演讲，当时毕业班要求他将课堂理论和原则应用到他们的个人生活中.

这篇文章谈到的许多想法与我的个人哲学以及推荐全球十大博彩公司排行榜Barry-Wehmiller的领导愿景非常接近. 当我重读克里斯滕森的文章时，我认为它提供的生活和职业经验值得分享. My favorite excerpts follow. (Click HERE for entire article.)

弗雷德里克·赫茨伯格提出了一个理论，对第一个问题——如何确保推荐全球十大博彩公司排行榜在职业生涯中找到快乐——给出了深刻的见解, who asserts that the powerful motivator in our lives isn’t money; it’s the opportunity to learn, grow in responsibilities, contribute to others, and be recognized for achievements.

Management is the most noble of professions if it’s practiced well. No other occupation offers as many ways to help others learn and grow, take responsibility and be recognized for achievement, and contribute to the success of a team. 越来越多的MBA学生来到学校，认为商业生涯意味着购买, selling, and investing in companies. That’s unfortunate. 做交易不能像培养人才那样获得丰厚的回报.

For me, 在我的生活中有一个明确的目标是至关重要的……我每天都在运用我对生活目标的了解. It’s the single most useful thing I’ve ever learned. 我向我的学生保证，如果他们花时间找出自己的人生目标, 他们会认为这是他们在哈佛商学院发现的最重要的东西. If they don’t figure it out, 他们会在没有舵的情况下扬帆而去，在生活的波涛汹涌中受到冲击.

Over the years I’ve watched the fates of my HBS classmates from 1979 unfold; I’ve seen more and more of them come to reunions unhappy, divorced, and alienated from their children. 我可以向你保证，他们中没有一个人在毕业时故意选择离婚，抚养与他们疏远的孩子. And yet a shocking number of them implemented that strategy. The reason? 当他们决定如何度过时间时，他们并没有把生活的目标放在最重要的位置, talents, and energy.

Your decisions about allocating your personal time, energy, and talent ultimately shape your life’s strategy.  当那些对成就有高度需求的人有额外的半小时时间或额外的一盎司精力时, 他们会不自觉地把时间分配给能产生最切实成就的活动. 在你与配偶和孩子的关系中投入时间和精力通常不会带来同样直接的成就感. Kids misbehave every day. 直到20年后，你才可以把手放在屁股上说, ‘I raised a good son or a good daughter.’ You can neglect your relationship with your spouse, and on a day-to-day basis, it doesn’t seem as if things are deteriorating. 那些追求卓越的人有一种无意识的倾向，即对家庭投资不足，而对事业投资过多——尽管与家人亲密友爱的关系是最强大、最持久的幸福源泉.

Unconsciously, 当推荐全球十大博彩公司排行榜在对与错之间做出选择时，推荐全球十大博彩公司排行榜经常在个人生活中使用边际成本原则. 推荐全球十大博彩公司排行榜脑子里有个声音说，‘听着，我知道一般来说，大多数人不应该这么做. 但在这种情有可原的情况下，就这一次，没关系.“就这一次”做错事的边际成本似乎总是低得诱人. It suckers you in, 你从来没有想过这条路最终会走向何方，也没有想过这个选择需要付出的全部代价. 任何形式的不忠和不诚实都是基于“就这一次”的边际成本经济学.’

100%坚持原则要比98%坚持原则容易. If you give in to ‘just this once,’ based on a marginal cost analysis, as some of my former classmates have done, you’ll regret where you end up. 你必须明确自己的立场，并在安全的地方划清界限.

推荐全球十大博彩公司排行榜……决定谦卑不是由自我贬低的行为或态度来定义的，而是由你对他人的尊重来定义的, 只有当你对自己感觉良好时，你才能谦虚——你也想帮助你周围的人对自己感觉良好, too. When we see people acting in an abusive, arrogant, or demeaning manner toward others, their behavior almost always is a symptom of their lack of self-esteem. They need to put someone else down to feel good about themselves.

我得出的结论是，上帝衡量我的生活的标准不是金钱，而是那些我曾经影响过他们生活的人...I think that’s the way it will work for us all. Don’t worry about the level of individual prominence you have achieved; worry about the individuals you have helped become better people.

在思考克里斯滕森的想法时，我收到了一个链接 SmithMagazine.net by a team member. 知道我有多喜欢挑战别人，让他们思考他们希望实现的目标, she shared with me this site on which, in only six words, people write their personal memoirs.

While the posts run from the serious to the silly, from inspirational to some filled with regret, it made me think again about how I want my life to be measured. Am I helping those around me to learn and grow and become better people? Do my actions reflect my beliefs and principles?

因为推荐全球十大博彩公司排行榜衡量Barry-Wehmiller成功的标准是推荐全球十大博彩公司排行榜影响人们生活的方式, am I accomplishing that every day? 无论是六个单词的练习，还是像克里斯滕森这样的人的敏锐建议, we can all use reminders to pause, reflect and check our progress. 因为正是推荐全球十大博彩公司排行榜每天做出的选择和采取的行动共同书写了推荐全球十大博彩公司排行榜的人生故事.

My hope for my six-word memoir? 

He listened. He cared. He acted.

And yours?