How Considering Your Future Self Leads to Smarter Business Decisions

Last month I was at a conference for a mastermind community that meets only once each year. Members go to great lengths to attend from around the world, but one group from Toronto had a more complicated trip than most.

The group’s flight was canceled when a plane rolled upside down during a rough landing at Toronto Pearson Airport. Several members of the group then drove two hours from Toronto to Buffalo and booked a one-way flight to the event in California.

The Wisdom of “That’s a Problem for My Future Self”

In talking about that decision, one member of the Toronto group said he had asked the person who drove him to Buffalo how he planned to get his car back after his return flight to Toronto.
The driver replied right away, “That’s a problem for my future self.”

I’m typically allergic to this type of logic. One of my core values is long-term orientation, which dictates being willing to make present sacrifices to secure a better long-term outcome for my future self. However, this situation was a great example of when it’s better to focus on the present and not worry as much about the future.

The options in this case were clear:

Option A: Get to the conference and seize the opportunity to learn, network, and make valuable connections that could lead to new professional opportunities. Then, spend half a day (or money) later on to get his car from Buffalo.

Option B: Potentially miss a conference he’d already paid for and lose out on many personal memories and professional opportunities, but save a day’s worth of inconvenience for his future self.

When you frame it that way, the answer is obvious.

Balance Today’s Choices with Futures Consequences

Most decisions we make, large or small, present the choice to either burden our present self to help our future self, or vice versa. For example, while we put aside money for retirement, restricting our current lifestyle to plan for a future we can’t even be certain we’ll live to see, we also make the occasional impulse purchase that will limit our financial options later.

As much as I prefer to take on burdens today that will pay off in the future, I generally recommend keeping a healthy balance in the ledger between your present self and future self.

4 Simple Tests for Smarter Decisions

There are a few frameworks that can help you find this balance in your decision making:

• The Cost-Benefit Test: Clarify what each option will cost you in the present and future, and what it may benefit you in the present or future. This colleague from Toronto incurred the future cost of having to retrieve his car from Buffalo, but he gained the present benefit of enjoying the conference, as well as potential future benefits from the personal and professional connections at the event.
• The Sunday Morning Paper Test: First, pretend everyone still reads newspapers. Then, ask yourself—if this decision you’re making in the present became the top headline in the Sunday morning paper, would your future self be able to deal with the consequences of your present actions? For example, if you drive while intoxicated because you do not want to leave your car at the bar, would the price of the worst plausible outcome be too damaging relative to the current inconvenience?
• The Core Values Test: In many cases, present indulgences feel good in the moment but bring long-term pain if they deviate from our core values. Having a decadent dinner likely won’t violate a core value, but telling a convenient lie to someone close to you that breaks their trust probably would.
• The Accumulation Test: Consider the long-term impact of your choices by imagining the consequences of making the same decision repeatedly. If you have the time and energy to exercise but feel tempted to stay on the couch, remind yourself that there may be a long-term price to pay for that inaction if it happens regularly. Conversely, choosing to work out even when you’re not in the mood will lead to lasting health benefits.

Each day, we choose between our two selves—past and future. The key is not forcing one to pay too great a price for the benefit of the other. As with most things, balance and intention is often the best strategy.

What are you doing today that your future self will need to pay for? Similarly, what present pain are you enduring that may not have that big payoff in the long run?

Quote To Remember

"We must all suffer one of two things: the pain of discipline or the pain of regret." -- Jim Rohn

Contributed by Robert Glazer, an EO Boston elumni who is the founder and board chair of Acceleration Partners, an award-winning global partner marketing agency. Glazer is the best-selling author of seven books and the inspirational Friday Forward newsletter, and hosts The Elevate Podcast. His posts for EO include:

• How to Move Beyond Resolutions to Sustainable New Habits
• Five No’s
• How to Become a Feedback Champ
• The Excuse Leaders Must Remove From Their Vocabulary
• How To Differentiate Between Innate Talent and Trainable Skill