Present-Oriented Productivity
But also future-aligned.
POSITIVE AFFIRMATION
"Somdays all you gotta do is say one word to set the day’s intention.
What if that word also aligned to your future goals, your self?”
Keeping In Mind the Now and the Future
“Present-oriented purpose starts by choosing something you want. Only instead of choosing something in the future, you choose something in the present. A way of life that you enjoy, now, and that you’d like to experience more of in your life.” - mindful
I love setting goals and I imagine you do too. But sometimes those far-off goals seem too far away and I’d like immediate gratification, please. Also, those goals get me closer to my aspired self, which should be of great comfort knowing all this hard work contributes to a life’s purpose.
And yet, I want to feel a little bit of who I aspire to be… right now.
Looking at Gallup’s State of Global Workplace 2023 report, we can see this stress reflected in the results.
Daily stress at 41%, employee engagement at 23%, and life evaluation at 34%. Looking at the trend, the daily stress has been rising while engagement en life evaluation has been getting better. But really, those number are still quite low and should be much higher. (I wonder how reader of Venture Out would rate those questions.)
“The problem is that, in the best case, you get that future. But then it becomes the present, the goalposts move, and all that you’ve sacrificed for is subordinated to yet another future. And around and around you go on the hedonic treadmill, chasing ends all the way until the only possible end of ends.” - mindful
Hence, the power of a present-oriented purpose. I stumbled across practicing a version of this myself when out for a morning walk with my toddler and wrote about the vocabulary of intention-setting. Although different, intention-setting and present-oriented purposes can complement each other. A strong sense of present-oriented purpose can inform and guide the intentions we set, making them more meaningful and aligned with our core values. Conversely, setting intentions can be a way to manifest our present-oriented purpose in specific situations.
Here are a few prompts to help come up with your present-oriented purpose:
What are the 1-3 moments in which you felt the most alive?
When in the last week or month did you feel the most joy?
What did you most love to do as a kid?
What did you do when there was nothing you had to do?
TAKEAWAY
I make the case for a more holistic approach to personal growth that fuses our future aspirations with more present-oriented purposes - present-orient, future-aligned purposes.
Setting future goals remains crucial, especially when aligned with a strong sense of purpose, aka a North Star. Yet, anchoring ourselves in daily meaningful experiences can amplify our impact.
Incorporating present-oriented purposes into each day enriches our current experiences but also enhances future opportunities. Future goals remain future goals, but perhaps there will be more options, more paths to get there, or even brand new paths unknown to us before.
Present-oriented purposes open up those possibilities because each day’s productivity is achieved more naturally and with more ease. In other words, less chance of burnout and more chance of thriving. Ultimately, a more sustainable level of productivity.
(3 steps)
➩ Step 1 - Establish yearly goals. Don’t overthink it.
➩ Step 2 - Plan out your week. You’d be surprised how big a difference just 5 minutes makes. Send me a message if you want a copy of my weekly Google Doc template.
➩ Step 3 - Set an intention and present-oriented purpose setting in the morning. Just one or two words will suffice. I’ve been using the Stoic app to help with prompts.
