What Matters Now?

That’s a good question to ask yourself ... but it's not enough

I used to have this poster hanging in my house. But I think now that perhaps it is too limiting.

There’s a big question drawn in black marker on the white erase board that abuts my desk.

What matters now?

It’s an excellent question to ask yourself daily in these times as things change and swirl and we get thrown about, all of us and life tossed together like leaves in a windstorm. Gathered here, then there, then blown apart again … only to reunite when the wind pauses for a moment and we all catch our breath.

And yet … that question is a trap.

What matters now? Answer that question only and you’re part of the deafening crowd. It feels good at first (yeah! community! outrage!) but “What matters now?” can only ever provoke half the answers you seek.

And it may not lead you where you really want to go.

Because “What matters now?” is stuck in the moment.

This is good (this moment is all we have) and not-so-good because asking this question only will cause you to overlook something critical you need to win (in battle and in life): strategy. And strategy — plus the ability to adapt — is how you win the long game. (More on strategy in a future post: creating and implementing strategy is how I’ve made my living for much of my life.)

But, mostly, "What matters now?” doesn’t ask the really important question.

The vital one.

The one that you must answer amidst the wind and the noise and the seemingly daily explosions that rock our lives in public and private ways, small and large repercussions, sudden earthquakes when you had no idea there was pressure building in the ground below your feet.

And that question, dear reader, is this: