Comments on: Shifting from Short Term to Long Term Thinking

By: Lisa

Lisa — Mon, 31 Oct 2011 14:34:40 +0000

Echoing what others have already said…

I like this post and think Trent makes some good points, but I think the post misses the point that a balanced and healthy life requires a mix of both short-term and long-term thinking.

Too often, it seems that we assume short and long-term thinking are mutually exclusive, that you can’t have one if you have the other, and that long-term thinking is always superior and prefarable. To have one without the other is not healthy. I think the goal should be to reach a balance and integrate our short and long-term thinking into a healthy whole. We need to be able to focus clearly on the task at hand, have spontaneous fun, appreciate and take advantage of unexpected opportunities, perform spontaneous acts of kindness without thoughts of long-term payback, etc. We also need to be able to put our short-term decisions and behaviors in the context of the long-term…not just our lifetime. I think being able to balance both short and long-term thinking is a mark of maturity (and maturity is not necessarily directly related to age).

By: graytham

graytham — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 17:23:05 +0000

I like intelligent movies, books, etc. too. But sometimes I’m in the mood for something stupid and mindless, and there’s nothing wrong with that. Every second of our life doesn’t need to be spent on self-improvement. Sometimes I don’t want to watch anything more cerebral than “Bridezillas”.

By: valleycat1

valleycat1 — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 15:10:30 +0000

I didn’t read this post as putting enjoyment off to ‘tomorrow’, but rather, when faced with options, considering which might have the more lasting benefit. Maybe sometimes the short-term pleasure of the one outweighs the long-term of the other. Sometimes it goes the other way.

By: Troy

Troy — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 04:13:40 +0000

Steven is right.

The problem with this post (and this blog many times) is that that author has simply swung the pendulum from one extreme to the other.

Both are bad.

Trent states “Short term thinking leads to a better moment. Long term thinking leads to a better life.”

This is completely wrong ONCE you have achieved balance. The first stage is not knowing. The second stage is compensating by trying to know everything. The third stage is acceptance that the first two are not healthy and that all you need to know, you already do.

Trent is in the second stage. And it shows with great clarity with the past years posts.

Many times short term thinking leads to a better moment, and many times to a better life as well. And many times it leads to neither.

But life is a series of moments and short term decisions.

Continually putting this off for tomorrow or sacrificing for this dream future will never lead anywhere, because there is always a tomorrow, so when do your realize that today is the day?

By: jackie.n

jackie.n — Sun, 30 Oct 2011 00:11:24 +0000

i agree with steven (#1) and i love his blog too.

By: Carol@inthetrenches

Carol@inthetrenches — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 23:08:05 +0000

One of the most facinating things about a close analysis of how we manage our money is that it causes us to evaluate how we manage our lives. Often in the process we discover that we can and want to make many improvements. This can be the greatest challenge and end up being the greatest benefit of the American Economic Crisis. We can whine it away or we can rebuild on a rock once our house on the sand has been swept away.

By: Steven

Steven — Sat, 29 Oct 2011 23:01:45 +0000

Always delaying gratification into the future will lead to an unfulfilled life. There has to be a balance between enjoying the moment, and preparing for the future. It’s okay to spend money, it’s okay to buy things you don’t need but really want. It’s okay to go on an international vacation of your dreams, it’s okay to eat out at fancy restaurants. But it’s not okay to do these things to the detriment of your future. It’s also not okay to live a life of asceticism thinking that “someday” you’ll have “enough” to enjoy it.

I don’t know how many times I’ve heard people who are older say things like “Do it while you’re young and healthy. I wish I had.” This is why I do as much traveling as I can now, while I’m young, because I love hiking and camping, rock climbing, traveling around Europe with my backpack, etc. I’m doing it now, because I know that when I retire, I might not be in good enough health to summit Half Dome, or Kilimanjaro. I might not have the knees to walk the steps at Machu Picchu.

Again, it’s about balance.