Gratitude, But So What?
As I entered my seventh decade of life in 2022, I felt an overwhelming sense of triumph and gratitude. Seventy years, a milestone promised by the Psalmist, had finally arrived. Psalm 90:10 states “Our days may come to seventy years, or eighty, if our strength endures. yet the best of them is but trouble and sorrow, for they quickly pass, and we fly away.” This verse is saying that: (1) Human lifespan is typically around 70 years, with some people living up to 80 years due to their strength and resilience. (2) Despite the length of our lives, our experiences are often marked by hardship, toil, and sorrow. (3) Our lives are fleeting, and we will soon pass away, like birds flying away. The psalmist is highlighting the brevity and fragility of human life, encouraging us to make the most of our time and to focus on what truly matters. This verse is often seen as a reminder to: (1) Cherish every moment. (2) Prioritize what is truly important. (3) Recognize the limitations and vulnerabilities of human existence (4) Seek a deeper connection with God and a sense of purpose beyond our earthly lives.
But with this sense of accomplishment and attainment of a notable and desirable milestone, came a flood of memories, experiences, and questions. What happened, how, and why? Who were with me, and what mattered most? I realized that this decade would be one of reflection, processing my past for meaning and guidance for the future. This type of presence of mind, characterized by reflection, introspection, and a desire for meaning and guidance, can prompt individuals and did for me to: (1) Evaluate priorities: Assess what truly matters in life, relationships, and accomplishments. (2) Seek closure: Resolve unfinished business, forgive oneself and others, and find peace with past experiences. (3) Identify lessons learned: Distill wisdom from successes and failures and apply it to future decisions. (4) Reconnect with values and purpose: Align current actions and goals with core values and life’s purpose. (5) Cultivate gratitude: Appreciate the good experiences, people, and circumstances that have shaped their life. (6) Mentor or share wisdom: Pass on insights and knowledge to others, leaving a positive legacy. (7) Pursue personal growth: Engage in self-improvement, learning, and self-care to enhance their remaining years. (8) Nurture meaningful relationships: Invest in significant connections, strengthening bonds and creating lasting memories. (9) Create a legacy: Develop a sense of how they want to be remembered and take steps to ensure their impact endures. (10) Embrace the present: Focus on the here and now, appreciating the beauty and significance of each moment.
This presence of mind motivates individuals, and it caused me to act because it: (1) Encourages self-awareness and understanding of the essence of life. (2) Fosters a sense of purpose and direction, especially now empowered by the benefits of hindsight. (3) Prompts personal growth and development. (4) Helps resolve unfinished business and find closure. (5) Inspires meaningful connections and contribution, and (6) Encourages appreciation for life’s experiences and relationships. My life had been a whirlwind of passion, ambition, and drive, but I had rarely stopped to ask, “so what?” Now, I sought answers. What motivated me to work so hard, compete so fiercely, and desire so much to excel? The questions swirled, and I promised myself to write an autobiography to uncover the truth. But where to start? My life was complex, multifaceted, and full of twists and turns. I decided to give myself a decade to write it, and to structure my focus, I would write five memoirs, each exploring a different aspect of my life. This would allow me to analyze and explore selected themes at a time, seeking insights that could later be collated and correlated.
Making Sense of a Winding Career Path: Avoiding the Pitfalls of Presentism
As I reflect on my career, I’m struck by the twists and turns that defined my journey. In demand and sought after by various organizations, I found myself navigating a complex web of opportunities, often prioritizing the highest bidder. Now, as I attempt to tie a neat ribbon around my experiences, I’m confronted with the challenge of making sense of it all without succumbing to the temptation of presentism. Presentism, the tendency to judge past decisions through the lens of current values and knowledge, threatens to distort my narrative. To avoid this pitfall, I must embrace the complexity of my career, acknowledging the context and motivations that drove my choices. My career was not orchestrated around specific imperatives, but rather, it was shaped by the demands and needs of industry giants. I was fueled by a desire to please and deliver, often prioritizing prestige and financial gain. However, as I look back, I recognize the need to reframe my experiences, seeking insights that transcend the superficial measures of success.
To make sense of my winding career path, I’m employing a nuanced approach: (1) Contextualizing decisions: Understanding the circumstances and motivations that drove my choices, rather than judging them through today’s lens. (2) Identifying patterns and themes: Recognizing recurring elements that emerged throughout my career, such as a passion for innovation or a talent for leadership. (3) Evaluating trade-offs: Acknowledging the compromises I made and the opportunities I sacrificed in pursuit of prestige and financial gain. (4) Seeking lessons learned: Distilling wisdom from my experiences, rather than simply celebrating successes or lamenting failures. (5) Integrating my narrative: Weaving together the disparate threads of my career, creating a cohesive story that honors the complexity of my journey. By embracing this approach, I’m able to make sense of my career without falling prey to presentism. I’m able to celebrate my accomplishments, acknowledge my shortcomings, and extract valuable insights that will inform my future endeavors.
My memoirs would delve into my:
1. Early years, shaped by family and upbringing
2. Professional journey, marked by triumphs and setbacks
3. Spiritual path, winding through faith and doubt
4. Relationships, forged through love, friendship, and community
5. Legacy, the impact I hope to leave on the world
Through this process, I aim to distill the essence of my life, understanding what drove me, what mattered most, and what I can pass on to others. My autobiography will be a testament to the power of reflection, a journey of self-discovery, and a celebration of the complexities that make us human. In this seventh decade of life, I embrace the refining fire of introspection, seeking to transform my experiences into wisdom, and my story into a legacy that inspires.
The Journey Ahead
As I embarked on this writing journey, I realized that each memoir would be a thread in the intricate tapestry of my life. By exploring different facets of my existence, I hoped to gain a deeper understanding of myself and the world around me. My first memoir, “Roots and Branches,” will delve into my early life experiences and family dynamics. I will examine the values and beliefs instilled in me, and how they shaped my early years. This reflection helped me appreciate the strong foundation laid by my loved ones and guardian angels and the ways in which it influenced my later life. The defining feature of this season can be described as a mentored path to success. A journey shaped by inspiring guides.
This memoir will recount how a chance encounter with a mentor dramatically altered the course of my early life, setting me on a path that led to remarkable academic achievements and early success. When our hard work and dedication (the labor of our life) align with God’s blessings and favor, it can lead to an explosion of productivity, fruitfulness, and success in our endeavors. It’s as if our efforts are multiplied and magnified, leading to a tempo of progress and achievement that surpasses our wildest dreams. This is a beautiful reminder of the power of faith, hard work, and divine favor in shaping our lives and destinies. Such were the experiences of my early life from 1965 to 1985.
The return of my wife and I to the United States of America in 1985 after a few years of teaching at the University of Ibadan represented the crescendo of the early life experience that started in 1965 when I returned to start my primary school career again after dropping out for more than five years. First, I assume a faculty position at the Florida State University as assistant professor of urban and regional planning. Second, I was able to publish my first article from my doctoral dissertation in the Journal of Regional Science, the topmost journal in my field. Third, I won a prestigious STAR Research Grant award as a rookie. Fourth, I was able to contribute to upgrading the office technology of the Department of urban and regional planning with the purchase of an office computer. In addition, I was able buy another one for my own faculty office. Fifth, the research grant afforded me an opportunity to invite a collaboration with one of the senior faculty colleagues in the department. Sixth, I received a fabulous annual performance review which pointed to a future of tremendous academic career potential. All the successes that launched my academic career in the US began in 1965 at Effo-Amuro in Kogi State where I met the Late Dr. Jide Maiye who was then a Grade 3 teaching Primary School Class 3 who changed my life forever.
The second memoir, “The Professional Pilgrimage,” chronicled my career path, highlighting triumphs, setbacks, and lessons learned. Through this writing, I identified patterns and motivations that drove my decisions, and gained insight into the true meaning of success. This memoir will articulate how I was US trained in housing and urban economics and ultimately became a world class housing finance expert whose scholarship and practice acumen span the full range of the housing finance value chain. I served as senior economist at the US National Association of Homebuilders, vice president at Fannie Mae, practice leader of a Global Housing Finance Group at PricewaterhouseCoopers. I am currently a retired professor from Carey Business School, Johns Hopkins University. My post-retirement career involves me serving as senior advisor and managing principal of GIVA International, a management consulting and solution provider firm in the areas of housing and mortgage markets. In addition, I am also engaged in investigating how best to improve the liquidity of real estate assets on the balance sheet of multinational companies. I seek to leverage the nascent capabilities of Generative AI to combine simulation, optimization and abnormality detection to drive the efficiency of people, assets, and workflows embedded within enterprises, especially multinationals. I am working in partnership with the Marquise Who’s Who Organization to reposition, boost, and optimize my digital footprint within the framework of the global online marketplace. For example, we plan to leverage my ongoing project to produce my memoirs and autobiography to investigate how best to create family and community network value for global capitalization of brand enhancement increases.
In “The Spiritual Sojourn,” my third memoir, I explored my faith journey, navigating the twists and turns of doubt and belief. This introspection helped me understand the evolution of my spirituality and its impact on my life’s purpose. The fourth memoir, “Love, Friendship, and Community,” celebrated the relationships that have enriched my life. By reflecting on these connections, I grasped the significance of human bonds and the ways in which they have supported me through life’s joys and challenges. Finally, “Legacy and Impact,” my fifth memoir, prompted me to consider the mark I hope to leave on the world. This introspection encouraged me to think about the values, wisdom, and experiences I want to pass on to future generations.
Through planning the work for this five-memoir journey, I have gained a profound understanding of myself and my life’s journey. By exploring different facets of my existence, I have distilled the essence of my experiences, values, and wisdom. My autobiography as envisioned, a testament to the power of reflection, will serve as a legacy, inspiring others to embrace their own complexities and seek meaning in their lives.
Harnessing the Power of “Beginning with the End in Mind” in Autobiographical Writing
In my journey to write a comprehensive autobiography, I discovered the transformative concept of “beginning with the end in mind” coined by Stephen Covey. This approach has revolutionized my writing process, enabling me to focus my energy, plot effective rhetoric and narrative strategies, and organize a robust research outline. Moreover, it has revealed the relevance of systems thinking to my writing projects, yielding tremendous implications and compelling imperatives.
By starting with the end in mind, I defined the purpose and scope of my autobiography, clarifying the message I wanted to convey and the audience I intended to reach. This clarity of purpose has allowed me to:
1. Develop a clear research outline, ensuring a thorough search for information and insightful anecdotes.
2. Craft a compelling narrative, weaving together themes, events, and reflections that illustrate my life’s journey.
3. Employ effective rhetoric, using persuasive language and storytelling techniques to engage readers and convey my message.
4. Integrate systems thinking, recognizing the interconnectedness of experiences, relationships, and decisions that have shaped my life.
The systems thinking approach has been instrumental in helping me:
1. Identify patterns and connections between seemingly disparate events and experiences.
2. Understand the dynamics of my personal and professional growth, revealing areas of strength and weakness.
3. Recognize the impact of external factors, such as cultural and historical context, on my life’s trajectory.
By embracing “beginning with the end in mind” and systems thinking, I have:
1. Streamlined my research process, focusing on relevant information and insights.
2. Created a cohesive narrative, showcasing the complexities and nuances of my life.
3. Developed a compelling message, highlighting the lessons learned and wisdom gained.
In conclusion, incorporating Covey’s concept and systems thinking into my autobiographical writing has been a game-changer. It has enabled me to harness my energy, plot effective strategies, and organize a comprehensive research outline. The implications are profound, and the imperatives compelling – to craft a narrative that not only tells my story but also conveys valuable insights and wisdom to readers.
Isaac Megbolugbe, former practice leader at PricewaterhouseCoopers, retired professor at Carey Business School, Johns Hopkins University, and fellow at Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors. He is resident in the United States of America.
