Is Longevity Overrated?

Last week I had a fun conversation with some friends about a business idea.  One of them has an idea for a new type of consulting business and we were talking about the need to-do list that he would have to work on.  He mentioned he talked to some consultants and he was a bit discouraged as some had told him that he lacks longevity and that companies want longevity.  As we talked about this the idea being that, companies want someone who has been at it a long time, but as I pointed out, longevity is often more of a myth in some cases and can also be a liability instead of an asset in other cases.

Longevity in this situation means, remaining the same.  The consultant was expressing that companies like long histories of doing something.  Now 5 years ago I was told that by a recruiter that I lacked this kind of longevity on my resume and I agree.  But I also work in a  space that moves rather quickly and if you have been doing the same thing today that you were in 2005, you missed a lot!  Longevity is also not very natural.  I am blessed to have a wooded lot that I live on, my office looks out to the woods and I see how my yard changes.

To the average observer, my yard never changes, the big trees are still there, the jasmine and nettle compete for  space, year after year and my blackberry bushes are always full of blackberries.  To the average person, it looks the same as it did last year.  But nature has one rule, keep move, i.e. keep changing.  For me, I see how the tree canopy has grown, the nettle moves into new areas, the jasmine grows higher and the blackberry bushes grow as well.  Even the soil changes and the grass changes.  Everything is always changing, because you can’t grow without change.  Nature gets it, people who preach longevity, i.e. never changing, don’t get it.

A good organization is always changing, always seeking what is coming.  Staying the same is a good way to end up in the also ran category.  I don’t try to relive the past and I don’t think companies should either.  If you look back at history to learn what lessons there are, you’ll see it is the companies that looked forward, who eventually became successful.  Take Intel, they used to make calculators, then they switched to computer processors, back when it wasn’t even cool.  Or Apple, with their phones and mp3 players, they took them to a new level and now they sell millions.  People who would never buy a Mac, now buy iphones and ipads, left and right.  Change is good.

An organization must change, not just in mission but often in what people do.  I’m not saying lay people off, although sometimes it will come to that.  But you can change an organization and what people do without the layoffs.  Also an organization needs to constantly question, is this good enough for tomorrow?  The answer should be no.  If it is yes, then you are either doing something wrong or you have fallen into stagnant thinking.  Most people grow old when they start to do the same thing over and over and change little, nature hates that.  The same goes with organizations because they are created of people.  So longevity as defined by the consultant is really just a myth.  On the surface, it may look the same and look like a constant, but in reality, it’s not.