I was meeting with a group of entrepreneurs a few weeks back. One had recently sold his business and cashed out a healthy sum.
He was asking the group for opinions on his plans for the next stage he was entering.
As I sat back and listened, I noticed that much of the conversation primarily focused on finances.
Some people shared how their goal has always been a certain net worth before they were ready to move to another stage of business or life.
Others shared that their competitive spirit kept them chasing financial success because that was the scorecard in business and they want to win at whatever they do.
I openly asked if anyone has ever wondered if they’re playing by the right scorecard.
Think about it for a second.
What scorecard do you play by?
For example, a lot of investors play by keeping score of the number of doors they own.
The more the better.
And they’re happy to brashly announce their score any chance they get.
But we know multiple investors who held 40+ properties with almost 100 doors only to lose it all from being too highly leveraged.
Their portfolios were built on a house of cards, and their lives revolved around chasing after more money to keep things afloat.
To them, they were winning the game. But on other scorecards, they hadn’t even made it to the major leagues yet, never mind win.
Here are a few of the lesser talked about scorecards we take into account when making future decisions.
Many people keep score with a typical financial scorecard, meaning is there some money in the bank? are you able to afford some travel or other luxuries you enjoy? maybe even drive a luxury car.
But often that’s all short-lived.
A bad year or loss of job and that can change quickly.
Instead, maybe it’s worthwhile to look at how many streams of cash flow you have coming to you.
The more streams the better.
This John D. Rockefeller quote sums it up nicely.
“I would rather earn 1% off 100 people’s efforts than 100% off my own.”
So you’re a big shot at a multinational corporate firm. People respect you and some even envy your position.
You make “important” decisions and have people running around doing all sorts of different things for you.
It also comes with a big salary and a bunch of stock options.
But you’re miserable.
You wake up every day to sit in traffic, work long hours, and struggle to take more than a week off at a time or it’s frowned upon heavily, while always seeking approval from your superiors.
If you play by this scorecard you’re not just losing, you’re getting blown out.
How often have we all sacrificed winning here for a few points somewhere else?
Do you have a family and claim they’re your top priority?
If so, how often do you allow other commitments to “get in the way” of doing the things you want to do with them?
When I work evenings or weekends hosting a class or event, am I putting them first?
I tell myself there are long-term benefits to them, by making the business successful or maintaining income properties, but those points should really go on another scorecard, not this one.
When we go on a month-long European vacation every year, take a few hours off to hang out together, or make it to horseback riding, swimming, art, and theatre lessons I get points.
Sometimes keeping a correct score here can take a look in the mirror and some honesty with yourself.
This can be measured in many ways.
There are all sorts of charities you can donate to.
Beyond that, are you someone people can count on for help? How do you regularly make people feel? Which of your gifts do you share to benefit others?
Your scorecard can be different, maybe it’s spiritual, personal health, self-improvement or something else, there are many.
One isn’t better than the other.
But we’re all keeping our own score in one way or another.
The average person just coasts through the game without putting much thought into it.
For those who do, the financial scorecard is the most common.
But like sports, where advanced metrics are now commonplace, this scorekeeping is not for those who are average.
It’s for A-list players, those in the major leagues.
If you hang around these parts, then you’re one of them.
How are you keeping score? And is it the right one for you?
