The 100+ Year Decision

Fellow steward,

Napoleon’s finest leader, General Marshal Lyautey, stood in his flourishing garden and noticed something missing.

“I see no copper beech tree,” he observed.

His gardener replied, “But General, such a tree could take 100 years to reach maturity.”

Without hesitation: “Then we must plant today. We have no time to waste.”

There's a reason Lyautey was one of Napoleon's most trusted generals. He had the courage to think beyond his own lifetime.

To plant something you'll never see reach maturity? That's bold. (Definitely scary.)

But that's what the greats do. They look beyond themselves. They think bigger. They live bigger. 

They dream bigger.

The greats ask: What can I do today so future generations will want to say thank you?

Family businesses often fail because they lack the humility to think beyond themselves. 

Most businesses are so focused on quarterly results or five year flips that the power and beauty of planting trees that take over 100 years to grow is forgotten.

The pattern is timeless. The pattern is universal. 

U.S.: “Shirtsleeves to shirtsleeves in three generations”

Ireland: “Clogs to clogs in three generations”

China: “Rice paddies to rice paddies in three generations”

Every culture knows this truth. Entropy is real. The corporate lifecycle is like gravity: undeniable and always present.

Most people don't have the discipline to sit in the stillness required for long-term building.

But that's the journey we're on in family business. Great things take time. Greatness is boring. Whether you're on the front line, in the boardroom, or stewarding a family legacy — we all play our part in laying brick.

Time can be our greatest asset.

It's that simple. And that hard.

Each generation must bring energy and make its mark. Otherwise, entropy wins.

So let's be like General Lyautey. Let's plant copper beech trees. Let’s build things our grandkids will talk about.

What could you do this week that's the equivalent of planting a tree you'll never see reach maturity?

Onward,
Matt

P.S. Thank you for joining me on these weekly notes. Some weeks I'll share inspiration, some weeks insights, some weeks lessons learned. All in service of building things worth passing on.