The importance of embracing an immortality project.
“If we think of the area in our field that is the greatest time waster and the most negative, it is the last ten years of the entrepreneur’s life. We are tremendously burdened by the entropy that frequently enters the system.” It was a shot across the bow by Jay Hughes following a riveting conversation with authors of the recently released book The 10X10 Learning Roadmap: Advancing Flourishing in Families of Wealth.
But the final years don’t have to be a waste.
As Hughes stated, “If we as a field can do something better with those last ten years than be stuck in the entropy that is created, we can reduce suffering and do some great good.”
I was in the audience Jay was challenging. In their presentation, the authors of 10X10, Stephen Goldbart, Stacy Allred, and John DiFuria, discussed the ten phases of adult development, focusing on late developmental stages eight through ten when founders face the challenges of aging.
In stage eight, they argue founders must begin to focus their attention on the next phase of life, separate from the family business. This includes a significant realization of mortality and an urgency to focus on legacy. A liquidity event or succession is on the horizon, and the question, “What’s next?” is front and center.
Stages nine and ten are possibly the most challenging. Losses, including physical, emotional, and intellectual, beleaguer a founder’s identity. It’s in these final phases that founders must be proactive about one’s physical, spiritual, and mental health, while balancing loss with an optimism about what can be achieved in the remaining years. These phases are labeled “eldering,” a concept that has been gaining popularity in the family business space.
At their best in these two latter stages, founders are hyper-focused on imparting wisdom and making every moment count through stewardship of legacy and mentorship. For some founders, this looks like embracing an immortality project.
What Is an Immortality Project?
An “immortality project” is a concept rooted in humanity’s quest to transcend mortality by leaving a lasting impact on the world. I define it as a purpose-driven endeavor aimed at leaving behind a legacy that outlasts one’s own existence. It’s a conscious effort to create something enduring that influences future generations. It’s about leaving a mark that continues to resonate long after we’re gone. These can be philanthropic initiatives, educational initiatives, social enterprises, research and innovation centers, community development projects, helping to build a 7-Generation family, and more.
Embracing an immortality project might feel uncomfortable, if not impossible, for many founders who have spent the majority of their lives building a highly successful business. For years, they’ve labored 70+ hours a week, which leaves little time for noticing what’s going on in the world outside of their business, and what they might invest in next. Their identity is their business. To lead an immortality project is to envision an identity outside of the business, which is frightening.
Founders aren’t at fault. There is little to no conversation around the topic of eldership. Neither the founder nor the family has the words to identify a path for the founder moving forward. They lack the skills or experience to ask, “What are you passionate about?” Even when a founder connects with a possible passion project, they often will reject it because it has nothing to do with their business. Investing in an immortality project, when it’s different than the business their identity is linked to, takes courage.
The Role of a Trusted Advisor
Trusted advisors can change the trajectory for founders—and help them embrace an exciting new phase of leadership—by leading founders to their immortality project. The trick is to help founders re-connect with their entrepreneurial spirit. This reawakening can fuel their immortality project.
Trusted advisors as well as family members can ask key questions to awaken the entrepreneur within. As Jay said in the follow-up to the presentation, “Dad [or the founder] wants to be asked questions, but no one does. Nobody asks, ‘Are you developing? What’s going on with you at this stage of your life?’”
A transition to an immortality project—or eldership—won’t happen until the founder first opens the door to an intriguing idea. And this happens through conversation.
Some other questions trusted advisors and family members might ask to open the door to the founder’s next phase of leadership are the following:
- What’s holding you back from moving into the next stage?
- Do you remember when you saw something that didn’t sit right with you?
- How do you think you can help future generations?
- Do family members know why you did what you did when you founded the company?
When you help a founder answer questions like these, you help placate the amygdala hijack fueled by the fear of letting go. It’s essential to ask reflective questions that entice the imagination of the founder and create conversation. This in turn yields understanding.
The Fruit of an Immortality Project
Clay Mathile is best known for growing The Iams Company from a struggling regional business to a billion-dollar behemoth. Under his leadership, The Iams Company grew significantly and became a major player in the pet food industry, by focusing on high-quality pet food products. Eventually, he sold The Iams Company to Procter & Gamble in 1999 for approximately $2.3 billion.
Following a liquidity event like this, many founders flounder—because they don’t know who they are separate from their business. They’ve never imagined a life outside of the business. Mathile was proactive in his retirement from the business and embraced his eldership. Recognizing the challenges young entrepreneurs face in starting a business, he began an entrepreneurial university. It was his way of paying it forward, using his knack for making things happen to help others find their path.
This new venture did more than just fill his days; it became a project that would outlive him, shaping his legacy and changing how his family saw him.
The Mathile family started to see beyond the here and now, and is building a flourishing family for generations to come. It turned out, his biggest venture wasn’t just about the business; it was about planting seeds for the future, ensuring his impact would ripple through time.
A family flourishes when a founder flourishes.
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