The spirit of collective progress not only helped win the war, but endowed an entire generation of Americans with a sense of duty to community. The War created a mission that was so important that it rallied an entire society out of Economic Depression and organized every hand toward a common goal. The defining event of the 20th century was World War II. There is a school of thought that cutthroat competition leads to human progress. The war was bringing forward a new generation of men, and with them almost a new world of machines.”ħ) America works best when we work together on big projects. In 1945 TIME wrote “the way of man with man changes from generation to generation, and the way of man with a machine changes sometimes overnight. One of the more profound changes in generational leadership happened after World War II. Each generation benefits from the wisdom of those who came before it and guides the course of society for those who will follow. As time marches forward, the baton of leadership passes from one generation to the next and eventually an entirely new group of generations inherits the Earth. At any given moment the planet is inhabited by a group of generations sharing a common experience. I learned from this experience that there are structural breaks in the way that the world works and more forces in play than anyone has the capacity to understand.Ħ) Human progress is the result of an ongoing relay race among generations. Economic dynamics changed and turned everything I thought I knew on its head. I had 50 years of career “experience” and cycles were repeating. By the 1970s I reached a point where it felt as if I had seen it all. When I was reading TIME I often imagined myself as someone who was born around 1900 and began a career in 1923. Winners and losers are determined in large part by chance and circumstance.ĥ) Just when you think you understand everything, everything will change. Entirely different types of people would have thrived in those windows, and someone who may have been successful from 1980-2020 may have been stymied by forces greater than themselves from 1920-1960. The person who lived the core of their adult life from 1920-1960 saw a very different view of the world than the person who lived that life from 1940-1980 or 1980-2020. We all get a unique window of time on this planet and the events that we see are somewhat random. had never been so prosperous.”Ĥ) The window you get into the world is relatively random. ![]() One of my favorites was the Spring of 1955, when “Spring was full-blown in the U.S., and the nation’s prevailing mood seemed to be as bright as its blossoms. In TIME these moments could often be traced back to single articles that captured the moment. These times don’t last forever, so it’s important to appreciate them when you have them. There are a handful of times in life that everything falls into place and the collective energy of society reverberates with optimism. These are the things that will be most valuable on your journey through life.ģ) Savor life’s best moments. Invest in family, friends and self understanding. If you seek validation, personal achievement isn’t the place to find it. This happens even faster than you might think. ![]() Societal memory is short and even those who make it to “the top” are eventually forgotten. Wealth, fame and power won’t lead to immortality. We are all here for a short amount of time, so it’s critical to use that time wisely. A human lifespan is incredibly brief when measured against that scale.Ģ) Focus on the things that matter. I noticed that major events happen relatively infrequently, are set in motion over very long periods of time and are driven by forces larger than any individual. I also got to watch the major events that shaped society during those life spans. Over 77 years I watched multiple generations live life’s cycle. We all know that life is short, but watching the cycle of birth and death for entire generations drives home just how short life really is. In the early days of TIME, the editors of the magazine began obituaries with the phrase “As it must to all men, Death came, last week to…” It was a reminder that eventually we all return to the same place no matter how rich, famous or powerful. These are 10 things I learned from reading every TIME Magazine in history:ġ) Compared to the scale of history, a human lifespan is relatively brief. The experience ultimately changed the way that I live my life. By reading TIME week by week over the course of multiple generations I was able to watch and feel history unfold. The project began as a way to track economic history and ended up being personally transformative. Between 20 I read every issue of TIME magazine from 1923-2000–nearly 4,000 issues and 77 years worth of history.
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