Only the Present Matters

By Deb Boelkes

We’ve all heard the idiom, “There is no time like the present,” which essentially means that if something is worth doing, then do it now. Get on with it!

There is another quote I especially like by the famous cartoonist, Bil Keane, creator of the newspaper comic series The Family Circus: “Yesterday is history, tomorrow is a mystery, but today is a gift—that’s why it’s called The Present.” 

When you think about it, all we really have is the here and now—this moment in time. While you may have tremendous wealth, countless valued possessions, and hundreds of friends and loved ones, people and things are not yours to keep. They could all be gone in a heartbeat. With the blink of an eye, some freak act of nature—like a tornado, or a flood, or a sinkhole, or a reckless driver—could instantly destroy life as you know it. So, cherish this moment and deliberately give it your best intention because only the present matters.  It’s all there is.   

How are your spending this day, anyway? Are you appreciating this moment as the precious gift it is, or are you just trying to wade through yet another uninspiring hour, crawling and scratching your way to the end of the day, without realizing any pride of accomplishment—the kind that makes you feel happy and fulfilled with each tick of the clock?

I recently read an article about a 100-year-old man who just broke the world record for the “Longest Career in the Same Company.” As soon as I saw that title of achievement, I thought to myself, Wow, that guy must really love what he does—and he must really love the company he works for. 

Intrigued, I dug deeper to learn the details about the Guinness World Record holder, Walter Orthmann, who as of January 6, 2022, had been working at the same textile company—now known as ReneauxView in Santa Catarina, Brazil—for 84 years and 9 days. Given the average human on this planet doesn’t even live 84 years, his career longevity is certainly something to be recognized.

When asked what working in the same career for eight decades had taught him, centenarian Walter talked about the importance of living in the moment. “I don’t do much planning, nor care much about tomorrow,” he shared. “All I care about is that tomorrow will be another day in which I will wake up, get up, exercise, and go to work; you need to get busy with the present, not the past or the future. Here and now is what counts. So, let’s go to work!”

In case you are wondering, Walter began his career at the age of 15, on January 17, 1938, as a shipping assistant. While he had been an exceptional student with a brilliant memory and attention for detail, due to family financial strains, his mother took him to work with her so he could find a job to help support the family. 

He was hired because of his proficiency in German and his willingness to learn.  Walter claims he was always enthusiastic about learning new things, and he always went above and beyond to do more than expected. As a result, he quickly rose up the career ladder.   

Walter attributes his career longevity to his passion, discipline, and commitment to doing what he loves. “When we do what we like, we don’t see the time go by.” 

While over the years he has seen many changes in the company and in the world, Walter says one of the most important aspects of career longevity is to always be up-to-date and adapt to different contexts.  Walter’s best professional advice is to “try to work for a good company and in an area where you feel motivated.” 

In The WOW Factor Workplace: How to Create a Best Place to Work Culture, Dr. Mark Goulston and I highlight several Best Place to Work organizations where people have worked for many years—and eagerly avow that they would never want to work anywhere else. Yes, there are companies and organizations out there where people absolutely love working every single day. And you could be one of them!

In the book, I share the story of Bern’s Steak House in Tampa, Florida, founded in the 1950s by Bern Laxer. Just as Walter Orthmann shared as the secret to his own career, Bern Laxer was a firm believer in hiring for attitude, work ethic and a yearning to learn the business. Bern’s prefers to hire and train inexperienced employees, so they don’t have to break bad habits.

When I wrote the book, Bern’s employed an astounding 300+ people. Their longest-tenured employee, at the time, was a veteran mechanic / carpenter / jack-of-all-trades, who had worked there for more than 45 years, although even before he was hired by Bern, he worked for the contractor who built the restaurant’s first significant expansion. Just as with Walter’s story, when I first heard the story about Bern’s longest-tenured employee, I thought to myself, Wow, that guy must really love what he does—and he must really love the company he works for. 

As hotelier Donald Stamets says in The WOW Factor Workplace, “You’ve got to love what you do. If you don’t, then you’re not in the right business.”

If you’re fascinated by what it takes to set a record for career tenure—whether it’s your own personal best record or the world record—you simply take it one day at a time, and love what you do every single day, in the moment. Make every day a beautiful day, regardless of what else is going on in the rest of the world. Make each moment matter.

Be deliberate about making each day your best day ever, moment by moment. What happened yesterday is behind you and tomorrow may never come. Live in the present and be grateful for each second you are given on this day.

Appreciate this moment in time as the very special gift that it is. Its value is priceless because the memory of this moment is the one thing you can take with you when you go. It’s up to you to make it worth the taking.