Building Legacy - Construction provides an opportunity for achievers to leave their mark

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Like most of our readers, I have also had an overdose of experts revealing their recipe for recovery. The panacea for all economies is that growth will come from entrepreneurs starting up new businesses. These saviours will make wealth appear magically from out of nowhere. Facebook and its $100bn IPO is often held up as the prime example of the way forward.

With the masses of unemployed youth across the world, the promise of becoming an entrepreneur and “creating the next Facebook” is not very different from the carrot dangled in front of every man in the African-American community. I am referring to how young black men have been fed the idea that the only desirable and realistic opportunity they have of succeeding is to become either a basketball player in the NBA or a Platinum-selling rap artist.

Needless to say, planting these stereotypes and encouraging faith in the infinitesimally small probability of succeeding has not exactly helped the African-American community as a whole. Instead, it ironically tends to be the case that those who merely focused on consistently being above average inevitably landed at the top of the pile.

There is a lot to learn from this as a cautionary tale, as we all seem to be closely emulating the exact same attitude of misdirected over-ambition, with the inevitable shortcomings that follow. And, with each failure, it is seemingly everyone’s fault but our own.

As with rap stars, petrified by their mediocrity and lack of any real musical talent, there is too much focus on living in alternate realities. To pose credibly as being wealthy and admirable is the main objective, achievement and reward. The bestseller lists have serious management and self-help books to teach us how to actively fool ourselves to sell convincingly to others.

Along the way we have lost our need for integrity, compassion or to act with any real solidarity with a group, unless it is for our personal gain and recognition. It is every man for himself in the race of creating illusions as to where you stand on the social totem pole. As a result, many societies are struggling as the younger generations lack the core values needed to gather around a shared purpose and move in any meaningful direction.

It is not reasonable to promote the ideals and narrow definition of a successful life as having to focus on being exceptional and exuberant, with as little resemblance or association as possible to the average person. Rarely will this equation add up to a net surplus for a society. The future will belong to those societies that can resist propagating these self-destructive images of success. Instead, what is needed is replacing this mindset and re-establishing a sense of purpose and achievement of an ordinary life, dedicated to being a part of, and serving, a community. They are likely to win out over the others who are trying to find their next Mark Zuckerberg.

There is no doubt that we will always need pioneers to lead the way in innovation of science as in business. Yet, granted that there is a free market and equal opportunity, these individuals will likely rise to the top regardless. True greatness is usually inspired by a drive that is far stronger than the need for wealth or fame.

What I see as a greater risk is that societies as a whole will no longer be able to reap the potential of future innovators and their best ideas because there is no one left to play the necessary supporting roles. It is like a symphony orchestra with only first violinists and no cellists, or a soccer team with only strikers and no goalie. In so many ways, the extraordinary needs the ordinary to exist at all.

I think it is worthwhile reflecting on how trends shift in the desires of people in different times to help predict behaviours and thus outcomes. A common ground for us all seems to be an instinctual desire to leave a mark, or at least to be remembered after we die. For all focus we put on achieving glory in our professional lives, preciously little and few of us will be remembered for anything due to that. Yet, there is consolation in knowing that, even with the most successful of industrialists, the only real lasting monuments anyone leaves behind are in our personal relationships.

But, as such, the construction sector is probably a good place to be. There are few more effective and longer-lasting ways to leave a mark or a legacy than being part of building a city.