Mike Rounds Quotes

We're so used to thinking in the short term, and the minute you speak in more long-term language then you tend to get dismissed as utopian and so on. We have a real problem here in making long-term thinking respectable

One of the primary reasons why the human brain has evolved to look so far into the future is so that we can take actions in the present that will bring us to a better future rather than a worse one.

It must take account of what it decrees for today in order that today may not paralyze tomorrow.

Neither man nor nation can prosper unless, in dealing with the present, thought is steadily taken for the future.

…working not for the small pleasures of today but for the future security and improvement of the race.

The need to incorporate longer term time scales into our societal choices is very real—and right in the lap of our generation.

I understand that fans think short-term, and there's nothing wrong with that. You live or you die in the short term. But I believe in our system, and when you do that, you don't make knee-jerk decisions.

I plant a lot of trees. I am a great believer in planting things for future generations. I loathe the now culture where you just live for today.

No sensible decision can be made any longer without taking into account not only the world as it is, but the world as it will be.

Leadership requires the courage to make decisions that will benefit the next generation.

Business, more than any other occupation, is a continual dealing with the future; it is a continual calculation, an instinctive exercise in foresight.

Do, What you're going to do in longevity. Not just what happens tomorrow.

One generation plants the trees. Another gets the shade.

We are not able to sacrifice our short term interests for the sake of the long term.

Governments, however, must think not only of the present, but of the rights of future generations.

Often, sustainability is discussed only in the context of energy. Energy sustainability is essential - but the word has a much broader meaning. It means long-term thinking about how we manage our businesses, invest in social spending, and plan for the future. This requires vision and leadership, and it requires citizen engagement.

Keep working and saving and striving for a better future for your children, and for their children, even if you won't be around to see it pay off.

Don't be so shortsighted that if it doesn't happen right now, you're not going to be happy. You are sowing seeds that will reap a great harvest for generations to come.

If you do not design the future, someone or something else will design it for you.

I remember getting advice like, "Oh, do what interests you. Don't worry about tomorrow, live for today," kind of thing. And to a degree, you've got to do that, you've got to follow your passions. You've got to follow your dreams, but you also have to have a plan. You can't just say I'm going to do what interests me today and I'm not going to worry about tomorrow, that doesn't work. And anyone who's tried that I think quickly finds that out. Think about what turns you on, what do you dream about? But along with that, make a plan and work hard to make it happen.

Strategy is about shaping the future.

I came to this office to solve problems, and not pass them on to future Presidents and future generations.

Chess teaches you to control the initial excitement you feel when you see something that looks good and it trains you to think objectively when you're in trouble

The present is never the mark of our designs. We use both past and present as our means and instruments, but the future only as our object and aim.

My job is to think beyond the immediate.