Experiencing success from generation to generation requires generational thinking. Generational thinking puts the future into perspective. It puts in place necessary variables in order to follow the sequence that will lead to a desirable future. That desirable future differs from person to person due to different areas of influence (Business, Media, Entertainment, Telecommunication, Education, Health, Social, Sports, etc). Your sphere of influence will determine your uniqueness and role in the big picture.
The fundamental principles to be considered in this post applies to all spheres of life and the understanding of your area of influence opens up your strategic role towards the fulfilment of the long-term objectives. It allows you to make some decisions contrary to what a “lifetime thinker” would. Therefore, do not allow your “20 by 20” vision be limited by someone with a “5 by 5” vision. This is because you will have different outlook to life, which will influence your priorities.
Some years back, I had to embark on an international MBA programme which required a huge amount of my time and resources. This limited my time with my immediate family, put several other things in the family on hold and put pressure on my wife’s income. I could have put all these into consideration and decide to go for a less demanding, and relatively easier course; but because my vision is global, it informed my priorities and the MBA was the way to go. The interpretation of a narrow-minded person would have been that resources had been wasted, while I, a global minded person have my sights set on ten, fifteen and twenty years ahead to make today’s choice.
Where someone sees it as unnecessary hardship inflicted on self, I see it as a process towards the fulfilment of my set goals and objectives in life. In the same vein, when you think trans-generational, you look beyond your lifetime and try to see the peculiarities of the upcoming generation. Some of the peculiarities you may not be comfortable with, but you have a decision to make; either you give zero tolerance to those uncomfortable peculiarities and lose a whole generation, or you see how to adapt your generational concept without necessarily compromising your values and standards. It is a tough one because you have criticism to deal with from people with contrary views.
The following factors form the critical indices to ensure success from one generation to another without losing relevance;

1. Vision. The starting point is to understand the reason for your existence. What were you designed to achieve in life? What move do you see yourself championing in your world? Do you see yourself as a change agent or the one that is tossed from one place to the other by the prevailing trend? What you see and apply yourself to is what you eventually become in life, and what you become in life is what you give to your world. The gap between your future and your immediate reality is what either propels you OR discourages you.
Sustained relevance from your generation to the next will require you to continually re-invent yourself to constantly adapt to the changing trend.
Therefore when you have the picture of a preferred future in view and you remain focused and undaunted with seeming pressure from opposing views and possible rejection, then making a link from one generation to the other have greater chances of survival.

2. Courage. Not everybody has the will power to push towards their dreams and make it a reality. Most of the times, it is a new terrain for you and people have doubts. The fear of failure is a huge obstacle stopping many people from stepping out. Understanding that your uniqueness is what is needed to make a difference in your world is critical. When you choose not to conform to the norm, you have a lot of things to confront; you are perceived as arrogant, and full of yourself.
There is a quote;
“Whatever you do, you need courage. Whatever course you decide upon, there is always someone to tell you that you are wrong. There are always difficulties arising that tempt you to believe your critics are right. To map out a course of action and follow it to an end requires some of the same courage that a soldier needs. Peace has its victories, but it takes brave men and women to win them.”
― Ralph Waldo Emerson

3. Action. Courage propels you to act.
“A real decision is measured by the fact that you’ve taken a new action. If there’s no action, you haven’t truly decided. –Tony Robbins”

Newton First Law of Motion states; all objects remain in a state of rest until a force is applied. There is no success without a corresponding action to your convictions and dreams. You cannot claim to have a vision, if you don’t have a bite in form of courage. And you cannot claim you have decided or embarked on a mission without corresponding action to effect the change.
These are major keys that separate people that live only for a life time and are forgotten and people who live for posterity. Decades down the line, their impact still reverberates not just in a nation but on the global scene.
When your vision connects to improving the worth of the human life, the general good of your nation and the world at large, then whatever action you take, though may not be recognised immediately, it will be reckoned with many years to come. Therefore whatever you are doing right now, ensure that the vision goes beyond your lifetime. Going beyond your life time implies putting solid systems and structures in place that will run without your presence. This is the secret behind businesses and organisations that have span over a century.
Please note that you can actually live this successful life beyond your lifetime, it will require you to dream some fifty, maybe even a hundred years into the future.