Longevity Stretches Time. But Only Purpose Deepens Life.

Roger Willemsen once wrote: “𝘞𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘭𝘦𝘯𝘨𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘧𝘦, 𝘣𝘶𝘵 𝘸𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘤𝘰𝘯𝘥𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘦 𝘪𝘵.”
That line has stayed with me.

Because here’s what I notice: in boardrooms, on stages, and increasingly in glossy magazines, I see a new obsession rising - the dream of radical life extension. A whole industry promises more years, more data points, more supplements, more control.

But let me ask you: 𝐖𝐡𝐚𝐭 𝐢𝐬 𝐭𝐡𝐞 𝐩𝐨𝐢𝐧𝐭 𝐨𝐟 𝐞𝐱𝐭𝐞𝐧𝐝𝐢𝐧𝐠 𝐥𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐢𝐟 𝐭𝐡𝐞𝐫𝐞 𝐢𝐬 𝐧𝐨 𝐝𝐞𝐞𝐩𝐞𝐫 𝐩𝐮𝐫𝐩𝐨𝐬𝐞 𝐛𝐞𝐡𝐢𝐧𝐝 𝐢𝐭?

Viktor Frankl, who survived the unimaginable, said it clearly: 𝘩𝘢𝘱𝘱𝘪𝘯𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘢𝘯𝘥 𝘴𝘶𝘤𝘤𝘦𝘴𝘴 𝘤𝘢𝘯𝘯𝘰𝘵 𝘣𝘦 𝘱𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘶𝘦𝘥; 𝘵𝘩𝘦𝘺 𝘮𝘶𝘴𝘵 𝘦𝘯𝘴𝘶𝘦 - 𝘢𝘴 𝘣𝘺 - 𝘱𝘳𝘰𝘥𝘶𝘤𝘵𝘴 𝘰𝘧 𝘥𝘦𝘥𝘪𝘤𝘢𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴 𝘵𝘰 𝘢 𝘤𝘢𝘶𝘴𝘦 𝘨𝘳𝘦𝘢𝘵𝘦𝘳 𝘵𝘩𝘢𝘯 𝘰𝘶𝘳𝘴𝘦𝘭𝘷𝘦𝘴.

And Nietzsche’s famous line still cuts to the bone: 𝘏𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘰 𝘩𝘢𝘴 𝘢 𝘸𝘩𝘺 𝘵𝘰 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘣𝘦𝘢𝘳 𝘢𝘭𝘮𝘰𝘴𝘵 𝘢𝘯𝘺 𝘩𝘰𝘸.

From my perspective as an Executive Coach, I see this longevity craze for what it is: a subtle form of adolescent thinking in an expensive suit. It clings to control, to accumulation, to invulnerability. It measures life in 𝐦𝐞𝐭𝐫𝐢𝐜𝐬 instead of 𝐦𝐞𝐚𝐧𝐢𝐧𝐠.

Mature leadership - real leadership - moves in the opposite direction:
From 𝐨𝐩𝐭𝐢𝐦𝐢𝐳𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 to 𝐨𝐛𝐥𝐢𝐠𝐚𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧.
From 𝐬𝐞𝐥𝐟-𝐩𝐫𝐨𝐭𝐞𝐜𝐭𝐢𝐨𝐧 to 𝐬𝐞𝐫𝐯𝐢𝐜𝐞.
From chasing 𝐥𝐨𝐧𝐠𝐞𝐯𝐢𝐭𝐲 to leaving 𝐥𝐞𝐠𝐚𝐜𝐲.

Yes, medical progress may add years. But if those years are only spent polishing the mirror of the self, then more time is just more of the same corridor, with no rooms.
The real question isn’t 𝘏𝘰𝘸 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨 𝘤𝘢𝘯 𝘐 𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘵?
The real question is 𝘞𝘩𝘢𝘵 𝘪𝘴 𝘮𝘪𝘯𝘦 𝘵𝘰 𝘨𝘪𝘷𝘦 𝘸𝘩𝘪𝘭𝘦 𝘐’𝘮 𝘩𝘦𝘳𝘦?

So here is my invitation to you, especially those of us who are privileged, successful, and blessed with more opportunities than most:

Condense your life.

Fill it with weight, not length.

Answer the demand that life itself places on you - not with control, but with contribution.

Because in the end, we cannot control the length of our lives.
But we can absolutely choose their 𝐝𝐞𝐧𝐬𝐢𝐭𝐲.

What about you? 𝘈𝘳𝘦 𝘺𝘰𝘶 𝘪𝘯𝘷𝘦𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘺𝘰𝘶𝘳 𝘦𝘯𝘦𝘳𝘨𝘺 𝘪𝘯 𝘭𝘢𝘴𝘵𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘭𝘰𝘯𝘨𝘦𝘳 - 𝘰𝘳 𝘪𝘯 𝘭𝘪𝘷𝘪𝘯𝘨 𝘥𝘦𝘦𝘱𝘦𝘳?