My Lifelong Experience - Mr CEO
Eyes narrowed, eyebrow raised in a bemused manner, accompanied with a shake of the head. That is how I felt when I first saw the email from Lifelong, forwarded by my chief-of-staff.
Being the chief executive of a publicly listed company, I’d lost count of the amount of times I’d been approached to a compile a biography. Strangely enough, those requests always increased when the company I serve received negative press.
We had just been the subject of such media coverage, so I was ready to consign the email to the trash folder, without a moment’s notice. But my secretary spoke up for the company - is she on your payroll Lifelong? - so I watched the background information video and was touched by TJ’s story. My grandfather and I were extremely close and he passed away from Cancer, so I could appreciate the sentiment of TJ’s message.
From there a meeting was convened to find out more about the company, straight from the founder’s mouth. Their zeal for privacy and protecting their client’s audio content is something that reduced my apprehension of using the service. I understood this is why I was unable to listen to existing client’s projects.
Working extremely hard is a prerequisite of my success; from passing the entrance exam to my local grammar, to working my way up the career ladder upon graduating from Durham. This ‘all-in’ approach to work has meant that relationships have suffered, at home and away. I credit my wife for plugging as many of my social gaps as feasible.
There undergoing this Lifelong project meant I get to connect with my kids on a friendly level, as opposed to just fielding requests for money. They saw me as a somewhat cold and driven person and I hope that has changed - well the cold bit anyway.
43 years I’ve known my wife as we grew up in the same town and we know absolutely everything there is to know about each other, but it’s been magical to revisit some of the special moments we created. She really has been a rock in my life.
My Lifelong experience is still an ongoing one, as you can imagine my job is quite consuming and co-ordinating everyone’s schedules to record is not easy. To be fair, it’s my schedule that is the issue and not everyone else’s.
That being said, the process to date has been nothing but a joy to partake in. So much so that I purchased an Heirloom package for my wife, so that she can also have her life immortalised in this special.
Touch wood, the positive experience will continue for both of our packages.