By having an infinite time horizon, a company can be more audacious, take more responsibility for what they make and create lasting change.
Quote from Brian Chesky, CEO of Airbnb, on an article in PhocusWire this week.
Airbnb CEO outlines plans for "22nd-century company"
Some might suggest, in a somewhat snippy fashion, that the Airbnb co-founder has swallowed a business jargon dictionary with his spraying of "infinite time horizon" in an open letter.
They're probably right, to some extent, yet visionary leaders of companies that have - whether we like or not - redefined how many parts of the industry operate, should puff their chests out a little bit every now and again with strong (if slightly indecipherable) words.
Chesky's latest vision should be a wake-up call to the industry - but not specifically because of what Airbnb wants to do next.
It should be a signal that companies, generally, need to figure out what their role is going to be in the future.
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Should they continue to operate within their existing parameters, making money and giving their customers - whether they're travelers or industry partners (in the case of tech vendors) - what they want?
Or, alternatively, as technology continues to slice and dice almost every aspect of the industry, perhaps leaders should be slightly bolder with their forecasts as to how they will evolve.
Chesky is right to note the bigger picture ("people are increasingly living in digital bubbles, trust in institutions is at a record low and companies realize they have a greater responsibility to society").
But are other travel companies also considering those social elements alongside their longer-term strategies for distribution, etc?
Human nature, arguably, is changing as quickly as the technology that wraps around it is evolving.
That, in turn, impacts on how people behave within it and, crucially for the industry, how travelers decide to explore it and work in it.
It would be refreshing to see other companies, rather than outwardly appearing to be just enjoying the status quo, set out their wider vision for their position in the wider world.