The excerpt that Wesley excerpted in his review came from an essay (republished in the back of my new book) that I wrote in 1989 or 1990. It's kind of an addendum to the book as an extra chapter, not the focus of most of the book. I wrote it with a slightly more lofty tone at a more idealistic stage of my career, hopefully to tap some latent feelings in my peers, as Wesley suggested.

However, the essence of those words is valid today in a sense that middle-aged adults tend to start focusing on larger issues and the legacy they will leave behind. This is true for all generations as a function of lifestage or, as Erik Erikson refers to it, the developmental stage of "generativity."

A good example is the recent decision by Warren Buffet (the 2nd richest man in the world) to give most of his fortune to the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation (the richest couple in the world), which, in turn, is going to impact the fight against poverty, aids and so forth. That's generativity and "a pursuit for the perfectibility of the human condition."

That's also a deeply felt motivation in middle-aged adults that can be tapped through marketing communications, which can then influence a generation to give back in big and small ways.

Is the powerful need to give back and make a difference not worth fostering through marketing public relations and cause-related marketing, RiverJulian?

Brent Green