No time is ever right or wrong for defining or reassessing your leadership legacy, but is there a perfect time? Given 2020 is six weeks behind us, the Year of the Ox has just started, and some of us are generally optimistic about 2021 (or at least the second half) after an extremely distracting 2020, now is perhaps that perfect time?
Your legacy is what you leave behind. It could be quiet contributions in the background that make a significant long-lasting difference or an impact that is visible and widely publicised. This visibility may or may not matter to you. All that should matter is that you create the legacy that you desire. What is the legacy that you want to leave?
Le marchand de la mort est mort, cried the French papers, upon what they thought was the death of Alfred Nobel in 1888. The merchant of death is dead…Dr Alfred Nobel, who became richer by finding new ways to kill more people faster than ever before, died yesterday…
But it was Alfred’s brother, Ludvig, who had passed in Cannes, with the papers having mistakenly published Alfred’s obituary. To his dismay, Alfred, who had never married nor had children, was shown his everlasting legacy – a symbol of death. This prompted him to bequeath 94% of his estate to finance an annual award for advancements in sciences, literature and peace. Alfred’s legacy became what we now associate with prestige and those who have “conferred the greatest benefit to humankind” – the Nobel Prize.
Rarely are legacies a matter of coincidence, although the beginning may be just that, a confluence of events that come together starting something special. However, for it to be significant and sustainable – to create your own ‘Nobel Prize’ – it will likely take years of effort.
Start with these four mantras to begin legacy journey:
- Be deliberate: choose where you want to have your biggest impact such as business, family, community, philanthropic, environmental – where it matters to you.
- Be specific: have a clear, simple vision of your legacy. You should be able to articulate it in a couple of sentences.
- Be persistent: this is probably the most obvious as great change is rarely achieved quickly or easily.
- Be humble: your legacy is what the world sees, not what you say. The only contrary point here is telling someone your desired legacy and keeping them updated holds you to the task; that person may be your partner, your family, your coach.
Impactful Leadership can assist you on this journey.
