Creating A Legacy: A Guide to Leaving a Lasting Impression

Jan
2012

Life is short. But very few of us ever live in a way that shows an understanding of this fact, or the fact that we are gong to die sometime in the relatively near future.

Instead, we act like we have all the time in the world, and it shows in our priorities and what we do on a daily basis. Then you talk about someone in their 70s or 80s and they think about their Legacy. They speak with a sense of urgency about what their life will mean after theyre gone.

We spend so much of our lives doing whats expected of us. We spend so little time thinking about our Legacy and what our life will mean after were gone. Our days lack passion, excitement, and purpose. But there are also very simple ways to cure this, and thats what were going to discuss in this article.

Write this question down on a piece of paper. Then think. Really think about whats most important to you in life. Think about everything you want to accomplish and how you want to be remembered.

If you could do everything and anything in life, travel anywhere, help anyone with anything, what would this life look like? No limitations. Big picture stuff, but be specific.

Right now were working on getting established. Were working on supporting a family, investing our money, and earning money to begin with. Thinking about how were impacting others isnt at the forefront of our minds, and it makes sense for it not to be.

The thing is, impacting others however you decide to do this is much more fulfilling than always looking out for number one. Am I saying that you have to quit your job and start helping others? Hell no. The job youre doing can help you build memories, travel to new places, and teach you the skills you need to learn to create your Legacy.

Ask this question, then make sure its in line with the first question.

So many people will look at an exercise like this and do it, then forget about it. Theyll let fear get in the way of their dreams and dive back into the life theyre living that is safe and doesnt fulfill the purpose they truly want it to fulfill.

I really have no problem with a safe life. All I want to help you do is get the most out of life. Often, this means bold decisions and a degree of risk. If your Legacy doesnt include this, more power to you. If it does, like I suspect it does, here are some things that will help you in a big way.

You might want to be the greatest basketball player that ever lived because youre insanely passionate about basketball. But you suck at at it. This isnt lining up your skill with your passion. In which case, get into coaching.

You may be passionate about movies, as I am. If its something youre truly passionate about, figure out how your skills line up with your passion. If youre a great writer, get into screenwriting. If you think you can act, then sign up for some acting classes and see if youre any good at it. If youre good at bringing people together and organizing projects, research how your favourite producers got to where they are, then work on getting there.

You dont have to quit your job. A lot of this can be done on the side while youre still earning an income. Your Legacy can also be the life you give your family and the kind of mother or father you are to your kids. Think big, and think out of the box.

If you want to try acting, figure out auditions and go to them. If you want to write a book and have a good idea, set a deadline as to when youre going to accomplish it. If you want to move to Africa and help in any way you can, buy a plane ticket today.

More is lost due to indecision, than wrong decision. Act. Please act. The world really does need more great people.

Ive tried sleeping for as little as 4 hours a night in an effort to get more work done; the result was a lower quality of work. Yes, I worked longer hours, but I actually got much less done because I lacked focus due to my lack of sleep. This was an important thing for me to figure out.

Figuring out how you work best is a must. Try different sleep schedules, different eating schedules, and record your productivity. You dont have to do what everyone else does. One guy might not need much sleep, and thats great for him hes a lucky guy, but Im at my best when I get 7-8 hours. Im also best when I eat certain things at certain times. Its just the way I work. Figure out how you work, and record the results.

Dont leave this to opinion. Time how long you can maintain focus at certain tasks over the span of a week or even a month. Figure out when youre best at doing your most important tasks and schedule them for these times.

Time yourself on your great tasks; those things that are going to contribute to your Legacy. These tasks, missions, and projects should take up the majority of your time.

Yes, we have to do things we dont like to do in life, so dont take your chores out of your life. But you should spend less time and energy on them. I schedule my site maintenance and non-creative work for later on the in the day when I dont need to be as in tune. Give this a try, its done wonders for my productivity.

To give you a few examples, here are some things that make me happy:

When I get my 7-8 hours of sleep Im usually a much happier guy. Im happier when I eat healthy and am in great shape, training consistently, but not over-doing it. So does spending time with friends, traveling, reading good books, and learning. Watching movies makes me happy, but spending too much time in front of the TV doesnt.

Creating a Legacy will give us a deep rooted sense of happiness every single day because what were doing has a purpose. Purpose gives us our life meaning. Make sure you also include some of the other things that make you laugh, smile, and bring you happiness on a smaller, more immediate level.

. Make sure you schedule happiness into your days.

Keep in mind that what youre doing right now can be in line with everything weve talked about. The problem might lie in the tasks you devote most of your time to, and how you spend the money youre earning. Something to think about.

We think legacy, we immediately think about everything this article has been about to this point. We think about what were going to leave. Who were going to impact. How successful were going to be.

One of the greatest factors in us achieving all that we want to achieve, travelling where we want to travel, and creating everything that we want to create, is our health and energy. Measuring work output rather than hours spent working has a lot to do with the amount of energy we have in a given day, and the degree to which we can remain creative and focused for extended periods of time.

Its tough to climb the Himalayan Mountains if youre out of shape. Its pretty difficult to run a marathon, play with your kids, or even have the confidence to put yourself out there and experience everything that this life has to offer if youre skinny and weak, or overweight.

, and having a body that youre proud of, that allows you to push yourself, travel, and work hard, will give you this confidence.