Five Tips To Design Your Legacy

October 24, 2007

By definition, a legacy is something that comes down to someone
from a predecessor or from the past. Most of us want to leave
behind some kind of legacy for our children and grandchildren,
or for future generations.

Many people think of a legacy only in terms of some financial
bequest or gift. Those with the means to do so might build a
wing on a hospital or fund a professorship or a scholarship. And
these are wonderful and meaningful ways to leave behind a
legacy. But a legacy can mean many things besides money or
endowed professorships or hospital wings. A legacy can also be
wisdom or a contagious commitment to improving the community, or
even the story of our lives – the good times and the bad times –
and the important life lessons we learned. Some people simply
want to try to teach future generations so they will not make
the same mistakes.

There are many ways to leave a meaningful legacy, even if you
are not wealthy. Here are a few ideas to start your thinking
about the kind of legacy you might want to leave behind.

1.Share the stories your predecessors passed down to you. Many
stories are actually living accounts of history. If they are not
passed down, they are lost. Whether you record them on audio or
video storage or you write them down, it is safe to assume that
somewhere down the line someone will be interested in those
stories. Another way to leave family stories behind is to work
with your local library or an internet site and let them help
you record the stories.

2.Share your thoughts on the big events of your lifetime. Each
of us has lived through a time of many monumental historical and
social events and changes. Your thoughts and reactions to those
events tell the stories from different angles. Your point of
view might be very important to future generations. Share your
actions, but also share your reactions – your thoughts and
feelings. Share your thoughts about how those events changed
your life and the lives of others.

3.Share your reasons for the deeply held beliefs and
commitments of your life. Share the principles by which you
live. It is often fairly easy for later generations to get a
sense of what we did in our lives. It is not always so easy to
understand why we did things or made choices. Understanding how
your beliefs influenced your life might help someone else
discover a helpful approach to directing their lives.

4.Share the stories of why some of the things you will leave
behind are important to you. It is not uncommon for a grandchild
to be left some seemingly insignificant item when a grandparent
passes on. It means far more when they are also given an
explanation of why you cherished the item and why you chose that
individual to have the item when you are gone.

5.Share the joys in your life and the intangible things that
made you who you are. Write or record for the next generation
why you love, for example, jazz or classical music. Tell them
what it brings to your life. Leave behind a list of the books
you found meaningful and think everyone should read – and tell
them why.

Each of us is a link in the chain of life. Every part of the
legacy we leave behind keeps a chain intact. The parts of the
legacy we don’t pass on may be lost forever. No matter who you
are, where you live, or what you did for a living, you are a
unique and important individual. Your experience matters.

As you design your personal legacy, don’t forget to pass on the
extremely important intangibles that give life true meaning.

Written by admin · Filed Under Luxury