Growing Your Talent

I've been thinking a lot about the concept of "legacy." I am currently serving as the President of the Human Resource Association of Southern Maine. As I prepare for our annual board planning meeting, I wonder about our legacy. About a year and one-half ago, one of our board vice presidents first broached the subject with me. Since then, I have been fixated on the concept.

Few of us take much time thinking about such things- few of us have the time. There are more pressing things that command our attention. It usually takes some traumatic event to shake our being and force us to step back and think, to take stock in what we have become. When I work with individuals who have just lost their job, I ask them about their career accomplishments; what will they be remembered for doing? It still surprises me how difficult a question this can be for most people-- working an entire lifetime and not being able to list any accomplishments. So few of us ever take an inventory of our careers--our lives. Sometimes, to shake the process up, I ask, "if we were putting a plaque on the wall honoring your career, what one thing would you want listed?" If that doesn't enlist a response, and I need to get to the core of their being, I ask, "what do you want inscribed on your tombstone?" That usually rattles them and gets them thinking.

I was speaking with an executive who is going through a difficult time with her organization. I reminded her that she took a failing organization, one that was on the verge of folding, and quickly turned it around. Since then, it has been growing each year, becoming a premier organization in her industry. It is not hard to see what her legacy will be and she needs to remind herself of this when the going gets tough.

Legacy can center you during difficult times. Legacy can drive you to greater heights. Take the time to think about your legacy.

Rick Dacri