The Legacy Challenge: Ten Choices That Will Revolutionize Your Life

Bob Buford once said, “None of us know when we will die, but all of us, if we wish, can select our own epitaph”. Man's greatest challenge is to live a life that leaves a solid legacy behind him. Life is short and we need to constantly be asking ourselves the question, "Am I living a life that is making a difference for those around me?" If not, here are ten trade-offs worth making that can qualitatively improve your life and a question after each to prompt your decision-making.

1. Affirmation for accomplishment

The idea of affirming people has been around for a long time. Dale Carnegie’s 1936 masterpiece, ‘How to Win Friends and influence People’, has helped so many people over the years to develop a people-centered perspective that has enabled them to empower others positively. I would highly suggest a reading of the book. When you focus on self, all you care about is personal accomplishments. But when you learn to affirm others, you empower them to accomplish great things.

Are you going to be one of the boys and get the affirmation of mediocrity or will you step out of the herd and blaze a trail of accomplishment?

2. Financial gain for future potential

Nothing excites me more than the person who gives up financial gain for the sake of developing his or her personal potential. When you live with such a philosophy, growth is never a problem. It’s potential-centered thinking that sets the pace for the kind of legacy a person will leave behind. Again, when one is not blossoming in life, the pre-dominant question is “What can I get (or receive) from this situation?” When one is in bloom, the pre-dominant question is “How can I grow in this situation?”

Which group are you in? Will you be enticed by the promises of wealth or will you live for an epic life based on your true capacity?

3. Immediate pleasure for personal growth

There are two kinds of people in life: eagles and turkeys. Let's start with turkeys. They are usually show-offs. Nothing pleasures them more than just having fun - 24/7. Then there are eagles. These are usually focused and goal-oriented people. They'd rather engage in something that enables them to grow and grow others than just play and have fun all the time.

Are you tempted by the life of ease and play now, or are you motivated by the desire for living your best life possible?

4. Security for significance

John F. Kennedy said, ” And so, my fellow Americans: ask not what your country can do for you -ask what you can do for your country. My fellow citizens of the world: ask not what America will do for you, but what together we can do for the freedom of man.” Most people are looking for security from their leaders. Those who blossom in life find ways in which they can significantly contribute to their country.

Do you want to live a comfortable life of comfort and convenience or will you soar towards a better life in which you make an even greater difference in society?

5. Acceptance for excellence

Do you know what happens to crabs in a bucket? As one of them tries to make it's way out of the bucket, the others will always pull it down. Think of people now. Many people don't even attempt to climb out of the bucket because they enjoy the acceptance of mediocrity. They'd rather hang with the boys and girls rather than excel with the men and women who are making a difference.

Are you going to settle for the acceptance of your peers and friends or will you aim for the excellence that comes from the pursuit of a cause that is greater than your personal dreams?

6. Addition for multiplication

Value multipliers impact and influence other people greatly. The great thing about being a value multiplier is that you are able to empower people to be organized and do something positive. What a beauty! You multiply value by passing along the best in yourself to other people. I’m always pleased when I hear from people I led in high school and at the university. They always say things like, “Herman, that idea was awesome. It took our group to a whole new level.” While those short-term moves were great for whichever group I led, the best thing is that they felt empowered.

Are you satisfied with adding value to your community or will you go for the more rewarding joy of multiplying value to the world?

7. Many things for one thing

This is my pet peeve. We engage ourselves in too many things nowadays. I acknowledge that in life we have to wear many hats but it becomes a problem when those hats don't fit us! You've got to find the hats that fit you. You were born with purpose and potential inside you. The sun's rays do not burn unless brought to a point of focus. Find your magnifying glass and let those rays burn!

Will you be a jack of all trades and master of none or will you stand out from the pack and be a master of one thing?

8. Quantity for quality

Most people’s undoing is that they short-change themselves by being involved in too many things. Life for them is measured in numbers - how many activities, how many parties, how many friends, etc. They believe that the more events/activities they engage in, the better their lives will be. Wrong! We need to go for quality. It's not how much activity you engage in but the productivity you manifest! It's not how many parties you go to, but the quality of the parties. It's not how many friends you have but the richness of the friendships you have.

Are you going to fill up your life with things and events or will you go for the right things and events?

9. Stability for success

We live in a unique day and age. It's so easy to live a stable life by simply being mediocre. I think we need to go beyond stability to success. You may have seen the movie Click. I'll put my own spin on it. It's about this guy who wants to live a stable life and acquires a remote from Bed, Bath and Beyond that enables him to control virtually every aspect of his life. We can't control everything in life. Success comes when we engage with variables that we can't control. Let's go BEYOND stability. Let's strive for success.

Is your prime desire to have a stable life or are you willing to tap into the joy of adding?

10. Work for family

Nothing dominates life more than work. Every day we are working! Small wonder that the Sabbath was created for us. Even though we must work to keep in order to keep life moving, we must do so in the context of family. Work should not revolve around family but family around work. My family is my first priority, not my work. I am a family man, not a work horse!

Are you laboring at your work at the expense of your family or are you creating a legacy for those whom you love and society in general?

Mission, Goals and Strategy: Pushing Granaries into Huts and Firing Missiles from Canoes

There is a saying in Kenya that “A granary cannot be pushed into a hut”. This saying can help us learn a lot in the area of personal potential in the light of current capacity and the limitations that surround it. We all face moments when our ability to perform is limited by current structures that pose immense threat to the vision within us. What is one to do in those situations?

A granary is a storehouse for grain. It symbolizes the fruit of one’s labor, or the yield of one’s hard work. A hut on the other hand is a dwelling of simple construction that is the common living area for many in African rural areas. Most huts are usually made of mud and have grass thatched roofs. Granaries on the other hand are made of wood and have tin/aluminium roofs.

Let us think of organizations. Robert Schuller once said that “You can’t fire a missile from a canoe”. A leader’s vision for his organization may sometimes be limited by current structures in the organization. There are also times when vision may be limited by structures that are not present within the organization. The organization’s objectives play a great role in determining the results that will be yielded. There must be a solid foundation that ensures that any goals pursued will be achieved satisfactorily. A granary cannot be pushed into a hut.

How then do we ensure that our output will be measurable to our input without having to demolishing our present structures? How do we develop a system that allows us to fire missiles from canoes without toppling over into the water? Every vision needs to be strengthened by the underlying philosophies and values that guide the organization. You can’t expect to achieve a big vision when the guiding philosophies do not match up to the vision. You cannot expect to accomplish great things when your strategy is flawed. There are three key ideas that will empower us in this area:

1. Have a Mission that matches your Vision

A company’s daily undertakings need to fit into the bigger picture of it’s ultimate objectives. Many organizations have dropped the ball by engaging in activities that are outside the range of the company vision. Vision is guarded by staying on the critical path with the company mission. Do this and you will be able to fire missiles from your canoe. I guarantee it!

2. Develop Goals that align with your Philosophy

Company philosophy is crucial to the outcomes and output of an organization. Your goals should align with the values that the company holds dearest. Every organization needs to clarify what it is that it holds as fundamental to it’s existence. Enron failed because the leader’s activities veered off the course of the company’s core values. Your have to hold onto your core values. Do this and your granary may be able to fit into your hut.

3. Create a Strategy that builds on your Accomplishments

Strategy is the key to building value in an organization. Value is measured by an organization’s accomplishments. The more a company accomplishes, the more it acquires a competitive advantage over other companies within that industry. Strategy therefore is key to the long-term existence of a company.

These three keys, applied in an orderly manner, will not only ensure that you fire missiles from your canoe but also that your granary fits into your hut.

Growing Beyond Your "Go-Ceiling"

I'm just getting ready to leave for a Simulcast being offered by John Maxwell's mentoring organization, Maximum Impact. Click here for a preview of the event - The Influence Index. I once heard John Maxwell say that "if you don’t grow, you will go". The truth is that we all have a what I call a "go-ceiling" (I just coined this term this morning). A "go-ceiling" is that point of incompetence beyond which an organization or client cannot keep you any more. In order to continue providing value, we must grow beyond that "go-ceiling". Continued personal growth is a necessity in today’s world. The secret to any person’s future is hidden in their level of commitment to personal growth and development. This is particularly true for leaders. It’s your “inner” growth which sets the pace for your “outer” leadership. Here are some principles which can generate a life of continued growth:

1. Have a personal growth plan

Growth is not automatic. You have to make a conscious effort to commit to a daily growth plan. This could include reading books that enhance your understanding of your chosen field, listening to tapes and audio-books that elevate your understanding and subscribing to websites or newsletters that enhance your insight. This has to be a personal commitment. There’s a proverb that goes, “You’ve got to do your own growing no matter how tall your grandfather is”. Make that commitment. Develop a personal growth plan.

2. Stay out of your comfort zone

There’s a quote I learnt in college that I really like. Ron Osbourne said, “Unless you try to do something beyond what you have already mastered, you will never grow”. Many people get stuck in the rut of ”same old, same old”. You’ve got to stretch and expand yourself. Do something new. Do it in a different way. Some wag once said that insanity is doing the same thing over and over again and expecting different results. Stay out of that comfort zone. Comfort creates ease and ease is the greatest enemy of growth.

3. Grow for who you will be, not what you will get

You need a proper focus if your growth is to go the distance. You can’t just have the goal of acquiring stuff because once you acquire your motivation will wane. Growth should be geared towards becoming a better person, living a better life. Grow to become, not to have. Growth brings good things; good things don’t bring growth. It is more important to be a better person than to have better things. We win in life by being better people, not by having the biggest and the best of stuff. True success is really an intangible thing - it’s the quality of person that you are.

An Action Step

Define your personal "go-ceiling". What do you think is level of incompetence beyond which an employer or client will not keep you any more? Now, build on your skills beyond that level. Start working on things which will ensure that you have stick-ability.

Don't just start, commit to finishing the race

One of the most prestigious events of the Olympic Games is the Marathon - 26 miles - 385 yards of one of the most severe tests of human endurance. In the 1968 Summer Olympic Games, held in Mexico City, John Stephen Akhwari of Tanzania started with the other runners but fell way behind the leaders. At the finish line - the 100,000 plus spectators packing Olympic Stadium - cheered the winners of the race. Other runners entered the stadium and crossed the finish line to the cheers of the crowd. The race was over. Other events took place. Thousands of spectators had left. Then, one lone runner entered the stadium - John Stephen Akhwari. Akhwari’s pace was slow. His steps were wobbly. His knee was bloody and bandaged from a fall earlier in the race. He looked terrible. As He entered the stadium and began to slowly complete that last lap around the track the few remaining spectators began to realize who he was and what he was doing. As Akhwari slowly - painfully - crossed the finish line - they cheered - saluting the man’s determination. After the race, Akhwari was asked - what kept you going? Why didn’t you quit? Akhwari said, “My country did not send me to Mexico City to start the race. They sent me here to finish”.

Here are two thoughts that hopefully will inspire and empower you to continue with your own race:

a). Relentless Dedication - In order to finish the race you must be relentlessly dedicated. What are you doing on a daily basis that is adding value to your ability to fully become who you were born to be? Are you being true to the voice within you that is calling you to perform at your optimum level?

b). Steady Focus - Steady Focus comes from always having your vision right in front of you. Think about why you have immense success driving every day - the windshield is right in front of you and you are always looking out through it! It’s the same thing with your dream. You must keep it right in front of you. There are many ways that you can do this. Write it down and recite it throughout the day. Design your environment to remind you of your vision every day.

You can do it! Finish the race!