Life can give us a lot of ups and downs. As the year comes to a close, have a think about your year and what you want for the year to come. By focusing on what our personal legacy is, we can look back on the year and put everything in perspective.
“It was the best of times, it was the worst of times, it was the age of wisdom, it was the age of foolishness, it was the epoch of belief, it was the epoch of incredulity, it was the season of Light, it was the season of Darkness, it was the spring of hope, it was the winter of despair, we had everything before us, we had nothing before us, we were all going direct to heaven, we were all going direct the other way – in short, the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.” -Charles Dickens, A Tale of Two Cities
I spend a lot of time thinking (incessantly) about our time here on earth. I now realize more than ever, that it is so important how we spend this time. In the past two weeks, I’ve experienced a heightened sense of urgency around a ubiquitous topic that keeps bubbling up:
What is Your Personal Legacy?
When we look at the word “Legacy”, synonyms like “Birthright”, “Gift”, or “Donation” come up. I believe that we are each here with a unique gift that we have to share with others. And rather than focusing morbidly on the past, why not turn it around and look at how we can go forth sharing our birthright with others?
We often think of legacy as something that we leave behind, but rarely to we look at our legacy as something that we are doing in order to move forward. But somewhere between the Light and the Darkness, the hope and despair, the good and the evil, we need to pick a forward point of focus—and move there. As the saying goes, “Move towards the Light”.
In my opinion, finding this sense of purpose is as vital to our beings as air, water, and food. It is what gets us through the low-lows, and provides us moments to glimpse the greatness that is yet to come. I just finished reading Chris Guillebeau’s recent manifesto, The Tower (click for a free download) and really resonated with all of the ideas presented. I would highly encourage you to read this powerful tool. I found it very motivational and poignant in assessing my current situation and how I want to move on.
Finding Your Personal Legacy & Sharing it With the World
In order to determine your own personal legacy, I believe we must go through a series of ups and downs to re-familiarize ourselves with what we want. I have learned that we determine who we are and what we want by life’s contrasting experiences. In essence, we learn more about ourselves by experiencing more of what life has to offer. When we have sampled the proverbial “Variety of Life”, we can become more specific about what we actually want.
Pretty much all of my themes revolve around having free time, making money, traveling, and business. That is why I started my business, and also started my YouTube Channel, teaching others how to do the same.
Sometimes, it is easier to think in terms of topics. Try to imagine your life as a series of recurring themes. For example, my life (and work) has always had a combination of these topics:
What are the specific themes that are a part of your life?
Next, let’s determine how you will share it with the world. As individuals, we share our talents in a variety of ways. In my next post, I’m going to go into more detail about introverts and extroverts, but the way that we share has a lot to do with our comfort level in communicating with others. Or, if I put it into a question:
How are you most comfortable communicating with others?
Do you prefer to meet people in person, put together gatherings, parties, or events? Do you enjoy small groups, and intimate conversation? Would you rather write out your ideas, communicate with others online, or possibly write a book? Do you enjoy doing presentations, videos, or manuals? How can you best pass on your knowledge to others? Once you can get a clear idea of your unique combination of talents (and interests), and you have determined how to communicate it, it’s then time to…
Get Out of Your Comfort Zone
Going out of our comfort zone is a necessary part of sharing our personal legacy. And, the part that is rather unsettling is that after we are out of that comfort zone, we have to keep going. We must continually step it up a notch, and repeatedly expose ourselves to a larger audience.
I call this Getting Naked On Stage. The more we put ourselves out there for the world to see, the more vulnerable we feel. However, the more we are willing to expose ourselves to new opportunities and new audiences, the greater chance we have at impacting other’s lives in a positive way and inspiring them to step it up and reach their goals, as well.
For me, my favorite way of communicating is through writing. So, my next goal I’m working towards is getting my work into larger publications to reach a broader audience. Is it scary? YES! But, I know in order to be on track with building my Personal Legacy, it is the next step. That is also why I put all of my work out there for FREE. By really putting myself out there, I am saying HEY WORLD! I’M HERE!
What is the next step for you? What is your Personal Legacy? How do you want to Share it with the World? And what do you need help with in order to get there?
Leave it in the comments below!
