Legacy is a term I have been mulling over these last several months. It has so many connotations. Since I deal in the world of money I think a lot about the financial legacy we are leaving for our children. Not only in physically leaving them money but leaving them with a very healthy, very real view of money and how to save it, spend it and give it.
It helps that a book like Smart Money Smart Kids by Dave Ramsey and Rachel Cruze has come out. But it also seems that when you begin down a path doors begin to open up everywhere to reinforce the things you are learning. This weekend I attended a women’s retreat and it to was about your legacy. The speaker said that there are two kinds of legacy. Observed and Intended.
Observed is how people see you, how they feel when they have left your presence. Think about this for a second, how do people feel when they walk away from you or when they think about you? Do they think you are a complainer? overly critical? sad? frustrated? depressed? or do they think you are kind? compassionate? encouraging? engaging? It’s less about how you are in one circumstance and more about how you are in general. So overall what kind of impression do you leave behind?
Intended is what you are desiring for others to either learn or gain from you by having known you. If you have children they are your greatest legacy and the gifts that you impart to them will have the the greatest impact of all. If you are intending to leave a lasting legacy to your children and to those who come in contact with you, what are you filling your life with that is going to spill over into the lives of others? What do you spend most of your time doing? Watching TV? Video Games? Facebook? None of those things are either right or wrong the question isn’t if you do any of those things but how much time are you spending doing them. TV and video games are not issues for me. Facebook on the other hand I have to admit that I have to monitor. What about reading? What are you reading? I love to read and the types of things that I have enjoyed reading has evolved over the years. As I look back at some of the things I used to find interesting or that I just read to pass the time, I cringe a little bit. What goes in definately comes out. So what are you letting in?
Legacy. What kind of legacy are you going to leave behind?
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