What You Leave Behind

Legacy isn't just for politicians and CEOs. Everyone leaves a mark. What's yours going to be?

Legacy sounds like a word for history books. For statues, foundations, and naming rights. But here's the thing: you're already building yours. Every day. Whether you're thinking about it or not.

The question isn't whether you'll leave a mark—it's what kind of mark it will be.

The Stories People Tell

Right now, people are talking about you. At dinner parties. In Slack messages. After meetings you've just left. They're telling stories about who you are and how you made them feel.

These stories are your legacy in real-time. They spread. They shape opportunities. They open doors or quietly close them.

You can't control what people say. But you can influence it profoundly by being intentional about how you show up, how you treat people, and what you stand for. The stories follow the behavior.

Small Moments, Big Impact

We tend to think legacy is built in big moments. The keynote speech. The major deal. The visible triumph.

But legacy is actually built in small moments. The way you treat the intern. How you respond when someone makes a mistake. Whether you remember names. Whether you follow up when you said you would.

These small moments accumulate into patterns. And patterns become reputation. And reputation is just another word for the legacy you're building right now.

What Do You Want To Be Known For?

This is the question that clarifies everything. Not "what do you want to achieve" or "where do you want to be in five years"—those are different questions.

What do you want people to say about you when you're not in the room? What words do you want associated with your name? What feeling do you want people to have when they think of you?

Get specific. Write it down. Then reverse-engineer your behavior to match.

Playing The Long Game

Legacy thinking changes how you make decisions. When you're playing for the long game, short-term wins that damage trust become obviously bad trades. Cutting corners stops being tempting when you realize the corner you're cutting is your own future.

This doesn't mean sacrificing the present for the future. It means making choices that serve both. Building something you can be proud of, not just now, but when you look back.

Your legacy is a story you're writing with your actions. Every day, you add another sentence. Make them count.