Most workers donât think about their career legacy â the reputation they leave behind following retirement. Your legacy is the impact you make on the people you work with and the company you work for, whether thatâs forging your own path or working for a Fortune 500 company. So, why not leave your mark?
Sara Blakely, founder of Spanx, set aside a portion of the proceeds from her company from day one to support and empower women. Marc Benioff, the founder of Salesforce, adopted a â1-1-1â approach to corporate giving: The company gives one percent of employee time in terms of volunteer hours, one percent of its product, and one percent of its revenue to charitable causes. Rohini Dey is a restaurateur who founded Letâs Talk Womxn. Letâs Talk is a âB-cube model of âcompetitors as collaboratorsââ that launched during the pandemic for women restaurateurs to learn from and support each other.
People who leave a career legacy have three commonalities:
1. They take personal responsibility and challenge the status quo.
Personal responsibility is owning your actions, decisions, and thoughts. It is an internal moral code steeped in integrity. People with personal responsibility make things happen for themselves by holding themselves accountable.
The status quo is how things are, especially regarding social or political issues. Challenging the way things are means rocking the boat. Itâs saying, âHey, things need to change.â And then making that happen.
As you begin to think about leaving your legacy, think about the changes you want to see, not the mark you want to make. Take responsibility for those changes â rock the boat.
2. They connect the dots between their companyâs brand, capabilities, and social mission.
Whether youâre an entrepreneur or an employee, cultivate your companyâs brand and social mission. People who leave a legacy understand the capabilities and resources they have and how to utilize those to perpetuate social good. Both Blakely and Benioff began a corporate giving program before their companies were making money. They took the resources they had and used those to cement their social mission.
The Salesforce brand is synonymous with corporate responsibility and giving. Since initiating the â1-1-1â approach, more than 8,500 companies have joined the Salesforce pledge. While 1% of a dollar is just one cent, when thatâs extrapolated from a million plus dollars, it makes a big difference. Benioff doesnât advocate unattainable corporate giving. In fact, parting with 1% of profits is very doable. But what a legacy that simple donation leaves behind.
Stay within the confines of what you or your company can do. Your legacy will not be built in a day. Instead of thinking about making a huge impact with one event or one donation, think about how you can create a sustainable corporate policy.
3. They empower those around them.
The University of California, Irvine, recently released an article about the impact of empowering the people around you. Empowerment creates engaged and productive employees, theyâre âwork-ready.â When you empower others, you create a team working together on a single mission. There is no better way to begin to build a legacy than to have the strength of a team to put it together.
And itâs so much easier than you think. Get to know the people around you and give them the tools they need to be successful. Let them use their superpowers every day. Show your appreciation. Statistics show that recognition is the most important motivator for employees.
Leaving your legacy can seem daunting from a big-view perspective. But it doesnât have to be. Follow the example of others. Donate just 1%, whether thatâs money, time, or other social good. Create a program that improves the lives of many.
As 2023 comes to an end, ask yourself: How do I want to be remembered? Thatâs your starting block for the new year.