Sharing the history of a company, school, or enterprise with current team members deepens understanding and connects the past to the present and future.
But in the hands of a skilled leader, that history can be a gold mine of motivation and pride.
Team members crave a sense of permanence, prideful identity, and belonging. Leaders who tie the lessons, standards, and values of the past to the present and ask others to learn from them and carry them forward create a Legacy.
By highlighting the lasting imprint and enduring contributions left by those who came before, leaders have a powerful tool through which to guide decisions, inspire team members, and create a sense of shared belonging.
Good leaders ask the current team to uphold the standards and values that have been the historical lifeblood of the organization.
Asking team members to become stewards of the past and to ensure the continuity of what came before creates a unique cohesion and connectedness that clarifies the organization’s purpose and vision.
When articulated artfully, this covenant with the past ties team members to meanings and feelings known only to those who now share the Legacy.
This is more than just a history that continues a narrative. The symbolism of a Legacy binds team members to the organization or team in ways that are deeply human and satisfying.
Across organizations, common elements of the Legacy include the need for sacrifice, the commitment to work incredibly hard, the quality standards by which people are measured, how small details define greatness, the importance of community and acts of service, the power of resilience, and the appropriate conduct of a valued team member.
Leaders who purposefully create a Legacy, share stories and anecdotes from the past, use rituals and traditions to remind people of the Legacy, offer gifts and tokens that can be passed down to others, and create ways for team members to enact or demonstrate the Legacy through their everyday actions.
In organizations that use their Legacy as a powerful asset, it is hard to escape any large gathering or physical workspace without confronting the history that leaders want the team to carry forward.
If your enterprise has a history of great accomplishments and heroic actions, consider using them more purposefully to create a Legacy for others to follow. If you can already point to the Legacy of your organization, think about how to make it a bigger part of how team members connect with each other every day.
Making a mark on the world that others can’t erase is what all great organizations aspire to. Asking the team to take pride in that endeavor is what a Legacy is all about.
