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How Will You Measure Your Life?

One of our VPs recently sent me a Harvard Business Review article by Clayton M. Christensen titled “How Will You Measure Your Life?”

It resonated with me . . . uncomfortably so.  Christensen doesn’t ask how you will measure your career or your net worth. He asks something far more confronting: How will you measure your life?

When we think about legacy, our minds often drift to the size of the company we built, the balance sheet we leave behind, or the wealth accumulated along the way. Many of us spend our careers focused relentlessly on money.  Somewhere along the way, wealth and status have become our default measures of success. 

Do large sums of money or public recognition reliably translate to happiness?  When our time runs out, will these be the markers of a life well lived?  I’ve come to believe this is a shallow definition of legacy. True legacy rests in the fulfillment of our personal values, provided those values are anchored in building up others.

Christensen argued persuasively that the ultimate measure of success is not business achievement, but the individual lives we touch along the way. Building people is more enduring than building companies.

Companies change hands. Markets turn. Buildings age. Even the most admired enterprises eventually fade or evolve beyond recognition. The impact we have on people, how we show up as parents, partners, friends, mentors and leaders quietly compounds to endure far longer than any corporate accomplishment. The effects of a life well lived extend beyond us and into future generations. This is real legacy. 

Let’s make this personal. Legacy is found in whether our children feel secure, encouraged, and loved.  When they do, they are prepared for life.  It’s found in whether our spouses feel seen and valued, or whether they feel like obstacles to our busy schedules. Legacy is also measured by whether people leave our circle of influence stronger, more confident, and more capable than when they entered it. 

What if employees go on to work for rival companies? So much the better. Your legacy is now positively influencing another organization. The virtue you helped build has simply moved into a new orbit! 

A business associate of mine, an asset manager at a highly respected firm, recently left a promising role to become a stay-at-home father. You might assume dissatisfaction or underperformance. Neither is true. He is highly capable, respected, and valued by his employer. Is he damaging his legacy, or building it?  The answer is obvious. I admire his decision.  Well done, Peter. You have my respect. 

Some argue that prioritizing people, family, friends and loved ones comes at the expense of wealth, position, or power. This is a profound mistake. Even if legacy were defined purely by business outcomes, a career oriented toward building people may be the most effective way to build that very success that I am saying is secondary. When I reflect on the business leaders I respect most, they are invariably those with strong, healthy relationships at home.   

I graduated from high school in Japan, where I attended a boarding school for expatriates. From the class of ’79, all but two students went directly to university, because that was the expectation.  Many went on to impressive careers. Sadly, at the twilight of our working years, many are now unhappy, unfulfilled, divorced, and estranged from even their children. I’m certain none of them planned for this outcome. I would go so far as to say that a career pursued at the expense of investing in people, especially those at home, ultimately undermines business results and personal financial outcomes. 

Enduring legacy rests in the contributions we make to the betterment of others. The return on this investment compounds long after our own lives have ended. We don’t know how far those effects travel or how many generations they touch. But one thing is certain: this is an investment that builds legacies far more valuable than any deal we close! 

Perhaps the most important takeaway is this: legacy is not something we assess at the end of our careers. It is being built, quietly and incrementally, in the choices we make every day. How we invest our time and who we choose to build up along the way will ultimately define the measure of our lives. If we are intentional about building people, we will have built something that outlasts titles, transactions, and balance sheets. That is a legacy worth pursuing.