It was another dreary winter day and after 10 hours of walking the factory floor my body was exhausted. There had to be more to life than just working to pay the bills. My mind drifted back to my youth and all the crazy dreams I had as a child. I was going to be someone and believed I would succeed. I chuckled at my youthful fantasies and thought how naïve I had been, but inside was the small voice that whispered to me of my destiny. It whispered of a legacy that I was leaving unfulfilled. It's not like I hated my life, but it just wasn't a life that was making a difference. Yes, yes the fuel pumps I worked on as an engineer were quieter than the model before and yes I did receive four patents and a national benchmarking award for the design, but would anyone claim the sound of their fuel pump was the difference maker in their life? If significance was possible, why not strive for it? I am going to work hard whether I achieve great things or not, so why not shoot for leaving a legacy?
My mind argued with itself, "Legacy? Legacies are for Washington's, Franklin's, Lincolns, Edison's, Ford's, and the like. But didn't they start out as just kids with a dream just like me? Wasn't it possible for a kid growing up in Columbiaville Michigan to achieve just as much as anyone else? Maybe I would achieve more if I just set bigger goals for life?" Getting into my car, I vowed that I would pursue my dreams no matter what. That I would endure any criticism, fight any battle and surmount any obstacle to live a life of meaning and significance. Legacies are not handed out at birth; they are crafted through dreams, goals, personal development, courage and commitment. Anyone can claim a spot among the legends of American heroes if they are willing to dream, believe, and work towards their legacy, regardless of the criticism and setbacks. A legacy is a gift given back to your family name and something that future generations of your family will look to in times of hardship. Imagine if you were a descendant of George Washington and were going through struggles. You could look back to President Washington's life and realize that he surmounted many struggles on his journey of leaving a legacy also. If we are going to live a life, then we might as well make it a life that counts.
As a child growing up I always had to work hard in sports to make up for my lack of size. As a freshman I weighed 98 pounds soaking wet and stood a massive 5 ft tall. Why I went out for the basketball team is a good question, but I believed I could work hard and achieve. Many of life's greatest lessons are learned in your losses and we endured a winless season with many embarrassing losses. I had my share of losing enough to last a lifetime, but life continued to give me more than my fair share. The next debacle was my attempt at playing baseball as a sophomore. I played "left out" and deserved the position. It wasn't until my junior year that I started playing the sports that suited my abilities. In cross country, wrestling, and track it wasn't size that counted as much as heart. I learned that hard work, basic training, and focus can produce better results than dabbling a little in everything. I would go home after a successful day of running and tell my mom and dad about the race. Many times my dad would share about his races when he ran cross country. Some times he would talk about his dad and how he was a top track star and this would feed my faith that I could achieve more. I loved when my dad would tell the Woodward children about the history of our family. What a loss that more families do not instill the pride of their family name to their children. I grew up learning about my great-great-grandfather who pulled himself out of poverty and owned a hotel and restaurants through hard work and big dreams. I learned about Woodward's who owned hotels in Florida and how the Woodward's once had been successful and owned many properties. Dad would then regretfully add that the prodigal spending habits had made the Woodward's a lower middle class family again. These stories fueled my dream to return the Woodward family to its former stature. What is your family's history? Have you ever thought about your family's legacy to date and what part you will play in this legacy?
Each individual family member has a choice of what to do with their family's legacy. Some may say, "My family does not have a legacy. No one has ever achieved anything of significance in my family." My answer is if that is true then you will be the first to strive for greatness. Be a script changer for your family. Every legendary family started with no legacy, but with a man or woman with a dream in their heart. Others may say, "My family is already very successful and I have nothing to add." My answer is to be a script completer and continue your family legacy. You have greatness inside of you and your family has already displayed the way. . Maybe your family legacy is an embarrassment to you, but this should be looked as a challenge to change your family's legacy. Each generation that is born has a responsibility to make, change or continue their family legacy. Many choose to ignore their responsibilities of their family name and never attempt anything great to enhance their family name. I believe that every family has greatness inside of them and for many it is just a question of changing their limiting beliefs. As individuals have limiting beliefs, so do whole families. I tell my children that when the going gets tough, just remember that you are a Woodward and you will find a way to endure and win. We must help generate the winning beliefs in our families that will help them overcome the obstacles on their way to their legacies.
All of this has been said to get to this question, "What family legacy will you leave to posterity?" If you are like many then you have never asked this question before. This is alright, because we are asking it now and it is never too late. As you realize that your life is part of the chain that links the past to the future though the present, then you will understand your responsibility to make your life count. Every successful leader develops their legacy through character, relationships and task. Laurie and I have been blessed with great parents, mentors and friends who are constantly encouraging us in our endeavors, but it wasn't always this way. When Laurie and I first started to dream big, our families thought we were crazy. We heard so many negative comments that we almost believed it and gave up. This is where character comes in. If you are going to achieve anything worthwhile you must sell yourself first. After you are sold yourself, remember that being true to yourself is the beginning of character. When a person makes a decision to move ahead in life, they must also expect obstacles to test their character and resolve. No one achieves greatness without strength of character and I am encouraging you to work on this first. Without character the other two do not matter.
Relationships help you to develop your legacy, because no one achieves lasting success by themselves. No one is truly a self-made person. Laurie and I have been blessed with some incredible friends and mentors. These are people who will give you perspective when you are struggling, encouragement when needed, and cheers during your victories. Cultivate friendships through being a friend. Jesus said, "It is more blessed to give than receive." What if everyone lived by this motto? Can you imagine a world where everyone attempted to out serve one another? I know this is idealistic, but I would rather be an idealist and be let down once in a while than be a pessimist and be right all the time. The people who have achieved the most have achieved through helping others achieve their best. Be a servant to others and you will be amazed at the harvest you reap from sowing into others lives. This will greatly enhance your legacy, because your greatest legacy will be in the lives you made a difference in. If I asked you to name the last five Super Bowl winners, last five World Series winners, and last 5 NBA champions and you will struggle to get them right, but if I asked you to name 5 people who have made a difference in your life, you will have no problem. Why is that? Even though the teams listed are champions, they made no impact into your personal life. A leader makes a personal impact and this makes all the difference.
Task is the last factor in building a legacy. You can have character, have strong relationships, but you must also press towards the goal. This involves setting goals and accomplishing task. The key here is to never accomplish task and blow the relationship. Remember your true legacy is in teaching others how to accomplish in life and this is impossible if we offend them in the lessons. A leader constantly asks how they can accomplish this task through teaching others. The more that is accomplished without one person doing it all, the more someone is leveraging their character and relationships to achieve the specific task. One of the greatest joys of a legacy builder is for them to help a team accomplish a task and give all the credit away to the team. A leader is less interested in recognition for themselves and more interested in recognition for the team. We will accomplish much more with a large team ego and not a large personal ego. Legacies are achieved through leadership which is accomplished through the development of character, relationships and task.
Many will tell me, "But I don't think I have what it takes to be a great leader." I am living proof that everything it takes to lead is already inside of you and it is your responsibility to develop the hunger to bring it out. No one would have accused me of being a leader in high school. I had no concept of what it meant to positively influence anyone. To learn leadership, start a program of personal development. Begin to read life enhancing books, listen to leaders on CD, and associate with as many leaders as possible. The old saying, "If you hang out with dogs you get fleas" is so true. Hang out with leaders and capture the vision of your family legacy. I dare you to attempt something great! I dare you as you walk out of work tomorrow to dream bigger! I stopped waiting for my ship to come in and decided to build my own. We will help you build your ship and sail to your legacy. One of my favorite quotes is "When all is said and done, much more is said than is ever done." I do not want to be remembered as someone who talked a great game, but never played. It has been 8 years since that dreary winter day when I decided to make my life count for something more than designing fuel pumps. We are in the business of building legacies. We are developing a leadership team to make a difference in this world and you are invited to be part of the Team. May God grant you wisdom on your journey to your legacy, past and future generations of your family are counting on you.
Orrin A. Woodward
Posted: 05-09-2006
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