This is a question that I believe should be on our minds every day. When we live with this question constantly on our minds, our daily decisions become much easier. When I realize that someday I will be gone but that I get to decide what I leave behind, I see my time as an investment instead of something that I spend.
This thinking has caused me to look differently even at the things that I learn. I do not believe that we should ever stop learning and that, until we do die, there is always room for growth and improvement. As I have gotten older though, I no longer view those lessons learned and opportunities to grow as only for me. I learn today so that I can leave something of value behind tomorrow. If I can learn and then translate those lessons in a way that can be easily understood by those coming up behind me then, even when I am gone, I am showing them the way forward in their lives.
For me, this means writing and speaking and recording videos while working to contribute to the cultural conversation in a way that attempts clarifies so much of the clutter. For you it may be something different but we all need to answer the question: “What am I leaving behind?”
Photo by Tim Marshall on Unsplash