Legacy of a Business
What is your legacy as a business owner?
Do you want your legacy to be one of positive contribution, more than meeting your material needs?
A business with purpose is bigger than you and will be a legacy with lasting impact.
When your mission is bigger than you, you can feel the wind at your back. You gain momentum - the energy of your ancestors, guides, and spirit gathers around you, lifts you and guides you. 🌬️
When your mission is bigger than you, you can feel the wind at your back. You gain momentum - the energy of your ancestors, guides, and spirit gathers around you, lifts you and guides you.
When we and our business are in the flow of the universe, we ride the swell of the waves, buoyed by the energy of what we are doing. We understand that when we give, we receive. We can see, feel, and be part of the flow, experiencing the positivity of exchange.
We are living in an exchange, receiving and giving - one of interconnectedness. A business can be growing, taking, like cancer in a body. But the body suffers in this situation. Don’t we want our expression to be beneficial, in flow? A thriving business with a positive impact on its host, impacting all stakeholders - humanity and all living things. 🐸
What is the purpose of your business? To make a living, to fund your retirement? Maybe you believe your business helps your employees live, helps your customers live or provide services/products that enhance living? Do you want to be the biggest or best at what you do? What is your legacy? What is your lasting impact?
Maybe you are doing the best you can and are so busy with all the blocking and tackling you don’t feel like you have time to think about all of this. Friends, when you live your purpose, you feel fulfillment. To tune in to purpose, taking time for yourself is necessary. It is only in reflection we begin to understand our interconnectedness, how everything is related, and how our purpose can fit into our business. 🌱
It is only in reflection we begin to understand our interconnectedness, how everything is related, and how our purpose can fit into our business.
By having a big purpose we unite our stakeholders and get everyone on board. Everyone is rowing in the same direction. As long as your business model is sound, profits naturally follow.
Our purpose will drive our vision and mission statement. We can litmus test any action by asking, is this in alignment with our purpose, our mission? We can set goals that everyone can understand because we have articulated our purpose through our vision and mission statement in a way that everyone understands.
The title of this Patagonia pamphlet says it all!
It feels important to wrap this up from a company I look to for inspiration - Patagonia. Patagonia is the outdoor gear and clothing company founded by Yvon Chouinard. The astounding story of Chouinard is that he gave up control of his company Patagonia after forty-nine years! Still keeping the company private, Chouinard transferred ownership of the company to a trust that will continue the company’s values. What I find so refreshing is that Patagonia acknowledges they are not perfect and have a lot of work to do. “Earth is no easy boss.” Can we all get a little bit of inspiration from this purpose leader?
Check out the Patagonia 2025 Work in Progress Report here
With gratitude,
John