Build Your Family Legacy – Discover what’s important
To build your legacy as a family, members need to understand “who we are and what we stand for”.
Have each family member:
List 3-5 admirable actions taken by ancestors (living or deceased) – with a short description of why they were admirable.
Example:
Dad worked on the Gemini Space program – he helped the USA get and keep space superiority in the world
Grandpa Adolf came over as an immigrant and ended up a wealthy landowner – he demonstrated the American Dream.
List the 4 most visible things any side of the family is known for in society.
Example:
My mother’s family donated drinking fountains and benches to parks in St. Louis.
Great-grandfather was governor of Iowa.
List professions undertaken by past and present family members – why were they important to the family and how did they influence the following generations in their professions.
Example:
Accountants keep cropping up on all sides of the family – so that those members could accumulate wealth – there are two generations of accountants and CFO’s now.
List 3 – 4 notorious actions by past family members, not to include as part of legacy.
Example: Robbing a bank.
List 5 -10 things you want to be remembered for in their own eulogy.
Example: Being the founding matriarch for the development of the families wealth consortium.
List 3 – 5 traits to develop in the next generation of family.
Example: Self-reliance, thriftiness, industriousness, philanthropy, artistic ability.
List 1 -2 outcomes you would like to see if you came back to life in the family 100 years from now.
Example: Family foundation doing good in the world, family business thriving, family members still working together towards common good
Have a group review.
Get two to three family members to review, analyze and compile the results into a proposed legacy statement for the entire extended family to revise and agree on.
See these articles for more information:
What Does Family Legacy Mean to You?
