LEGACY: MORE STORIES, LESS STUFF
How do I save my story for next generations as I downsize?
This question emerged from my recent blog postings about honouring a farmer’s life, and ways to symbolically honour other jobs.
Some careers do not have obvious symbols that can easily be preserved in a shadow box or by placing a particular object on a shelf.
Younger generations often have the job of sorting through decades of an older family member’s professional papers and materials. That task can be so overwhelming that one of two things happens. Almost everything is discarded OR everything is saved to sort through on a rainy day. That rainy day pile often become a task of a third generation or the boxes are destroyed after a long stay in a musty basement.
Here’s opportunity for you to proactively save ‘the best’ of your career to satisfy your own well-being and others’ curiosity, and gain the gratitude of those that follow you who do not have to clean out for you!
Some wonder if any members of the younger generations will be interested in what older generations did for work. I offer this suggestion from my own experience of working with family members and clients.
MORE of your descendants may be interested in your work than you think; but they may be LESS interested in all the paper that goes with it!
Therefore, tell your story and keep it light in weight!
I recommend choosing a colourful file of a distinct colour to add to your personal or estate records or a small bright-coloured waterproof tub labelled on all sides and top.
Items to go in it to tell your story could include: your resume, newspaper articles about you, several key photos of you in your workplace with significant people, diplomas, certificates of professional designation or courses completed, recognition plaques (or a photo), log books, and pins or badges.
Someone who spent years in public service or with a community organization might include a memory stick or hard copy of a report of a particularly important project that changed the lives of the communities with which they worked.
The task here is two-fold: Include enough to tell some of your career story, but not so much that it is an overwhelming amount for you to keep as you downsize or for a descendent to sort in the future.
One last thought: Make sure to make note of this bright coloured file or box in your estate file. It is part of your legacy!
Am I steering us all to consider what will happen after our passing? In many ways, YES. Rather than saying “I’ll do that next decade", remember times that you may have cleared a family member’s stuff and the hugeness of that task. Do it before this year’s end. Make the task easier for those that follow you.
In the meantime, enjoy having at your fingertips a manageable number of items representing your work life that you can review whenever you wish to remember your contributions to your community and world!
Need some help in determining how to create that file or tote box? I’d be glad to chat about ideas.