Anonymous wrote:As pp said, I don't aim to leave a legacy. I have wonderful children but they get to be their own people so I'm not laying claim like they were products of ours.
I'm moving into a state where it's OK if I didn't change the world, leave behind something I created for others, etc.

Almost everyone is forgotten in a few generations, and that's OK! I feel that when we appreciate this one life, lead with compassion and do right by others, don't screw up the world but treat it thoughtfully, and leave those in your life with strength and warmth to carry through some more of their days, that is enough.

ITA.

I would like to be remembered fondly by the people I leave behind. That is enough of a legacy for me.

$40M to my kids

My legacy is breaking a multigenerational cycle of abuse. My son grew up in a house without cruelty. He has always been loved, valued, and safe. He does not know what it’s like to live in fear of capricious, angry gods.

He is a teenager and is sweet, gentle, and sunny. I can’t say for sure what kind of man he will be, but I will be very, very surprised if his children (if he chooses to have them) are ever afraid of him.

That is my legacy.

I am the legacy of a few awesome mentors who have helped me make my small contributions. My legacy will be mentoring a few amazing young people who will make their own contributions and mentor others and hopefully remember me!

I worked with someone who was concerned about what her legacy would be from her career and she mentioned this a lot in the years prior to retirement.

When she retired, the entire nature of her job was revised, and no one brought up her contributions as being useful. They did everything differently. No one even talked about her personality or management style, which was a positive thing about her. Over time, no one mentioned her. The only thing worse were those who left and for whom we had bad memories and talked about negatively. So I guess I strive to not end up as one of those people. Forgotten is better than that.

Maybe we just do the best we can with the least harm. The future belongs to the younger generations.

I think if we leave behind something to help our kids launch themselves and if they have mostly decent memories of us, that's enough.

I think it's an idea that asks us to keep working towards some goal and that there will be some prize at the end of life.

One legacy will be that I had good financial and legal planning, and it will be somewhat easy to settle my estate. My parents were like that and it was very helpful. Maybe that's not a legacy, but it is one thing I remember with gratitude about my parents.

I'm 60 and there is a small group of friends who would say I'm a "nice guy." I'm hoping not to leave too many unpaid bills when I'm done.

Anonymous wrote:As pp said, I don't aim to leave a legacy. I have wonderful children but they get to be their own people so I'm not laying claim like they were products of ours.
I'm moving into a state where it's OK if I didn't change the world, leave behind something I created for others, etc.

Almost everyone is forgotten in a few generations, and that's OK! I feel that when we appreciate this one life, lead with compassion and do right by others, don't screw up the world but treat it thoughtfully, and leave those in your life with strength and warmth to carry through some more of their days, that is enough.

Agree!

Anonymous wrote:No one is so important that they really have a legacy. Some people have a degree of fame, sighted in history books. A handful.

I think we all have a legacy

No one is so important that they really have a legacy. Some people have a degree of fame, sighted in history books. A handful.

Very little. I think back a lot at the potential and energy I had when young, which somehow frittered away. Honestly it makes me sad now.

As pp said, I don't aim to leave a legacy. I have wonderful children but they get to be their own people so I'm not laying claim like they were products of ours.
I'm moving into a state where it's OK if I didn't change the world, leave behind something I created for others, etc.

Almost everyone is forgotten in a few generations, and that's OK! I feel that when we appreciate this one life, lead with compassion and do right by others, don't screw up the world but treat it thoughtfully, and leave those in your life with strength and warmth to carry through some more of their days, that is enough.

Honestly I’m hoping to be able to give my son the leg up that I never had. I’m frugal and want to start a tradition of a little bit of generational wealth. It probably seems so shallow but I really want him to be able to have some breathing room and freedom to pick a career based on enjoyment versus compensation. He’s in college now and I’m trying to gift him $15k/year to save in a brokerage account that will compound. That and the other assets I’m accumulating. I had generational wealth in my family several generations ago and it never filtered its way down.

I wrote a book. I can track my citations on Google Scholar. Lots of people have used my findings and my research has become established as knowledge in the field.

I'm 68. I've thought about it a few times, but I don't feel the need or drive to leave a legacy.

FYI: here's a definition https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/legacy

What is your life's legacy, OP?

For those of you starting your last 1/4 of life journey (60+), what do you consider your life's legacy? Work? Family/kids? Money? As wisdom to share looking back? Any regrets??