It Looks Like I Won’t Be in the History Books, After All…

Recently, my better half and I sat down to re-watch “The Aviator,” the 2004 biopic starring Leonardo DiCaprio, which highlights the life and times of Howard Hughes, arguably the most prominent American business figure of the mid-20th century.

Whether you’re familiar with the real-life Hughes or not, I realized while watching that he literally shaped or re-shaped at least three massive industries (motion pictures, casino gaming, and aeronautics). His impact can still be dramatically felt in all three today. Yet, most young Americans have never even heard of him. The best comparison I can make to explain who he was to my daughters is that he would be like the Elon Musk of 75 years ago. Either way, they would be absolutely clueless about who he was, what he did, or why they should even care.

Here’s the sobering reality: other than for a few exceptional individuals, almost none of us will be remembered 100 years from now. A recent study showed that less than 1% of Americans can even name (let alone know anything significant about) all eight of their great-grandparents. Read that statistic again, because it’s less than 1% of 1% of 1% of 1% who can do the same with their great-great-grandparents, who were likely around your age only roughly 100 years ago.

Why does this matter to you and me?

We live in a shockingly polarized and tumultuous time. No matter what you stand for, there will be plenty who will choose to tear you down. Regardless of your politics, values, beliefs, etc., there will be plenty who will tell you that not only are you wrong, but because of your politics, values, beliefs, etc., you’re also, by their definition, a horrible human being, offering almost no tangible value to the world. We live in a shockingly (and sadly) polarized, graceless, black-and-white world.

For so many of us, myself often included, we can be so fearful of what others might think of us that we refuse to stand up for what we believe in (other than perhaps the occasional social media post referencing our politics, as if that’s the most critical attribute of our existence). My unsolicited advice: please “be” something more than just your politics as your main source of identity. We are afraid to offend or to “rock the boat,” but especially, we are even more afraid to take any real action. In many areas, we typically just tend to either conform or politely hide our true feelings/identity, for risk of being shamed, lambasted, or character-assassinated.

Here’s the thing: we have one life to live, and we don’t even know how long or short it will be. If we are going to impact the world, if we are going to make right what is wrong, then it has to be now! We almost certainly won’t be remembered, and even less likely to be celebrated by future generations. Since it’s almost a guarantee that we won’t have any meaningfully recognized legacy that even exists beyond a decade or two after our death, then what legacy are we actually trying to protect?

Leaders lead. We don’t lead because we’ll be remembered or because our influence will still directly be felt in the future. We lead because our impact is in the present. It’s in the here and now. Every day that we choose to sink back into our shells is another day we’ve missed out on eliciting real influence and real impact. Who cares if the world judges you harshly today, for the cold hard truth is the world won’t remember you regardless.

So, why not take action, pursue what is right and just, and serve the only real people you’ll have any meaningful influence on: the people in your current orbit, your sphere of influence in the here and now? What you lead on and how you lead today impacts today. It matters today. It serves people today. You might not change the far future, but your leadership can certainly change things for the better for those whom you have the great fortune of influencing today.

Keep leading!