Recently, my wife, Michelle, was walking through the Dallas Love Field Airport and saw a display of women wearing orange suits. They were life-size, 3D images (replicas) of prominent women in the “STEM” fields who made a significant mark through their lives. 

These 3D statues inspired my wife to take pictures with her phone and capture photos of how real they looked along with their inspiring stories. A sign near the 3D images explaining the project said, “If you can see it, you can be it.” In other words, if you can see a positive example or role model, you can be it. 

How true is that for us as parents? Can we say we are living our lives in a way that inspires our children to replicate, copy, duplicate or repeat what they see in us?

That is a sobering thought. When we hear the words legacy, we tend to think of that “distant” part of our lives after the kids are grown and leave the house, or we’ve reached that part of life where we can finally breathe to focus on what matters most, right? 

Legacy matters because legacy is the mark of our life. It is also a mark that can’t be erased. However, it’s easy to overlook that how we choose to live today determines what kind of legacy we will leave tomorrow.  

The question is, are we leaving a mark and living a life worth repeating or duplicating? Remember, if our children can SEE it in us, they can BE it in their own lives. 

As a parent, here are some 3D principles to help you start living your legacy today.

1. Decide What Your Legacy Will Be.

As Steven Covey states in his 7 Habits of Highly Effective People, “Begin with the end in mind.”

How can we do this?

Examine Your Past – What legacy did your parents and grandparents leave you? Is it rich and meaningful, or do you need to change the script so you leave a different legacy? 

Examine Your Present – What is the state of your marriage relationship? Your relationships with your kids, your family? 

Examine Your Future – As the old saying goes, it’s now how you start, it’s how you finish. Remember, you may be a product of your past, but you don’t have to be a prisoner of your past. We have a choice! Therefore, we can start today rewriting our future.

2. Determine How You Want to Make Your Mark

Good intentions will only take us so far. We must determine how to make positive marks on the children we love and lead. 

Four Legacy Marks To Consider:

• Mark of Your Convictions

We have to decide what will serve as the foundation of our beliefs and values. What will we use as our “north star” to guide and direct our lives? 

• Mark of Your Character  

Character is the moral qualities that are distinctive to a person. Your reputation is what you are perceived to be, but your character is who you really are. Our character is often shaped by the trials and times of testing we encounter in life. Remember, tough times don’t make or break you; they reveal you. What have the difficulties in your life revealed about your character?  

• Mark of Your Communication

What are the words that will mark your life? Our speech is a reflection of what’s in our hearts, and it can do great good or harm to those around us.   

3. Dare to Live Each Day With Greater Intention

Life is short; live intentionally. Life is long. Therefore, stay encouraged. That’s why it’s essential to make a choice to live our legacy daily.

Remember, your most significant contribution in this lifetime may not be something you do but someone you raise. If our children can see it, then they can be it. As parents, let’s live a life worthy of being replicated and repeated. Your legacy matters, so live the legacy you want to leave. 
Rodney Gage is a family mentor, author, speaker and the founding pastor of ReThink Life Church, which meets at Lake Nona High School. His passion is to help families win at home and in life. To learn more about his marriage and parenting mentoring, or how you can receive a FREE copy of his new book check out thewinningfamily.com and rethinklife.com.