Join 60,000+ seasoned professionals who are done with the corporate world. Epic Encore is an almost daily newsletter with inspirational stories from leading experts. Your Epic Encore is about turning your lifetime experiences into the cornerstone of the rest of your life. It represents your audacious leap into entrepreneurship, fueled by the wisdom and tenacity you've garnered in your successful career. This isn't about playing catch-up in business and building a 7-figure business. It's about forging a unique path, using your distinct perspective, seasoned judgment, and invaluable insights that can only come from years of life experience.
Your corporate expertise is your greatest untapped legacy asset
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After decades in the C-suite, most executives underestimate their most valuable retirement resource: their accumulated expertise. While financial planners focus on portfolio management, the real question isn't how to manage your money, it's how to transform your knowledge into lasting impact. There's a natural evolution that happens when executives leave corporate life, a shift from building resume virtues that advance careers to developing eulogy virtues that define how we're remembered. The transition from corporate life presents a unique opportunity to move from accumulating achievements to creating enduring value. The Five Dimensions of Executive LegacyYour post-corporate legacy extends across multiple dimensions, each offering different paths to purpose: Knowledge Legacy involves packaging decades of expertise into accessible formats. This isn't about writing dense technical documentation; it's about creating "decision stories" that translate your experience into actionable insights others can apply. Relationship Legacy multiplies your impact through strategic mentoring and sponsorship. These generative relationships create benefits that flow both ways; mentees gain wisdom and opportunities, while mentors experience the deep satisfaction of shaping future leaders. The ripple effects extend far beyond direct involvement. Values Legacy transmits principles through action, not words. Your values become tangible when embedded in organizations, initiatives, or frameworks you create. Creative Legacy produces tangible outputs, books, courses, businesses, or innovations that outlast your direct involvement. Community Legacy addresses societal challenges by aligning your expertise with causes that matter. Designing Your Legacy Intentionally Creating a meaningful legacy requires the same strategic thinking you applied to corporate initiatives. Start by clarifying your legacy vision. How do you want to be remembered? Next, identify specific vehicles for creating impact: mentoring programs, nonprofit leadership, knowledge products, or social ventures. Your most meaningful legacy emerges where three things meet: causes you care about, expertise only you can offer, and real needs nobody else is filling. Consider this: You've spent decades learning things the hard way, developing judgment that only comes from experience, and recovering from mistakes that taught invaluable lessons. That wisdom becomes worthless if it retires with you. Your legacy isn't what you leave behind. It's what you actively create through intentional choices and strategic action. The question isn't whether you have something valuable to contribute. The question is: How will you package and share it so its impact outlasts you? Ted P.S. If you enjoy this content, follow me on my new Substack channel for exclusive content, including live interviews with thought leaders |
Ted Prodromou
Join 60,000+ seasoned professionals who are done with the corporate world. Epic Encore is an almost daily newsletter with inspirational stories from leading experts. Your Epic Encore is about turning your lifetime experiences into the cornerstone of the rest of your life. It represents your audacious leap into entrepreneurship, fueled by the wisdom and tenacity you've garnered in your successful career. This isn't about playing catch-up in business and building a 7-figure business. It's about forging a unique path, using your distinct perspective, seasoned judgment, and invaluable insights that can only come from years of life experience.
I remember a project early in my consulting career. I poured my heart and soul into it, working late nights and weekends to deliver something truly exceptional for the client. The results were fantastic, far beyond their expectations. But when I sent the final invoice, based on my hourly rate, it felt… hollow. The number on the page didn’t come close to the value I had delivered. It was a tough lesson: just doing great work isn’t enough. My clients frequently share a similar story with me....
I remember the moment like it was yesterday. I worked for IBM in its consulting division. Like clockwork, I would jump on a plane on Sunday afternoon for my next project. Every week it was another destination where I would work with a client then fly home on Friday night. It was the first time I became a member of United's 1K club, meaning I flew over 100,000 miles in a year. In my mid-40s, I was a road warrior living on planes and in hotels racking up frequent flyer miles and hotel points. I...
My recent health challenges have me thinking about legacy. And no, I don't mean the touchy-feely kind or getting a library named after you. I'm talking about the real part. The one that keeps you staring at the ceiling at 3 AM, asking, "Will any of this matter in ten years?" After I left my corporate role, I thought my legacy was set in stone. I led big projects and built strong teams. But I soon realized those corporate wins were resume virtues. They get you ahead, but they aren't what...