This past weekend I sat in my grandparents’ study, flipping through the pages of my family’s history.

With every flip of the page, I went further back in time as my grandmother told me the story of each relative’s courageous journey.

Some stories were that of victory and intentions met, fleeing countries and seeking freedom in a new land, starting with nothing and building a life around a little grocery store in Cleveland.

Other stories were that of tragic loss from fleeing persecution to fighting for their country.

There was so much pride in her voice as she told me the legacy each of my family members have left behind, the stories told long after their days.

I started to wonder what my legacy would be.

Reflecting on this, I didn’t have to go back very far. Just two days prior I received a surprise gift that was so meaningful, I was overwhelmed with gratitude and completely speechless.

The gift was a website – my website — dedicated to my career, with my writing, public talks, and training classes. (I’ll share it with you when it is ready for prime time.)

It was filled with love and acknowledgments from the people I hold to highest regard – my heart swelled and the words got stuck in my throat. All I could get out was, “Thank you.”

When I changed careers from Human Resources to the world of Information Technology and agile, I often found myself asking my mentor, “Are you sure I can do this?” He would always respond with, “One day you will believe in you as much as I do. You will see you the way I see you.”

Opening this gift and seeing a website that captured the work I have done and is a platform for the work still to come was like seeing myself for the first time. It was somewhat hard to believe I am that woman – that’s me.

That power that came from this event led me to the realization I am still here! I have a voice and now another beautiful platform to have my voice heard.

So what does my voice say about me?

I pulled my leadership product tree out to look at the things I declared as my values and principals. (In a previous blog post I talked about how I utilize Prune the Product Tree to declare my roots – values and principals. I posted them in front of teams giving them permission to hold me to account.)

There were all kinds of words cluttered at the bottom of my tree from responsibility, accountability, integrity, and trust to leadership and awareness.

I stared at the words for a while until all I could see was one word – contribution.
My voice is my chance to contribute, to pay forward all of the opportunities I have been given.

Christopher Avery and Scotty Bevill are wonderful examples of this idea – they are utilizing their platforms and their voice every day to contribute to the lives of those around them.

I’ve talked in a previous post about doing a professional development day focused on raising the awareness of my generation.

I want to create the opportunity for their eyes to open and see the life-altering models out there like Christopher’s The Responsibility Process™, The 3 Keys (Awareness, Intention, and Confront), and Scotty’s model of Awareness, Integration, and Contribution.

The freedom and power I have received from the last three years of study is something I believe everyone deserves.

I am re-stating my intention to bring awareness to my generation so they never have to say, “I wish I would’ve learned this 20 years ago.”

My dream is to have a day of awareness. Sharing not just topics about leadership and personal responsibility but also sharing techniques like personal Kanban that can be utilized by students to manage their workflow more effectively.

I would like to acknowledge The University of Evansville in Indiana for meeting their intention of teaching their students about time management. They have re-ignited my passion and drive to break back into higher education and contribute back to my fellow millennials.

My power comes from being present and utilizing my voice instead of worrying about what my legacy will be one day. My voice will create my legacy. Today, I will do one thing to get a little closer to meeting this intention.

What to you want your legacy to be?

Jessica Soroky, CSM

Only 21 years old, Jessica is already a Certified Scrum Master with two years of practice in agile delivery and team leadership. She is also the youngest participant in The Leadership Gift™ Program and its growing worldwide community of leaders and coaches. After five years of non-profit development through Nellie’s Catwalk for Kids, Jessica continues her leadership journey in state government, not-for-profit, and private sector leadership studies.

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