Bring Your Virtues

How do you want to be remembered?

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I’ll give you some time, that’s a deep question.

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There can be many different ways to answer that question, but for this one I’ll lean on some wisdom from Maya Angelou:

I've learned that people will forget what you said, people will forget what you did, but people will never forget how you made them feel.

We can’t control how others feel, but we can control the intentionality we bring to living with our virtues in every interaction we have.

When you have a short conversation with a stranger at the grocery store, how do you want them to remember you? How do you want them to feel in that brief moment?

When you get together with a family member who you only see once per year, how will they speak of getting to see you? What feeling towards you will they leave with?

When you get together with a best friend for dinner, what will they feel in your presence?

Again, we can’t control the feelings of others, but intentionally bringing our virtues to our connections with others will show how much we care to be the type of person we aim to be.

I aim to bring the virtues of presence, positivity, kindness, curiosity, and humor into almost every interaction I have. When people remember me I want them to remember me as being present and always listening intently. I want them to remember me as being a positive and kind force. I want them to remember the curiosity I brought to them and to this world.

What are your virtues? How do you want to be remembered? Do the virtues you consciously live match the way you want to be remembered?

If a handful of virtues doesn’t come to mind, pick one from this list. What is one way you want to be remembered? What is one way you want people to feel when they connect with you?

Pick one and consciously bring it into your next interaction. The more often we practice doing so, the greater odds we’ll be remembered in the way we want to be.

In every interaction, bring your virtues.