Thus the expression A Living Legacy. Here’s another perspective that I think gives context to the notion of our responsibilities to each other and to our life’s chosen work. Sir Francis Bacon was an English writer and philosopher in the 16th & 17th centuries. Look at what he said (forgive the sexism of his times): “I hold every man a debtor to his profession . . .” “I hold every man a debtor to his profession”. I translate that to: every person has an obligation to give back. I see that as our legacy. A leadership legacy. Without getting political, we can all agree on world leaders that have left a legacy. In recent times, a partial list includes, in alphabetic order, North Carolina’s Maya Angelou, Thomas Jefferson, Abraham Lincoln, Nelson Mandela, Mahatma Gandhi, Florence Nightingale, Rosa Parks and Mother Teresa. I could go on and on. How about Steve Jobs and Bill Gates? They have changed billions of lives. And, their legacies are still growing. I have survived and even thrived a bit in this business because I was able to sit at the feet of some leaders who were willing to share. And, old though I am, I still get inspiration and guidance from some of these people as well as the younger leaders. One leadership legacy contributor was the late Jim Jones. Jimmy was the director of meetings at Connecticut General Life Insurance Company. Among other things, he was a founder of MPI, ICP (now the Financial & Insurance Conference Planners - FICP) & SCMP – the Society of Company Meeting Planners. A few years ago, when I heard that he died, I immediately remembered two things I learned from him. One, a big picture, strategic philosophy and one very tactical process. Here they are, as I remember them: 1. Always understand the difference between personal power & positional power. We may have a lot of power because of our position, but the real test of a professional is their personal power. 2. Always have them cut the Danish in half. Another of the same vintage who is still going strong is an industry treasure and a “neighbor” in Blacksburg, Virginia, Howard Feirtag. Now in his mid-80’s, Howard is still active and a perfect example of a leadership legacy. A few years ago I witnessed first-hand both the passion that he brings to the classroom and the responsiveness of young students to his teaching. Two years ago I had the honor of emceeing the RISE Awards at MPIs 40th anniversary gathering in St Louis. The overall theme was “Connections” – how we need to connect with each other to become stronger as individuals and as an industry.
I cited a number of links or “connections” to our leadership legacy. Then outgoing MPI Chair was Sebastian Tondeur from Geneva, Switzerland. For nine years I worked with his dad, Roget. And MPI’s incoming Chair was Kevin Hinton. His dad was Dave Hinton. We worked and played together for years. He was all business and at the same time all fun. Dave’s legacy – especially to me – was that he was the 1st professional salesperson I had encountered. He would often say to me “. . . a great hotel but not right for this meeting.” This relates to our legacy in another way. I think being passionate about what you do and doing it the right way is what attracts a son or daughter to follow in their parent’s career footsteps. What greater legacy? And I am proud to say that my son, Warren Abraham, followed me into this industry and is now a Vice President of audio visual giant PSAV. In his early days, he was asked “are you related to Rod Abraham?” Now I get: “are you related to Warren Abraham?” I get great pleasure in that. Forgive the personal reference but I consider that one of my legacies and I am darn proud of it. Jimmy Jones, Howard Feirtag, Jonathan Howe, Joan Eisenstodt, Jeff Rasco and our own Nancy Holder are a few who have been strong influencers of my professional life. Living leadership legacies, indeed! But for any of us to be receptive to the influence of another, we have to have the right outlook. To me, the foundation of the right outlook is the ability to distinguish right from wrong and the shades of gray - ethics in its basest form. Remember, how we conduct our life’s work can also create a negative legacy. If we do not conduct our business lives in a professional, ethical manner, not only are we misbehaving but we are also sending a message to those who look up to us that it is okay. The young professionals of the next generation - including some of you reading this - will take our industry in new ways and to new places we cannot even imagine. So, have you thought about your legacy? Don’t be afraid to awaken your passion and to share it with others because you never know whose interest you will pique and whose life you may change. In the 17th century Francis Bacon said: “I hold every man a debtor to his profession”. In this century, I hope you’ll agree with me, that every person has a responsibility to give back. And the more you give, the more you get. Leave your legacy through leadership! Start with your Carolinas MPI Chapter. n
Rod Abraham The Rod Abraham Group Charter Member of MPI Carolina Blitz | October - November 2014 |
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