Every one of us wants to be remembered after death. We all aspire to leave a legacy after we die and want to make a big difference even in our absence. How are we going to matter after death? What memories, knowledge and value a person will leave behind when he dies? How many people will cry for you, once you leave? This is what Robin Sharma tells us in his book ‘Who will cry when you die’ and brings up certain methods through which we can leave value behind us, once we die. Robin Sharma, a world-renowned author previously penned his best book “The Monk Who Sold His Ferrari” which turned out to be a best-selling in self-help literature. The book consists of actionable tips and techniques that we can apply to bring meaning and happiness into our lives. Robin Sharma in his book “who will cry when you die” talks about 101 life principles, however briefly, they make a powerful impact on our life. I have extracted a few principles from the book that can help you leave a legacy after you die.

See your troubles as blessings

Our growth stems from being severely tested. Failure brings about personal expansion. Harder we are tested, the sweeter the fruit we get. We learn most from the rough experience. Transformation and great improvements are attributed to suffering and pain. This is what Kahlil Gibran said, “out of suffering have emerged the strongest souls; the most massive characters are seared with scars”. Although, we are hardwired on perceiving it only as bad, and not allowing ourselves to see it remotely from a different angle, oblivious to the wisdom and knowledge that comes with being harshly tested. New perspectives are drawn and the lens through which we perceive the world gets expanded. With stacks of failure comes a reservoir of wisdom.

Those evading trials and tribulations deprive themselves of the sumptuous delicacies of life.

Get up early

When a person gets up at 5 am or 6 am, he gets time for self-pondering and self-reflection for how he should lead his life, it brings clarity to his life. And he seems to have enough time to do the daily tasks. He gets a sense of purpose in his life as soon as he develops the habit of getting up early. These relatively extra few hours make an immense difference later in his life. We can practice meditation or start reading good books during this time. Subsequently, the quality of life greatly improves. Most famous people in the world cultivated this habit in their lives before they set on a journey to become sucessful. This habit also contributes to creating a legacy when a person leaves.

Take more risks

Greater the risk, the greater the gain. If you don’t go beyond your comfort zone, you will be likely to be unsuccessful. Most people don’t want to leave their comfort zone because they feel comfortable staying within this zone, however, no amount of growth takes place if you don’t venture out into adventure. Leaving the comfort zone is a precursor to growth and improvement. Once you go out and take risks, you will be automatically tuned to the circumstances that you are not used to. The only way to tap into potential is to keep taking risks, this is how the doors to treasures will be flung open.

Always carry a book with you

Yes, you heard it right. It’s what Robin Sharma is telling. A book is our personal friend. Read a few pages of the book you carry whether you are at work or travelling, if get free time. Once you build this habit, you will realise over time how much wisdom and knowledge you have that you will further put to use bettering your life in multiple ways. Most successful people in the world always recommended reading books for books are rife with a treasure trove of knowledge. “And the person you will be five years from now will come down to two primary influences: the people you associate with and the books you read”, says Robin Sharma. After learning wisdom through books from those before us, we become equipped to fight against the challenges of life.

“So long as you live, keep learning how to live,” noted the Roman philosopher Seneca.

Learn to be silent

When you prefer solitude, you initiate an inner dialogue that allows you to do self-introspection. There are people battling inner conflicts because they never sit quietly to understand the basics of this inner torment. Spending some moments with yourself allows you to prioritise your work and tasks. Daily busy schedules and overburdened stacks of tasks take a heavy toll on our lives but a few moments of solitude ease our exhausted minds.

Remember the rule of 21

Robin Sharma also told in his book ‘The monk who sold his Ferrari ‘ about this rule and probably you might have heard that it takes constant practice 21 days to build a new habit. Scientists have suggested that to develop a new habit, you need to practice it for consecutive 21 days. On the surface, it looks easy but as you go on, the going gets tough, though you need to ensure to stick to it for 21 days, it will be inseparable afterward and it will be a part of your personality.  If there is anything productive that you have had lately trouble cultivating within you, do it for continually 21 days and you are done.

Be an impostor

It sounds odd when you hear it. As it is said fake till you make it. For instance, the job you have just been appointed for, demands you to be an extrovert but you are an introvert. Here you have to fake to be what your company wants you to be. Open up to people and initiate conversation act like you are an extrovert till you adapt yourselves to changing circumstances. At the outset, you will find it difficult pretending to be someone you are not but when you fake it that too from a positive angle, you start attracting good things into your life as per the law of attraction.

Every day, be kind to a stranger

American writer and philosopher, Aldous Huxley during his last days put succinctly his life experience using seven words: “Let us be kinder to one another”. Most people are of the firm view that in order to be successful, we must do something big or win any deadly battle, so we will thread through television or newspaper. However the truth is quite the reverse, the real essence of life stems from doing small things with kindness which gradually account for something big later in life. Life in the world were better if people would treat kindly with one another. There is always something good that can be conveyed through kind behaviour.

Keep a journal

When you maintain a diary, you jot down your thoughts, strengths and weaknesses and areas that need to be immediately improved, and strategies to be laid down so that you get a sort of self-awareness. Keeping a journal also helps to relieve stress and declutters your chaotic mind. It also helps you regain focus.

Honour your past

If you keep dwelling on the past and wondering what could have been, it will yield nothing but utter misery and suffering. Whatever happened served its purpose which will help you contribute to making your future better. Instead of visiting the past over and again, you should learn from the mistakes you made and keep track of everything that went wrong in the past so that you will make progress in the future. Start with a firm purpose and be relentless about making your future better.

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Zahoor Farooq