I heard the story recently about how many years ago Zig walked into his pastor’s office with a letter. When the pastor opened the letter, it described how the plans Zig had made for his memorial service. Zig knew that day would come, so, being a wise steward of his time on earth, Zig planned for that day.
I told the story yesterday as I spoke to a room full of people about one of the important aspects of mentorship. I shared how mentors (and other successful people) prepare for success beyond their immediate project or business or even their lives.
When I was a young boy in my teens, my mother listened to a radio show each morning. The show as from an older preacher. He had done many things in his career and until his death he was on the radio each and every morning creating a show teaching from the bible. In his retirement years he lived in the same town as my mom.
Dr. Robert A. Cook has long since gone. His children still keep his radio show going by repurposing all his recordings. There is a famous line my mom still uses till this day from his show: “Walk with the King today and be a blessing.” The name of the radio show is “Walk with the King Ministries,” if you care to look it up.
One man I have written about before whose story really meant a lot to me was Dale Earnhardt. He was partnered for years with Richard Childress and, as buddies, they had a pact: if one passed away the other had to have the race team on the track the next weekend.
In 2001 at the last minute of the Daytona 500, Dale Crashed and his life was over. That was a very sad week in NASCAR — for its fans and the sport in general. The very next week Richard Childress had a car on the track; same sponsors, different color, and different number. A young driver raced that car, and the legacy of Dale and Richard had a new beginning.
Today many people have great ideas. We talk about it at my seminars and others speak of it in their seminars. My close friend Jason Nast and I speak of it often: the places with the most books are the graveyards because there are many people who did not pass on the wisdom they learned from this life.
No matter who you are, no matter if you believe in God or not, your days are numbered on this earth and death will come to your door someday. No matter how good you are in the career you have, the business you have built will be gone if you do not pass it on to someone.
A sad thing I see is when a business closes its doors after its creator has passed. The saddest part for me is the fact that they did not mentor someone to take it to another level after they were gone. So I leave you with a challenge today. Who are you mentoring to take over once you have gone?
I’m Tim Gillette, the Rocker Life Coach. It’s time to live your dream, to love what you do and share it with the world. Are you ready to make 2013 rock?
