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“Creating Successful Leaders”

Tag Archives: Margaret Smith life coach

September 9, 2026 What Will You Leave Behind? (A big question!)

Photo by Joshua Earle on Unsplash

In my retirement years, I’ve been thinking a lot about legacy. What are the things a person leaves behind as they walk through life? How will people remember you? What influences will you pass along to family, friends, and co-workers?

To me, there are two types of legacies:

  1. The capital-L Legacy is the overarching legacy, the way you’ll be remembered after you pass on.
  2. The lowercase-l legacy is the briefer, shorter-term one, the impact you have on those around you on a daily basis.

Both types of legacies are important, and this week I will be focusing on the capital-L Legacy, the one that deals with your long-term impact. (My next post will address “everyday legacy,” so stay tuned!)

Everyone makes their mark on history, whether in a soft, subtle way or in a visible, major way. In reality, most of us will have a smaller ripple than the big names in history, but that’s okay! Even if you can positively impact five or ten people, that’s a Legacy worth leaving.

Keep in mind, your Legacy goes beyond money or finances (although philanthropy, charitable giving, and estate planning could be part of it). Your Legacy might be tied to your volunteer work, or your generous and loving spirit, or the way you prioritize your family. It might be rooted in your dedication to your career and all the people you supported and mentored along the way. Or it could be tied to your faith and your involvement in your worship community.

Legacy could also be tied to the things you created—photographs you took, woodworking projects you created, paintings you made, or essays you wrote. For years, I’ve worked with Kate Leibfried, founder of Click Clack Writing, and she often focuses on this type of work (ghostwriting memoirs and business books for her clients). Recently, she spoke about this type of Legacy in a webinar for Everbright Legacy Law. One of her main messages was that words (particularly those that come from the heart and are not AI generated) have staying power. If you want to tell your true, authentic story, what’s stopping you? Everyone has a story to tell, and it could be worth writing it down.

Keep in mind, big-picture Legacies do not happen overnight. They are the result of years of living authentically, planning, giving, and being involved. As a thought exercise, consider this: What would people write in your memorial or obit today? If you are unsure or if you don’t think they would write what you’d want to hear, consider how you might change that. If you want to be known for your generosity, start planning how to amplify your giving. If you want to leave a Legacy of good works/volunteerism, figure out how to do that. If you’d like to leave behind your physical creations, start making more art!

Just make sure you’re doing what feels authentically and wholly you. A Legacy doesn’t have to be flashy or loud. It should simply reflect who you are at your core.

MARGARET SMITH IS A CAREER COACH, AUTHOR, INSIGHTS® DISCOVERY (AND DEEPER DISCOVERY) LICENSED PRACTITIONER, AND FOUNDER OF UXL. SHE HOSTS WORKSHOPS FOR PEOPLE WHO NEED CAREER OR PERSONAL GUIDANCE.

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August 5, 2026 Applying Your Skills and Talents to Retirement

Retirement can seem like an end, or the closing of a chapter. Since we naturally mourn endings, this might seem like a sad or confusing time for some people, especially those who have spent most of their lives in the rhythm of work. And those who tend to link their identity to their career (I wrote about this last month; click HERE for more).

But we do not necessarily need to think of retirement as an end. Instead, it could be a continuation—a continuation of all the skills, lessons, habits, and talents we have acquired during our careers.

Don’t Toss Your Skills Away

When you retire, there’s no need to throw away all the wisdom and practical skills you accumulated as a professional. In fact, I see that as both a disservice to yourself and others. You’ve spent hours building your skillset, acquiring expertise, and learning lessons of all types, and it would be a shame to let that go to waste.

Instead, I challenge you to take an inventory of your competencies and start thinking about how they can be applied to a post-retirement life. This doesn’t mean you have to go back to work, but it could mean leading a committee, spearheading a volunteer initiative, or applying your creativity to a community project. Or it could simply mean helping your children or grandchildren by applying your background experience to their lives (admin and/or planning skills, artistic ability, communication prowess, etc.).

Alternatively, you could use your talents to plan leisure activities or getaways. Are you hoping to read more? Consider planning a book club (this could entail using communication, coordination, and planning skills). Looking to take a cross-country road trip? Put your logistics planning expertise to the test. Hoping to live abroad for part of the year? Use your love of lifelong learning to begin practicing a new language.

Reflecting on Skills

When thinking about the skills, do not discount anything as too small or seemingly insignificant. Start listing the abilities that come to mind. For example, you might excel at any of the following:

  • Leading a team
  • Engaging in tough conversations
  • Listening
  • Planning/coordination
  • Clear communication
  • Creativity (creative thinking, writing, and/or design)
  • Cheerleading or drumming up excitement/support
  • Analytics

Keep your list handy and add to it whenever you think of an additional skill. You might also ask your friends or family members what abilities or talents come to mind when they think of you.

Once you have your list, you can determine how these skills could apply to your retirement passions and/or projects. Are you hoping to volunteer at your grandchildren’s elementary school? You might use your artistic creativity to help with school plays, classroom art, etc. Would you like to volunteer in the community? You might lean on your communication abilities and leadership experience to spearhead an initiative.

In short: You’ve earned these skills, and they don’t have to fade away when you retire. Thinking of ways to employ them will help keep you sharp while simultaneously serving those around you. Your experience was hard-won, so why not carry it into this new chapter?

MARGARET SMITH IS A CAREER COACH, AUTHOR, INSIGHTS® DISCOVERY (AND DEEPER DISCOVERY) LICENSED PRACTITIONER, AND FOUNDER OF UXL. SHE HOSTS WORKSHOPS FOR PEOPLE WHO NEED CAREER OR PERSONAL GUIDANCE.

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July 22, 2026 Retirement and Identity

Photo by Mantas Hesthaven on Unsplash

I have officially retired and am in the process of winding down existing projects and responsibilities. Even this blog will come to a close before the end of this year. As I move forward into true retirement (not counting my first retirement from 3M), I have been thinking about who I am as a person without an official occupation and title. Who is Margaret Smith without the career coaching, consulting, public speaking, teaching, etc.? Will my identity change? Will people see me differently?

It is said that retirement can initially feel like grieving. Part of you pines for the rhythm of the workplace, the chats with co-workers, the assignments that fill your days and keep you focused. When you lose the structure and reliability of everyday work, that can be disorienting. You’re suddenly in charge of your own schedule and filling your own days; there are no fires to put out, emails to answer, or projects to complete.

And this brings us back to the issue of identity. Without the scaffolding of work propping you up, who are you?

I’ve found that people who have not put in the time to form social networks, develop a hobby, or join a volunteer group or other collective are more disoriented after retirement. In my experience, men are usually more affected than women, since many men rely on their co-workers as a primary social network and/or group. They might go golfing with work buddies or attend work-centric parties. But these groups of people may or may not be there for you after you leave the workplace.

In my own life, I have found meaning in retirement by amplifying my volunteering, meeting up with friends, attending social groups, and more. Since my son and daughter-in-law now live down the street from me, I also help them with everyday tasks, including looking after my grandsons.

To me, identity can and should go beyond your work. What causes do you believe in? Who are you in relation to others (a friend, a spouse, a parent, a mentor, etc.)? And how do you show up in the world? Do you make an effort to lead with kindness? Do you volunteer your time or dollars, and speak up against injustices? Do you let life happen to you, or do you grab it by the horns?

These are some of the questions you could ask yourself when considering your place after retirement. Instead of grieving what you’ve lost, reframe retirement as an opportunity—a chance to reinvent yourself, become more active in your community, form deeper bonds, and try the things you’ve always wanted to try. Start taking French cooking classes, or join a stained-glass workshop, or travel to the far-flung places you’ve always wanted to see.

All that time and space without the structure of work can seem daunting at first, but I’m confident you can fill it. And there’s no rush. Take some time to reflect on how you’d like to spend your days and years and consider what will bring you fulfillment and joy. This is how you can recapture your identity in retirement.

MARGARET SMITH IS A CAREER COACH, AUTHOR, INSIGHTS® DISCOVERY (AND DEEPER DISCOVERY) LICENSED PRACTITIONER, AND FOUNDER OF UXL. SHE HOSTS WORKSHOPS FOR PEOPLE WHO NEED CAREER OR PERSONAL GUIDANCE.

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