A leader’s lasting value is measured by succession.
What do you want people to say at your funeral? What you stood for should be evident in your actions.
The law in detail
Four steps through the law: understand, check, connect, apply. Open any topic to read more.
The core messageWhat the law says – and what it doesn’t
What your leadership was really worth shows in what carries on after you. Your legacy is the people you have prepared, not the successes you achieved on your own.
- It does not say
- That you only need to think about succession at the end. A legacy is built in the years before, through training, trust and responsibility handed over.
- That you should be irreplaceable. If everything collapses the moment you leave, you have created dependence, not a legacy.
- Strictly speaking
- Research shows that the way succession happens affects later performance, for example when the transition is planned and prepared. The findings are mixed, though, because circumstances such as the market or the state of the organization also play a part.
- “Lasting value” is a standard the law sets, not a measured result. It is well founded, but it is one measure among several and not a formula for leadership success.
- Applies to
- Every task you will one day hand over: leading a company, an office in the church, chairing a club, the family business and the values you pass on to your children.
The explanationWhat the law means and why it works
The same is true for organizations: when a leader leaves their role – in a company, a church, a club or public service – others must carry on in their place.
Whether that succeeds does not depend on the leader alone, but they can prepare it well.
If you train the people you work with well and lead the way you want them to lead, you create the best conditions for your legacy to live on.
The signs3 signs the law is at work · 3 that it is missing
- You can name people who could take over your tasks tomorrow, and you are preparing them deliberately.
- When you are away for a week, the work carries on well because others can and may make decisions.
- Your values show in what you do, so others can adopt them without you constantly explaining them.
- Important knowledge and contacts sit only with you, and no one has been trained to take over.
- You keep postponing the question of your succession because it is uncomfortable.
- After you hand over a task, the team, department or organization quickly loses direction and strength.
The research4 sources: 2 reviews, 1 theory, 1 primary study · 1992–2005 · with the limits of the research
- low
- moderate
- high
Moderate – Executive succession research and generativity.
- 1992Dan P. McAdams & Ed de St. Aubin
Generativity: the concern to foster the next generation; theory and measurement.
- 1994Idalene F. Kesner & Terrence C. Sebora
State of research on executive succession up to 1994.
- 2004Yan Zhang & Nandini Rajagopalan
Planned relay successions go along with better firm performance after the handover.
- 2005Robert C. Giambatista, W. Glenn Rowe & Suhaib Riaz
Critical review of succession research since 1994.
Succession affects performance, but findings are inconsistent. The yardstick of “lasting value” is normative.
The originJohn C. Maxwell · “The Law of Legacy”
- 1998OriginJohn C. Maxwell
The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership, Law 21
- The Law of LegacyIn essence: A leader’s lasting value shows in their succession.
- todayWEGVISOR: The Law of Legacy
The WEGVISOR version, “the Law of Legacy”, keeps the core statement “A leader’s lasting value is measured by succession.” Note that this standard is a value judgment and that research on succession does not provide consistent findings.
The related laws and qualitiesL19 Timing · L20 Explosive Growth · L12 Empowerment · Q16 Responsibility
Handing over also needs the right moment. Too early overwhelms successors; too late keeps them from growing into the task.
If you develop leaders rather than just followers, you lay the foundation for a legacy. Growth then continues beyond you.
Succession begins with giving away power. Empowering others today prepares them to lead without you tomorrow.
Responsibility does not end with your term. You are also responsible for how well your people can carry on after you.
The action points5 stages of growth – from first awareness to passing it on
- Become aware Take ten quiet minutes and ask yourself: what would remain of my work if I left tomorrow, and what would people say about me?
- Lay the foundations This week, write down in three sentences what you want to be remembered for as a leader, and test one pending decision against it.
- Make it a habit Deliberately build up one person who could replace you in time, and every month hand over a piece of your responsibility to them for good.
- Deepen deliberately Have your potential successor stand in for you completely for several weeks, for example while you are on holiday, and afterwards ask the people you work with what held up without you and what still depends on you.
- Pass it on Help a colleague or a volunteer team prepare a handover well; if you lead leaders, build succession development that reaches beyond your own tenure and help them build their own succession.
The reflection questions5 questions for you or a conversation with others
- Who could take over my task if I were unable to work tomorrow?
- What should remain of my work and leadership when I am gone – in the people and in the culture I leave behind?
- Which decision am I keeping to myself, even though others could have made it long ago?
- In whom am I deliberately investing time right now so that they grow beyond me?
- Do my actions match what I want to be remembered for?
Take your time with one question. Write down your answer – or talk it over with someone you trust.
The picture to rememberThe gold passes from generation to generation – and keeps shining long after the first is gone.
- The gold passes from generation to generation – and keeps shining long after the first is gone.
What the Law of Legacy looks like in practice
Sown by Schröder, harvested under Merkel
Gerhard Schröder’s Agenda 2010 was so unpopular that it contributed to his 2005 election defeat. Yet unemployment later fell from over 11 to around 5 percent – and Angela Merkel was able to build on that foundation.
Passing the baton at the height of success
Uli Hoeneß and Karl-Heinz Rummenigge handed over FC Bayern not in a crisis but at the peak of success, after two trebles. Their successors, Oliver Kahn and Herbert Hainer, shared the club’s values and were already rooted in it.
An inheritance worth more than money
In the film “The Ultimate Legacy” (2015), young Joey receives an inheritance – and his uncle Jason Stevens helps him find the meaning of life. In the end, Joey lives out love, generosity and responsibility himself.
