Paula Fleming, CMSO, discusses a Google Alert, an obituary, and a sudden jolt of mortality. 
This week's blog explores the unexpected questions that surfaced and why NOW is the time to reflect on your legacy as a leader. (January 7, 2025)
This morning, like many of you, I stumbled out of bed, grabbed a coffee, and sat down to tackle the day's emails. But one email stopped me cold. It was a Google Alert for "Paula Fleming," and the link led to an obituary. Not my obituary, thankfully. Same name, different state. But it was a jolt to the system nonetheless.
Suddenly, I was staring at my own mortality. All the usual morning thoughts – meetings, deadlines, to-do lists – evaporated. In their place were bigger, more profound questions:
If that were my obituary, what would it say?
What stories would people tell?
Would I be remembered for the things that truly matter to me?
And then the questions got even more personal:
Have I lived a life true to myself?
Have I made the impact I wanted to make?
Am I even in the right place, doing the right things, to leave the legacy I envision?
It's a new year. A time for fresh starts, resolutions, and goal-setting. But this unexpected encounter with my own (hypothetical) demise has added a layer of urgency and introspection I wasn't expecting.
A few months ago, during a radio interview, the host – who, interestingly, moonlights as an obituary writer – suggested I write my own obituary. At the time, I had just finished writing my father's, the grief still raw and real. I brushed off the idea.
But now, four months after losing my dad, this random obituary has brought that conversation back to the forefront of my mind. Maybe he was right. Maybe facing our own mortality, even in this abstract way, is the key to truly living.
So, I ask you, fellow leaders:
Have you contemplated your own legacy?
Are you aligned with your values and purpose?
Are you where you want to be, both personally and professionally?
This isn't about dwelling on death. It's about embracing life with intention. It's about making choices that reflect who we are and what we want to be remembered for.
Perhaps this is the year we all write our own obituaries. Not as a morbid exercise, but as a powerful tool for self-reflection and a roadmap for creating a life of meaning and impact.
