The Legacy Collective

Some of you know that Leanna and I are Founding Investors in the Legacy Collective.  When we first heard about it, we jumped on board quickly, and not just because becoming an Investor included an invite to Austin to rub shoulders with the Hatmakers (who are just as awesome in real life, to include their extended family).  We firmly believed in the things that  Legacy Collective wanted to accomplish.  Even when I lost my job and our income took a HUGE hit, we made it a priority to keep investing in the Legacy Collective and if you'll humor me, I'd like to tell you why.

A lot of different organizations have a need and then work to find the funding.  The Legacy Collective is a group of people who are pooling their money together and then finding something to fund.  There are several things that we focus on when choosing what to fund.  An organization that we choose to partner with should be tackling a systemic issue.   For instance, there are millions of orphans in Ethiopia.  The problem is that a great majority of those orphans actually have parents who love them and want to care for them but can't afford to take care of their basic needs, like food and shelter.  So instead of funding the orphanages, we work with the organizations who are finding those families who are on the verge of having to give up their kids, and working with them to find ways to continue to parent their children.That might look like education, economic development, or healthcare.  Consider it "Orphan Prevention".   We do our best to ensure that we are working with organizations who are getting to the root of the issue.

Another requirement is that the projects that we are funding are sustainable.  It won't do us any good to help an organization build a school if they don't have the funding coming in to keep the school running.   We will have just funded an empty building.  So we make sure that the organizations that we fund have a proven track record of sustainable funding.  We also ensure that they have strong local leadership who is working in partnership with the local governments.

The Legacy Collective mission statement sums it up nicely.  The Legacy Collective works to engage systemic problems related to social issues by resourcing what we believe to be the most innovative efforts and funding the most critical projects.  Having been part of the Legacy Collective from day one, I can tell you that I cry tears of joy every time one of our partner organizations shares with us how our contributions have made a tangible difference in the lives of so many people.

If you have made it this far, thank you for reading about the Legacy Collective.  Now, I want to tell you one of my favorite parts.  All of the projects that we fund are nominated by Partners and Investors in the collective.  Everyone gets to discuss the funded projects.  Each submission is carefully vetted to ensure that they meet our criteria and then the Investors collectively vote on which one to approve.  It is a group effort.  It is not one figurehead making all of the decisions.

The Legacy Collective launched into the world in August of 2015.  From then until December of 2016, we have been able to grant $782,342.30 to very worth organizations .  You can see the details of our partner grants by clicking here.  I am so proud to be a member of the Legacy Collective.  I think what I love most is that none of what he have accomplished happened because some wealthy person gave us a huge check.  We have been able to accomplish it by each person deciding to commit to whatever level they could afford.  There are three giving levels, $10 per month, $50 per month, and $250 per month.  You can find out about each level by clicking here.  That page will also show you how the funds are used.

It is no secret that the more people we can get on board with us, the larger our impact will be.  Would you consider joining us?  If you have any questions about the types of projects we've funded or what it is like to be part of the Collective, I would love to talk to you about it.  If you know of an amazing organization that fits our criteria and would like to talk to me about a project we might be able to help with, I'd love to hear from you.  If you join, please let me know that too!!

I Didn't Understand What My Job Was

One year ago today, I was sitting in my office busily working on a project that would streamline the complaint process for my company.  I had been told at the beginning of the week that the project was to be my top priority.  That should have been a red flag for me since my boss never told me what my priorities were.  My boss stuck her head in my office on that Friday afternoon and asked me if I had a minute to talk to her.  I jumped up and followed her into her office.  I sat down across from her and she starting arguing with me about a statement that I had made in a team meeting earlier in the week.  She wanted me to justify why I had said the things I did.  It was quite the heated discussion but she finally understood why I had said what I said.  Then the room became very quiet.  She hadn't dismissed me to leave but she wasn't really saying anything, so to ease the quiet, I asked her how the budget was coming along.  She said, "Not good, as a matter of fact, they want me to let you go, right now."  Yep, that was how I was told that I was losing my job.  I asked how the budget was coming along.

My very first thought was that I couldn't believe she was letting me go just three weeks before I was scheduled to have spine surgery.  My second thought was trying to figure out why she felt it necessary to argue with me for 45 minutes before I asked her about the budget.  I zoned out most of what she was saying as she tried to justify her decision.  It wasn't a surprise to me as the company was headed down hill, but it was a surprise that it happened when it did.

While the layoff didn't surprise me, there was one thing that did.  My reaction to it.   I wasn't prepared for how much of my identity was wrapped up in my job.  I had been in some type of management role for the past 16 years.  I had spent years building relationships while God had launched me up the corporate ladder.  It didn't really matter what I was managing, just that I was seen as a leader.  When I started looking for jobs again, I was searching for a leadership role.  I can't tell you how many resumes that I submitted.  Not one person called me back.  I felt lost.  Don't they know who I am?  Don't they know what an excellent leader that I can be?  If only they would give me an interview, they would understand what a perfect fit I would be for their position.

I never fully realized before that season in my life, how much society identifies people by their jobs.  Isn't it one of the first things that we ask when we meet a stranger?  What do you do for a living?  Where do you work?  What kind of job do you do?  I am not sure why these are the questions we start out with, but they are.  When you don't have a job and are actively looking, that is a hard question to answer.  God used that season to change my heart.

When God started leading me down a career path that looked completely different for me, it was terrifying.  I kept asking Him, "Don't you know that I have more experience than this job requires?"  "Why did you have me get a degree to take an entry level job?" "God, how am I supposed to bless people when you are taking away all of my income?"  God was so patient with me as I walked through discovering the answers to those questions.

What He showed me is that my identity needs to be grounded in Him.  I am first and foremost, His daughter.  He only wants what is best for me.  If that means working for a company of great people, who love God, and make a difference in the world, then okay.  My job is to love His people.  My job is to seek Him first in all things. My job is to make every single day count.  

Jesus said in John 6:38 "For I have come down from heaven, not to do my will, but to do the will of him who sent me."  If I am going to struggle with my job being my identity, may I always remember that my full-time forever job is to do the will of the One who created me.