Marshall Memorial Fellowship: The Importance of Building a Legacy
In 24 days of mind-blowing education traveling to Belgium, the U.K., Spain, Montenegro, and Germany, as part of the Marshall Memorial Fellowship, my favorite two hours were spent at the Torelló Cava family-owned vineyards and winery in Gelida, Spain, near Barcelona. Elsewhere during my trip, I learned about transatlantic relations from powerful leaders in the public, private, and non-profit sectors. Here, nestled in the quaint mountain valleys of Catalunya, I learned how to build a legacy. When creating something you want to last, it is necessary but insufficient to train those coming behind you in the skills they will need to continue your work. You must also nurture their passion—their love—for the work. It is the how (skills) coupled with the why (love) that will allow the fruits of labor to be transmitted from generation to generation. In the case of Torelló Cava, it was 23 generations, to be exact.
That’s right. The Torellós have run a successful business for over 600 years. Six of us Americans and our Spanish coordinators followed Toni Torelló along a scenic dirt path as he taught us about the land, the grapes, the unique wines his family has produced, and the business he, his brother, and his mother—“La Jefe”—had devoted their entire lives to sustaining and growing. Following our vineyard lesson, we came to an impressive stucco estate with a classic Spanish tile roof built by Toni’s ancestors in 1395 and expanded by his grandfather in the 1950s. Underneath lay two million bottles. He guided us through the winery, explaining the process and even interrupting his brother’s accounting to come answer one of our many questions. Finally, we all sat down to a simple yet elegant lunch that Toni served us with his own hands, along with a heavenly array of wines he had selected. The matriarch, Ernestina Torelló, joined us. She was at once regal and down to earth. It was during this exchange that the secret to living with purpose sprang forth. When I asked the duo how their family enterprise had endured, they touchingly spoke in unison—conveying how mom had passed down her know-how and her love for the endeavor to her sons. I also observed something else the family shared in common: when talking about decision-making, they casually measured in decades.
It makes sense that seeds of how and why would give root to production outlasting six centuries of war, tumultuous economies, and all manner of rulers, continuing to thrive in an internationally competitive market. Recent insights from psychology and behavioral economics suggest that human beings are not myopic, self-interested actors motivated by skill or even financial reward alone. As social beings, we care deeply about values and feel most at ease when we are confidently connected to them. This is why taking the time to explain why—and not just how—someone should follow a particular course of action is far more likely to influence behavior.
Confident connection doesn’t just happen on its own. It must be cultivated. Those who want their legacy to be felt 600 years from now should take the time to instill both the know-how and passion in the next generation.
Ajenai Clemmons, Ph.D. Student in Public Policy concentrating in Political Science at Duke University, Durham, NC is a Spring 2016 Marshall Memorial Fellow.