10 Actions to Transcend, Using Your Corporate Influence

There are many ways to transcend, both positive and negative. History is full of figures who, for better or worse, left an indelible mark: Alexander the Great, Julius Caesar, Genghis Khan, Napoleon, Hitler, or Mother Teresa.

In times like ours, where speed, distraction, and superficiality reign, finding leaders of that magnitude seems increasingly difficult. 

Instead, we can find their essence in present times: the gift of captivating and mobilizing crowds and leading with an inspiring or destructive vision that can shape generations.

What makes a person remember beyond their time? And how can we, on our scale, achieve something similar without conquering empires?

Let's first review what the concepts of "Being Known" and "Transcending" mean:

• Being Known: Focuses on fame, public recognition, and, temporarily, often superficial, success.

• Transcend: Seek a more profound impact, a legacy that endures beyond life and generates significant change in the world.

Now, there are various dimensions or ways in which a person can transcend:

• Universal Transcendence: People who impact all of humanity, influencing history, politics, culture, or collective morality. Examples include the people mentioned in the first paragraph of this article. These people are characterized by massive influence, a presence in history books, and a legacy that affects generations. Their legacy will remain timeless worldwide.

• Niche Transcendence: People who profoundly impact a specific field (art, sports, science, philosophy, among others) are a must-have in their discipline, role models, or inspirations for those who follow that path. Their legacy will remain timeless within their niche and public awareness.

• Local or Community Significance: People who transform their immediate surroundings, such as a neighborhood, a school, a business, or a rural or urban community. Examples include community leaders, unforgettable teachers, village doctors, and neighborhood activists. These personalities are characterized by their visible, tangible, and emotional impact on a specific group. Their legacy, if it is to be timeless, requires tangible elements.

• Family or Personal Significance: People who leave an indelible mark on those close to them: family, partners, friends. Their legacy is emotional, spiritual, or ethical. There may be no statues, but there are memories, sayings, and inherited ways of life, although their legacy will be temporary.

• Mexico Business News stands out for its content aimed at leaders, whether by position, seniority, or conviction. As a leader, you can move more than just a business; you can also move willpower, resources, and structures to leave a mark beyond the financial balance sheet.

• From a company, regardless of its size, it is possible to initiate actions with impact beyond the corporate sphere. It's about sowing something that remains, whether in people, in the territory, or even in the collective memory. These 10 actions will help you achieve tangible transcendence, classified according to their potential for temporal transcendence, marking a life cycle or a generation, or timeless transcendence, meaning those that have a greater likelihood of lasting beyond time if institutionalized.

  1. Found or promote a school, educational center, or free training program

  Knowledge is one of the most potent and multiplying legacies. Through a physical school, a scholarship program, or a free digital platform, you can empower generations who will likely never know your name but will carry your inspiration.

  📍 Transcendence: Timeless.

  🏛️ Example: BBVA Mexico Foundation, which grants educational scholarships from primary to university.

   

  2. Adopt a public space and transform it with a community vision

  Recovering a park, rehabilitating a library, or revitalizing a sports field or a plaza can change the dynamics of an entire neighborhood. A beautiful, safe, and functional environment improves the quality of life and inspires belonging.

  📍 Transcendence: Timeless.

  🏛️ Example: Companies that co-finance the Santa Catarina River Linear Park in Monterrey.

   

  3. Write a book, manifesto, or testimony about purposeful leadership

  You don't have to be a professional writer. An honest account of your leadership journey can be a compass for others. Publishing or sharing it as an open letter, podcast, or e-book will amplify its reach.

  📍 Transcendence: Timeless (if disseminated and preserved).

  📚 Example: Let My People Go Surfing, by Yvon Chouinard (Patagonia).

   

  4. Create a foundation or trust with a tangible and measurable impact

  An organization that outlives its founder is a direct form of transcendence. You can focus on health, culture, inclusion, or the environment if it maintains strong governance and measurable goals.

  📍 Transcendence: Timeless.

  🏛️ Example: Alfredo Harp Helú Foundation, impacting education, culture, and sport.

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  5. Actively participate in the ecological regeneration of your environment

  Planting trees, cleaning rivers, conserving natural areas, or restoring soils may seem symbolic, but it is a profoundly regenerative act if done consistently and with local collaboration.

  📍 Transcendence: Mixed — Temporary if symbolic; Timeless if institutionalized.

  🌳 Example: Corporate reforestation in priority areas of the Valley of Mexico basin.

   

  6. Support a vulnerable person or family in transforming their reality

  Behind every social change is an individual who finds support at the right moment. Supporting someone with resources, mentorship, or employability may not be viral, but it can be profoundly transformative.

  📍 Transcendence: Temporary but intensely significant.

  ❤ ️ Example: Business programs for decent housing in marginalized communities.

   

  7. Promote local art or culture with concrete actions

  Culture also needs patrons. Supporting artists, funding murals, publishing works, or sponsoring festivals strengthens the symbolic fabric of a community. What is considered ornamental today will be heritage tomorrow.

  📍 Transcendence: Timeless (if it leaves a tangible work).

  🎨 Example: Companies sponsoring community murals in Oaxaca.

   

  8. Sponsor invisible or uncomfortable causes for your industry

  Mental health, social reintegration, addictions, and gender-based violence are issues with few allies. Addressing them responsibly and consistently breaks the silence and paves the way for a new social conversation.

  📍 Significance: Temporary with potential for institutionalization.

  ⚖ ️ Example: Reintegra Foundation, supported by companies for young people in conflict with the law.

   

  9. Organize and document a collective history of those around you

  Preserving the oral history of communities, workers, or entire villages is a powerful way to prevent oblivion. Publishing or digitizing these memories can become a cultural reference.

  📍 Transcendence: Timeless (if converted into an archive or publication).

  📖 Example: Companies that create digital archives of traditional knowledge in their areas of operation.

   

  10. Start a corporate tradition with a lasting social or symbolic impact

  A day of service, an annual ceremony, or a symbolic act can become a tradition if sustained. Organizational cultures also build a legacy when they are anchored in shared values.

  📍 Transcendence: Temporary (if not institutionalized); Timeless (if it becomes an organizational ritual).

  🕊️ Example: Corporate volunteer day as part of company culture.

   

  Transcending Is not an Act of Greatness, It Is an Act of Decision

  Transcending is not reserved for those with empires or armies. In this era, authentic leadership is not measured by the number of subordinates but by the number of realities transformed.

  From their corporate perch, every leader can blaze trails, leave symbols, plant trees, or build bridges that others will cross without knowing who put them there.

  Today, more than ever, companies can be impact vehicles, not just operations. As a leader, you can be the architect of a legacy that isn't publicly traded but worth an eternity in lives touched, territories restored, and ideas planted.

  Choose a cause, take an action, and give it a name. Because if power passes, but the impact remains, then the only question worth answering is: What will you leave behind when you're gone?