Bringing the past to the future

If there’s still time, and in many places, there is, we must choose to be stewards of memory, not just managers of labor.

Not because we fear the future. But because we respect the past enough to carry it forward.

Here are four simple ways to begin:

1. Sit and Listen.

Pull aside a longtime employee. Ask what they know that no one else asks about. Record it if you can. But more importantly, be present. This isn’t just data. It’s the story of how your business became what it is.

2. Pair the Young with the Wise.

Create informal mentorships not just for skills, but for memory. Let younger workers shadow those with long tenure. Let them feel the rhythm, not just memorize the steps.

3. Capture the Unwritten.

Start a shared notebook or file called “Things We Know.” Invite team members to add tips, workarounds, customer insights—anything not in the SOP but essential to how things really get done.

4. Honor the Knowledge.

When someone retires, give them more than a card. Give them a voice. Let them leave behind more than an HR file. Let them leave a legacy.

Wendell Berry reminds us: when the last one who remembers leaves, we lose more than a person. We lose the living memory of a place, a company, a craft.

Let’s not wait for that to pass unnoticed.

Let us ask now.

Let us listen.

Let us remember—while we still can.