When I look back on my life and career, I realize legacy is not built in a single moment. It takes shape in everyday choices, in the people we influence, and in the values we hold onto when no one is watching. For me, leadership has always been more than a job description. It has been a calling, a responsibility, and the legacy I hope to leave behind.
After nearly three decades with Rocky Mountaineer, guiding teams and helping create guest experiences that became once-in-a-lifetime memories, I found myself asking an important question in retirement: What remains? The answer is not found in trains that ran on time, awards we won, or milestones we celebrated. The answer is found in people. The colleagues I mentored. The leaders I encouraged to grow. The culture of service and excellence that continues long after I stepped off the train.
That became the foundation of my book, Five Tracks of Leadership: Principles for Building Trust, Inspiring Teams, and Leaving a Legacy. It is not just a business manual. It is a roadmap shaped by my years of leading in hospitality and tourism, one of the most challenging and rewarding industries in the world.
Leadership as a Guidepost
This book is built on five tracks that guided me:
- Trust – the cornerstone of every relationship, whether with your team or your guests.
- Vision – the ability to look further down the track and bring others along.
- Care – culture grows from how we treat one another every day.
- Consistency – walking the walk even when no one is looking.
- Legacy – not what you take with you, but what you leave behind.
Each track blends lessons from the railway, stories of mentorship, and the wisdom of building teams that thrive under pressure. These are not theories from a textbook. They are lived experiences, earned through trial, error, and persistence.
Why Legacy Matters
In leadership, legacy is not about plaques, titles, or statues. Legacy is about people remembering you as someone who helped them succeed. It is about being the person who believed in others before they believed in themselves. My proudest moments are not tied to my own achievements. They are tied to the successes of those I mentored. Watching others grow, rise, and lead is legacy.
Writing this book gave me the chance to reflect on what matters most. It also gave me the opportunity to share lessons with leaders and managers in every industry, whether you are just stepping into your first role or guiding a large team. Leadership is universal. It reaches across industries, borders, and generations.
Looking Ahead
Trains run on tracks, and leaders build tracks that others will follow. The five tracks in my book are not only a framework for leadership. They are also a blueprint for leaving a mark on the world through trust, vision, care, consistency, and legacy.
As I move into this new chapter of life, my goal is simple. I want to inspire others to lead with purpose and to recognize that true legacy is not written in stone. Legacy is carried in the hearts and minds of the people whose lives we touch.
If you are ready to take your leadership further, to inspire your teams, and to think about the legacy you want to leave, I invite you to read Five Tracks of Leadership. My hope is that the lessons inside will guide you, just as they guided me, toward building a legacy worth remembering.
Doug Rogers 
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