This Is Exactly What You Shouldn’t Be Doing With Your Life

Hold on, what are we actually doing here?

You’re in the dentist's waiting room. Sitting on the couch waiting to be called in. On the table in front of you are a bunch of magazines.

Just as you’re about to reach over and take the sports one, someone else takes it. You pause for a moment, looking at your other options.

A lady sits down opposite. She’s sitting closest to the National Geographic magazine which is your next best option. Worried that she’ll take it, you quickly reach over and grab it, looking a bit silly in the process.

Suddenly, the dentist’s assistant comes out and calls the guy with the sports magazine. He drops it on the table and leaves.

Before anyone else can take it, you quickly lean over to get it. You now have 2 in your hands. Someone else quickly grabs Forbes. Next thing you know everyone is reaching over to take their pick.

Some are fighting over the same one. Others are hoarding 2 or 3. You quickly look around to see if there are any other good options. One old lady wasn’t fast enough and now doesn’t have anything to read. It’s an absolute mess.

This is life.

We’re all in the dentist waiting room fighting over magazines

We don’t know how long we have left on this planet. Tomorrow isn’t guaranteed, but some of us may live to 106.

Just like in the dentist waiting room, we don’t know exactly when we’ll be called in. But visiting the dentist is our actual purpose, not reading magazines.

So why is there so much emphasis on getting more and more money and power? Why do we try to accumulate so much wealth, sometimes ripping it out of the hands of others?

We fight for magazines, hoarding more than we could possibly use. In the process, we deprive others of having anything. We fight tooth and nail for more because society sells us a narrative of scarcity. But there’s plenty to go around. Everything can and should be shared.

We can’t take our magazines with us

So you collect all the good magazines and next thing you know you’re next into the dentist’s office. You have to leave everything behind. Was the struggle worth it? Do you feel good about the impression you left on others? Sure it’s nice to have something good to read, but everything in moderation.

In fact, wouldn’t you feel better if you shared with others? You’d likely make a few friends if you were kind and courteous. Working together and caring about others means you leave a positive impact before your turn finally comes.

That’s the legacy we should be leaving. We can’t take all our possessions when we pass on. Our life’s purpose shouldn’t be to accumulate as much wealth and power as we possibly can. It should be to serve those who need our help and use our means to make a lasting impact on the world.

What we can do

First, we need to recognize our time is limited. But instead of using it as an excuse to live a life of maximum pleasure, we should use it as a reminder to live a fulfilling life. As ‘Abdu’l-Bahá said:

“You see all round you proofs of the inadequacy of material things — how joy, comfort, peace and consolation are not to be found in the transitory things of the world.”

Wealth, fame, and riches without service to humanity will always leave you empty. But giving back to others brings you true lasting joy. We are here to carry forward an ever-advancing civilization built on unity, kindness, and love.

So here are a few things we all can do:

• Learn skills and crafts that can be used to bring value to others.
• Give without expecting in return.
• Show kindness and love to everyone we meet.
• Be honest and humble in the work we do.
• Do what we can to make others happy.
• Look after each other.
• Remove all traces of judgment in our hearts.
• Leave no one behind.

The sooner we recognize how little time we have and how unimportant our collection of magazines is, the sooner we build a united and empowered world.