What Would You Do if Today Were Your Last Day?
Cultivating a framework to focus your life on what is most essential
A quick look at what’s ahead
- Asking ourselves what we would do if today was our last day on earth.
- Oliver Sacks on how everything inessential falls away in the face of death, and all that we are left with is that which is most important.
- Memento Mori as a daily practice in reflection to remind ourselves of the finitude of life.
- Using death as a tool to live the life we’ve always wanted, and to not squander our time here on earth.
If today was your last day on earth, would you do what you are about to do today? Would you be reading this newsletter? Would you be saying goodbyes? Would you be checking one more item off of your bucket list?
This is the question that Steve Jobs posed to the 2005 graduating class at Stanford 18 years ago.
“For the past 33 years, I have looked in the mirror every morning and asked myself: ‘If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?’ And whenever the answer has been ‘No’ for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.”
It is an oft-quoted and potentially morbid question to ask, but it is an important reflection, to help us stay focused on what is most important to us.
Oliver Sacks on The Essential
Oliver Sacks was a famous physician, author, and professor of neurology before he died in 2015.
Shortly after his death, a series of essays of his were released in the book titled Gratitude. The book featured Sacks’ reflections on life as he came to terms with his terminal diagnosis.
The work is positively reflective, and aptly titled as he reflects on all of the best things in his life. Faced with his mortality, what was most important to him was brought to the forefront of his mind.
In one of the essays he shares this:
“I feel a sudden clear focus and perspective. There is no time for anything inessential. I must focus on myself, my work, and my friends. I shall no longer look at the NewsHour every night. I shall no longer pay any attention to politics or arguments about global warming. This is not indifference but detachment”
When faced with his death, everything inessential immediately falls to the wayside. The nightly news no longer seems so important. The bickering politicians are insignificant.
Death forces a detachment from that which is not of utmost importance to us.
Memento Mori
Too many realize, only in the face of death, that much of our time is spent on things inessential. It is the face of death that forces us to examine our priorities, knowing that we have limited time left on this earth.
With a finite amount of time left, we must choose exactly how to spend our time. We don’t need to wait for a terminal diagnosis to face this reality. Instead, we can cultivate a daily practice, acknowledging that our time is and has always been finite. Allowing us to focus on the essential now and until our last breath.
The Ancient Stoics had a concept known as Memento Mori for just this reason.
Memento Mori translates into “Remember that you will die”.
The Stoics used symbols, art, and artifacts fashioned in the shapes of skulls, hourglasses, and more to remind them of the inevitability of death.
This was not a morbid reminder focused solely on death, but rather a reminder focused on the preciousness of time and the importance of choosing to spend our time wisely.
We can practice Memento Mori today. Reflect on what we deem most valuable and essential, and act accordingly.
We don’t have to wait until we are face to face with death to reflect on the essentials, we can cultivate the daily practice right now.
Steve Jobs on Limited Time
“Your time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.” Steve Jobs imparted on the Stanford graduates.
It’s easy to forget that life is finite. Especially the younger and healthier we are. We think that we still have long to live, anything that we want to do can wait, and there will always be more time later.
In the end, death comes for us all, hopefully, that’s long from now, but we truly never know. Instead of waiting for death to come to us and inspire us to focus on the essentials, we can instead extend an arm to death, greeting death daily as if greeting a friend, and learn to focus on the essentials now and always.
We can cultivate the life we want, acting today, acting on what is important, and not being surprised in the end.
After all, our time is limited, so we might as well spend it living the life we’ve always wanted.
Remind yourself today, and every day that death awaits us all.
Stand in front of the mirror and ask yourself, “If today were my last day, would I do what I am about to do today?”
When you are watching the nightly news, or fretting about a 1% drop in the stock market, ask yourself “Is this truly important? Will this matter in the long run?”
When making plans ask yourself, “Do I want to do this thing? Do I want to spend time with these people?”
Are you doing things out of obligation or because you are intentionally choosing to do them?
The essential is all that matters when facing death, so the essential is all that should matter all the time.
Remember that you will die.
Memento Mori.
