| The Freedom Coach
Death as a Motivator
Written by Steven Griggs |thefreedomcoach.com
“Remembering that I'll be dead soon is the most important tool I've ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure - these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important. Remembering that you are going to die is the best way I know to avoid the trap of thinking you have something to lose. You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart. Steve Jobs, Stanford University, June 12, 2005
Since Steve Job’s death on October 5th, countless articles and tributes have been published to commemorate and honor this exceptional and complex man.
But in addition to being a creator and visionary I believe he had a very clear and deeper way of viewing the world. Maybe through the experiences he gained during his “exile” from Apple and the process of starting Next! and growing Pixar, not to mention his initial cancer discovery and recovery, or maybe this attitude was already a part of him.
“Your time is limited, so don't waste it living someone else's life. Don't be trapped by dogma – which is living with the results of other people's thinking. Don't let the noise of others' opinions drown out your own inner voice. And, most important, have the courage to follow your heart and intuition. They somehow already know what you truly want to become. Everything else is secondary."
Steve Jobs, Stanford University, June 12, 2005
Steve Jobs, Stanford University, June 12, 2005
Steve Jobs was never about money, he was a creator. He was supremely fortunate to find his passion early on and he never stopped living it. He came to realize the power in viewing life as defined by death. That the way to really live life is to be brave and go for what you love, to live your passion.
And to know that there are no mistakes.
Are living your passion? Do you know what your passion is? Or are you content to act out someone else’s script for your life? To dance to someone else’s music?
You have this life right now, with no promise of another. What’s the worst that can happen?
Remember: 80% of the things you worry about don’t happen and the 20% that do happen are never as bad as you thought they would be.
I’m not advocating quitting your job and hitchhiking around the world (although that's not a bad idea) or dropping out to join a monastery or anything too drastic. But just start watching yourself, see what turns you on, what gets you fired up. If you know what you are passionate about, do more of it. Maybe you are already feeding your passion through your hobbies, if not, start a hobby.
Start getting more into whatever your passion is.
Are you going to look back on your life from your deathbed and think” I’m sure glad I kept my nose to the grindstone and spent the bulk of my life in the office working. I’m sure glad I missed spending all that time with my family and friends.”
Death is coming for us all. Use the time you have to the maximum. Don’t waste another minute.
