You. Will. Die.
How to keep first things first and not sweat the small stuff
There are a lot of people in this world. 7.119 billion to be precise.
According to the CIA 12.44% are Mandarin Chinese speakers, 2% are atheists, 2.3% are Nigerian, and 41% are between the age of 25 and 54. And what do they all have in common?
100% of them will die.
I’ll rephrase that. You are going to die.
A few months back I had dinner with an elderly entrepreneur from Hong Kong. He explained that insurance companies use life tables (or actuarial science) to predict the life expectancy of a person based on age. His point: we’re living longer.
Thus, women born in Monaco in 2013 will, on average, live to be 94.
This is obviously a good thing. But there’s an upshot.
Parkinson’s law basically states that a task will take as long as you give it. That’s because the urgency of the task isn’t truly felt until the deadline is looming.
Here’s the consequence: as death is stalled, so is the urgency that comes with living in light of it.
I once had a nightmare that involved my death. My loved ones were distraught. I (ironically enough) was saddened as it unfolded before me.
When I awoke the vividness of the dream remained with me.
That was a great day.
For that day I truly didn’t care about the things that don’t matter and was immensely grateful for the things that do.
Here’s my advice to you. Regularly say these these words: “I am going to die.”
Let the weight of it rest on you.
Let the urgency compel you.
Appreciate the important.
Forget the rest.
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