How To Create The Urgency To Live Your Dreams
No one has ever said, "man, I'm really glad I played it safe."
No one has ever said, "dang, I'm so happy with my decision to avoid risks."
No one has ever said, "I don't regret working my whole life on someone else’s project.”
So, assuming all goes well and you live a full-length life, what will you say at the end?
Some of you already know about my Death Bed Timer.
If you’re not familiar with how this works, you can check out the page on my website:
chrisdanilo.com/timer
Here’s the quick version:
I have done a quick and dirty estimate of how much time I think I’ve got left to live.
The idea wasn’t to calculate some super accurate timeline, the idea was to have a number that looked possible and watch it tick away every day.
By bringing this Death Bed Timer into my life, I’ve forced myself to look at the reality of my temporary existence.
It’s created urgency, which is something that motivates people to take action.
I urge you to make your own estimate and look your Death Bed Timer right in the face.
It will help you reprioritize things in your life.
Yes, admittedly, it’s a little stressful—but looking at this clock on a regular basis will push you from your comfort zone until you’re comfortable with being uncomfortable.
2 Minute Action
Do a quick estimate. How long do people like you usually live?
How long have you already lived?
Subtract.
Divide by months, weeks, or days to get the readout you want.
This 2 minutes could absolutely change your life.
The Unpopular Beliefs That Make People Tick
"You're anxious, stop telling me to worry so much.""You don't know what other people want, so don't tell me what to do.""Your writing is too basic, why are you dumbing it down?"
I've gotten criticism for a few unpopular beliefs, like my death bed timer, the idea that you absolutely should get rich, and the fact that I write at a 7th-grade reading level.That's fine.Let me explain why I hold firm in these beliefs.
My Writing Style
I've written and edited academic publications in Developmental Neuroscience and the Decision-Theory literature.I don't use that kind of language here for good reason--only a few people can read it.The average reading level in the USA is a 7th-grade reading level, and I want to reach more people.Not everyone, just more than the people who already know the value of what I'm sharing.The point is to get to the point. We've all got things to do and places to be.Few people want to read some huge wall of text.Most people just want a useful, digestible, actionable nugget every day.
On Getting Rich
I think you should get rich and then spend that money helping people live healthier, happier, more productive lives.In the amount of time people try to make everything perfect and in the perfect way, they could have had a profitable product by now.Apple didn't start by making computers that were deconstructable and recyclable. Patagonia didn't start by making pullovers from only organic trees. There are many examples of this in the world.You start by making a minimally viable product, getting the cash you need to survive and THEN you figure out how to make things even better.Speed to market and profitability will decide how you survive.If your idea/project/business dies or dries up, you can't help anyone.
The Death Bed Timer
I have estimated how much time I have left to live.Of course, it's not accurate because no one can ever know this exact number--but that's not the point.The point is to have an estimate.The point is to look at a number that decreases and understand the reality of my shrinking mortality.Two of the most common regrets of dying people are:
- Not having lived the life they wanted
- Having worked too much
If you're serious about avoiding regret and living a life of purpose and deliberation, you'll do what it takes.Watching my Death Bed Timer countdown is my way of reminding myself to stay the course, make every second count, and keep improving.
2 Minute Action
I want you to take 2 minutes to question yourself right now.Unpopular beliefs are a good way to challenge others and get to the bottom of the truth.They're also helpful because challenging others can help them solidify their point of view.What are some unpopular beliefs you have?I'd love to hear what yours are, so comment or reply and let me know.Just identifying them, or saying them out loud can help you think about how to build a lifestyle or habit around them.
What You Can Do When There's Too Much To Do
There isn't enough time to do everything you want to do before you die.Let's face it.There just isn't.In fact, the same thing is true about your work.There just isn't enough time to do everything.
So let's crush a few thoughts, right now.
- "I have to do it."
- "It needs to get done."
- "No one else is going to do it."
These may be true, but a good question to ask yourself next is "what will happen if I don't get it all done?"
Does it really matter?
Understand that productivity and living a happy, healthy life isn't about doing more.It's just about output.Focus on the 20% of the things that will yield 80% of the results.Stop thinking that hard work is always the answer. It only turns results SOME of the time.If you were a youth with a paper route and you knew you could get paid $200 every week, it might seem like adding more paper routes would be the only way to make more money.But what if you found out that delivering mail pulled in $300 every week?Well, you just learned that not every hour you spend working is worth the same.
Of course, you've got to put in work, but not every hour worked is created equal.
Remember the character "Boxer" from Orwell's Animal Farm?He was a horse and every time he was faced with a problem, the solution was "I'll just work harder."Boxer ended up broken and worn out, causing him to be useless to the farmer.So the skill isn't to work harder, longer hours, or produce more widgets.The skill is determining what you SHOULDN'T be doing.The skill is determining all the things you're wasting your time doing because they aren't delivering amazing results.The skill is saying "no" to all of those things that aren't important.
2 Minute Action
Look at your to-do list today.Everything should fight for its life to stay on that list.Right now, kill one thing on that list. I'm not saying wait until tomorrow to do it.I really mean kill it. That's it. See ya later.Bye bye forever.Hard, right?Do it anyway.