What If I Had 5 Minutes Left To Live?
A thought experiment: what if I had only five minutes left with my kids?
What would I pass on to them?
No point handing them over an elaborate set of passwords to access the family fortune. There is none. At least no money to inherit.
But what I would pass on to them is a set of 5 guiding principles. No matter what path they choose in life, no matter where they live or how they make their money, these 5 principles will guide them well.
So here goes, my life's wisdom (so far) summed up in five minutes:
Interconnectedness
Everything is connected. From the smallest atoms in your body, to world events, never try and understand them in isolation.
School might make you see humanity's evolution subject-by-subject. But that is incorrect. Discoveries in sciences influenced decisions to go to war with another country, which influenced the spread of a certain religion and those still affect how we live our lives today.
But also understand that interconnectedness relates to your body. Nutrition, exercise, sleep as well as managing your mental and emotional wellbeing, they all play a massive role in who you will become. They will determine if you are a burden to the people around you or an asset to society.
Balance
Linked to the unterstanding that all of life is connected is the recognition that we must seek and establish balance in our lives and in the world around us.
For example, if you exert yourself in the pursuit of a big goal in life, like passing your exams or training for a competition, you must be aware that your body and mind need some rest to balance out the stress you were under.
Balance is key for your finances, your relationships and most importantly the environment around you. Balance is key for how we humans live on this earth, how we treat nature and how we interact with the other species that are crucial to the health of this world.
Growth
Never stop dreaming, never stop striving for greatness and never stop working hard on becoming a better version of yourself.
The only constant in life is change. You choose whether your change is towards growing into a stronger, healthier, tougher, kinder and more thoughtful version of yourself or whether you regress.
Now
It is all there is.
You only control your thoughts and actions now.
This does not mean that you should not reflect on where you have been and how you can improve, and it also does not mean that you should plan and strive towards greatness. But understand that you only have now to implement change.
Do not dwell in the past or the future, you would miss out on life.
Legacy
This is a hard one to come to terms with. But you have to understand that life is defined by a beginning and an end.
Legacy, however, is not just about what you leave behind once you die, but also about little legacies that you create when you finish school, leave a job or move away from friends. Legacy is about the impact you leave on the world around you once you are not there anymore.
Always remember, none of us know when it will be the last time we encounter a person or visit a place. Make sure you always leave a legacy of positivity and sustainability.
