“Die before you Die” is a quote attributed to the Sufi poet, Rumi. It means to live fully like you would as if you had but a few breaths left to take. Just imagine how intense and alive those few moments would feel because you would be fully present in those moments. There would be no time for past regrets or future worries. Hence, the wisdom here is to live each moment in totality, in its full measure. Then, when the moment ends, there is no pain, because living in the moment has been complete and absolute.
If we apply this concept in a business setting, each moment moves beyond an expression of self-worth to an opportunity for transformation and renewal.
Steve Jobs said: “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.”
Amidst the turmoil of the thought of death, there is also the underlying realization that each ending carries in its womb the possibility of a new beginning.
Just the idea of death has a cleansing effect, instantly eliminating the non-essential while illuminating the essence. This is the power of death. Rather than invoking fear, death actually brings freedom. Freedom to do, say and experience what matters.
Death is not an end, but simply another opportunity to reawaken, to let go of all that no longer serves us. Our attachment to our past often shrouds our vision, preventing us from jumping over the threshold to a new beginning. Death and life happen at each and every moment.
The thought of death keeps us humble. It urges us to create a life we want, so that we may have no regrets.
There is a Sufi saying that we have four seasons to live – but three may already be gone. By starting each day as if it were our last, we remind ourselves of the fragility of life, helping us to become more compassionate. We remain human. We realize that if we die tomorrow, our material possessions do not go with us.
In the end, we only take with us what we give away – joy, happiness. And if we give misery, this too is what we’ll take with us. Don’t wait until tomorrow to praise; to bless; to forgive, and to laugh. Tomorrow may not come.
So go ahead and think of death – think of it often – think of it each and every day. Socrates said, “Death may be the greatest of all human blessings.”