Recently I was re-watching Steve Jobs’ 2005 Stanford commencement speech for the hundredth time. If you know me, you probably know that I look up to him as a role model. I know the guy had his issues, but I tend to focus on his positive aspects.
In the speech he mentioned about how time is limited for all of us and why that’s a good thing. You, me, the animals, plants and almost all living things in the world are here for a limited amount of time and then we leave, forever.
This really makes me think sometimes about the very meaning of life itself. I am sure we have all thought about it at one point or the other but being a philosopher at heart, I tend to do it more often.
I have been on again and off again on the thought that life is pretty meaningless because we are literally born to die but when I heard for the first time what Jobs had to say about death, my perspective was totally changed.
Death Is Life’s Greatest Invention
This is exactly what he said in his speech. Death is probably life’s single greatest invention and I couldn’t agree more. It is in fact death that gives meaning to life instead of making it meaningless.
It is an agent of change and something that nature has put in place to maintain its balance. It has been that way since the beginning and will probably be that way for a long, long time.
The world is ever evolving and it is death that helps ensure that by clearing out the old and making way for the new to continue where the old left, essentially carrying the torch of life forward.
If you manage to understand this, and I mean truly understand that you really have limited time here on the planet, I think your whole perspective will change and you will never be the same again.
Don’t Waste Your Time
Time is just like any other resources that we are habituated to use. It is limited and what makes it really interesting is that we do not know exactly how limited it is. Maybe you have it today and run out of it tomorrow!
It is a wonder then that we take such a scarce and unpredictable resource for granted. We forever live in an illusion that we have all the time in the world to do all the things we want to do.
Not only that, we waste our time, drowned in all the noise that exists in the world. We waste it on little things that don’t matter, on opinions of other people, on bad habits, in worrying, fear, and a million other things.
But as Steve Jobs said, in the face of death, all these things just fall away and all that remain are the truly important things that you really care about. It’s like shedding these useless shells that we have accumulated throughout our lives.
Just Do It!
I really love the Nike tagline. It resonates perfectly with me and how I want to live my life. As I said before, we live in an illusion that we have enough time to do what we always wanted to do.
And before you know it, that time slips from your hands through the spaces between your fingers like sand and all that you are left with is regrets. Sometimes, you don’t even get to have that and you are just wiped off!
Life is short. Do the things that you want to do. Be with the people who you want to be with. Have the experiences you want to. You don’t always have to be filthy rich to live a perfect life.
Whatever you do, put your whole energy and focus behind it. I won’t tell you to live each day of yours as if it were your last because frankly, that’s not living, but what I will tell you, is to make the most of each.
All images have been taken from the public domain.
John cena once said: You CANT SEE me ,my time is now :D
#abitofhumor
Those are some wise words by John Cena. :D :D
hahaha :D
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Get it done!
Yes, exactly.
We will only realize its value once it starts to slip away. Death truly gives meaning to life.
Yes that is correct :)
We have to seize every moment, seize every opportunity in life and live a dignified life thanks for sharing @sauravrungta
Yeah, that's the way to do it, pretty much :)
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I enjoy every single second I read from this post! Very interesting! Thanks for sharing! Cheers!
Thank you so much for those kind words :)
Very inspiring post. I've been thinking a lot about this subject lately.
Thank you so much :)
Time is something we do not own, never see, but always end up feeling. Still we fall short in acknowledging not to waste it.
Yeah, that is why most people live in an illusion.
I really was think about this, is death a curse for a us or death is a blessing...if it would be a way to live forever you would take that or you'll choose that someday you'll have an end.
Death is what gives meaning to life. An eternal life would be essentially meaningless unless utilised for the exploration of the entire universe but frankly even that will get mundane at some point, I think.
IF I FOLLOW YOU
I will follow you too.
Time is our most valuable asset. I am surrounded by people who waste most of theirs too. Those same people will complain about how they are not successful. My response to them is, "What are you doing today and every day to improve yourself and the world around you through your improvement?"
Impending death is an excellent motivator. We only get one life, and our time ticking slowly away drives us forward. At least it does for me. My goal is to further individual liberty as much as I can before I physically die. No matter when I die too, I'll know I died in the fight.
I will die with a smile on my face and without regrets!
Yes you are quite correct that more often than not people who waste time are the ones complaining the most about not getting anywhere.
I wish they realise that they don't have forever and just start doing things. A lot of human potential is locked away due to us living in the illusion.
Never thought about that way, but I can see that. Jobs was a one of kind genius. Not just because of the tech, but because of how he saw life! Great post. @trendhobo
Jobs truly was a genius. He somehow had a deeper understanding about a lot of things which is evident from his many speeches and interviews.
this speech was truly inspiring @sauravrungta . in fact the fear of death considered shame simply because to fear of something unavoidable that's ridiculous. this is the second amazing post I read for you. steeeeeeeeem on
we have to live every day as if it's the last day
I made a post yesterday and I talked about the meaning of life,goals and dreams. I 'd love to invite you to take a look at my humble post and hear your feedback that will be highly appreciated. I don't like to sound like a spammer I guess that my post is a bit include the same message.
I am always left inspired by how Steve Jobs saw life in general. The man really inspires you to do your best and be your best version.
That is one of the greatest speeches from him.
I also keep watching it every once in a while to remind me what to focus in life.
Thanks for sharing.
Yes me too. Sometimes when I feel demotivated, I watch his interviews and speeches and also of Elon Musk. He is also another truly inspirational character.
That is such an inspirational post, thank you! Time is limited and we need to make the best out of it, but sometimes its so hard to see that vision when you are down. i feel lost and stuff! and i need to refocus my energy!
Yes, the thought that you don't have enough time makes your focus laser sharp and when that happens you will truly know what you want in life and how you're going to achieve it. I hope you do well :)
I know what you mean.
Spot on. It's the same reason greek and roman gods actually envied humans - the sweetness of mortality.
Oh! I did not know about that!
I love this post and agree on every single word!
Life itself probably is meaningless, it's the given time frame (and the included chance to use this frame in the best way possible) that makes it so valuable.
This.
Thank you for making us aware. Resteemed.
Have a great day!!!
Hey Marly!! How have you been! Thanks for the kind words. I really appreciate it :)
I'm doing great, thank you!!! You are more than welcome. I should stop by much more often, but I got really busy with the second account on steemit. Now I set up a bot in order to vote for my friends, so I won't miss any of your posts anymore :-)) Then on the weekend I can carefully read them.
Have a great Thursday!
I have been quite busy as well and haven't been able to read much recently. Will definitely get back on track starting next week :) Cheers!
Have a great weekend! :)
Sauravrunta, great article. In my abundance life coaching, the focus starts with a person two most valuable assets in their lives. Their mind and their time. You have only so much time. Steve Jobs used his time to create great products companies that impacted all of our lives. Followed upvote and resteemed
Yes, that is correct. It all starts with the mind and your time. Thanks for reading :)
I really like the concept of hourglass and time. While time is being counted mostly electronically nowadays the simple analogue concept fascinates me. Also i like that it can be reversed but still time so linear and flows in one direction.
Yeah, it is a really interesting way to measure time. I quite like it as well!
Gut gemachter Beitrag! Weiter so!!!
Thank you :)
Exactly life is short and time is limited.
The only issue is how to make my life meaningful without wast time and do not have any regret when I old enough to lay in the chair ,unable to do anything, to review my life.
Every time I thought like this, I feel sorry for my life. I have to fill my stomach before chasing my dream.
Sometimes Dream is luxury!!!
Yes, I would like to live a life where I do not have regrets when I look back upon it. That's all that matters, I think.
It does help to add a sense of urgency in ones life, yet also frustration as we want to accomplish more, faster and better.
The sad thing is that the energy level for most in their waning years will not allow them to accomplish what they then want at the time they realize the inevitable.
And yet some like Colonel Sanders (sorry popped into mind as one such individual), see it is never too late.
It is all a personal choice.
Yes, you are absolutely right. At the end of the day, it is all a personal choice. We all decide one way or the other the direction our life's headed. Cheers! :)
Thanks this is inspiring. Following you. I hope you have a wonderful day.
Thanks for the kind words :)
You're welcome. I read this article once about how everyone is always saying, O you have to do this to be successful, or you have to do that. Or make time for more of this. But the truth is that everything comes at a price. There is probably a good reason, or there are good reasons, why you are currently spending your time on the things that you are spending your time on. It is not like you don't have a brain.
So if you were to incorporate something new into your life, be it meditation, or reading, or some new business, you are inevitable going to have to sacrifice the time you spent on something else. Time that you were spending on that something else for a well thought-out reason! So it is more a matter of trade-offs than just taking someone's advice and being like, O thank you for telling me that, I didn't know that! From now on I will do that.
Another friend of mine who is very successful in networking, says more or less the same thing. People know what they are supposed to do but they don't do it. Why? Because it is just not important enough for them. They don't want those results bad enough that they KNOW they will get if they do those things.
He actually uses the example of himself. He used to be really good at martial arts when he was in his twenties, and then he got fat. Like 100 pounds overweight. He says he owns several exercise machines and whatever, and he know what to do to lose weight. It is simple, just drink more water and exercise. But he admits that it is JUST NOT IMPORTANT ENOUGH FOR HIM. Brutal honesty. He tries some things but he admits that he is not serious enough to see serious results.
He uses that example of himself to show people that in network marketing, which is his business (nowadays he is just a coach but he made like $50 million in NM over the years) the reason why people won't take action and work at their businesses (a large frustration for the person who signed them up and spent time and energy training them) is that the people don't take action. BECAUSE IT IS JUST NOT IMPORTANT ENOUGH TO THEM.
It was kind of liberating for me to hear that. It cuts through all the self help rubbish that fill the bookstores and online.
Another thing that kind of got to me, was the reason why he feels it is not important to him. He argues like this. What is the main cause of death in America (can't remember if it is around the world too). Heart Disease. What causes heart disease? Stress. What causes stress? Most stress is money-related. So if he is making money, his stress levels fall. That effect he feels has a larger net effect on his health than if he was to engage in all kinds of healthy habits.
I don't agree with him 100% necessarily but was an interesting perspective at least I thought. He is quite famous in the US and has statues in Latin American countries. Even buildings named after him I believe. He has helped over 50 people become over a million dollars a year earners. So they call him the Millionaire Mentor.
Again you're welcome for the comment, and I shall be checking out your blog page - following you as I said. I hope you have a WONDERFUL weekend @sauravrungta!
Thanks for sharing.
Also the famous sociologist Zygmunt Bauman used to promote a similar approach. Well done @auravrungta
good