By far, across every country, culture, demographic, the number one deathbed regret is some version of: "I wish I had the courage to live a life true to myself, not the life others expected of me."
A couple of useful definitions of wisdom:
1) Having deathbed clarity long before you're on your deathbed
2) The ability to take the same advice you'd give others
We value hard work and tend to say things like “Persistence is everything.” But if you’re trying to get from L.A. to NY by heading west, harder work and more persistence isn’t the thing to optimize.
Work ethic and persistence are valuable traits. But only when applied to the right things.
Updated: Dec 26, 2023
People often spend hours nitpicking slide designs, the exact wording, and the perfect animated transition for a PowerPoint presentation. It’s rare to find someone in creation mode asking whether the presentation itself should instead be a memo or email.
Frequently reevaluating exactly what you’re trying to accomplish can save hours of wasted effort.
You should definitely labor over the exact specs of a screen door. But if you’re fitting it for a submarine you might want to start asking better questions.
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© 2025 by Steve Acho
