I heard “Live Like You Were Dying” again this week...

Not intentionally...it just came on.

And I didn’t hear adventure this time...I heard prioritization.

When you strip the song down, it isn’t about skydiving or mountain climbing.

It’s about focus.

When the noise drops…
When the timeline shortens…
When the illusion of “later” disappears…

What actually matters?

He says he loved deeper...spoke sweeter...gave forgiveness he’d been denying.

Not more...clearer...

That’s the part that stuck with me.

Most of us don’t need a diagnosis...we need honesty.

There are conversations we’re postponing...relationships we’re coasting in...work we’re tolerating because it’s “fine.”

Dreams we’ve downgraded into hobbies because they feel inconvenient.

We say we’re busy...but we’re often just distracted.

The song isn’t telling us to live louder...

It’s asking what we’d remove if time felt scarce.

Because here’s the uncomfortable part…

The clock is real...we just pretend it isn’t.

And pretending buys comfort...but it costs intention.

This week I’ve been asking myself a quiet question:

If the timeline shortened, what would immediately stop?

Certain meetings?
Certain obligations?
Certain internal narratives?

And if I’d drop them under pressure…why am I protecting them now?

I don’t want to live frantic...I don’t want to live reckless.

But I do want to live aligned.

There’s a difference.

The song isn’t about urgency...it’s about awareness...and awareness changes posture.

Maybe the goal isn’t to “live like you were dying.”

Maybe it’s to stop living like you’re guaranteed more time than you are.

That’s a quieter shift.

But it changes everything.

By Chris Errington