Two Years Left to Live

In a recent conversation with my uncle, we were discussing the optimal amount of time to assume you have left on this earth. 

Living like today is your last day sounds fun in songs and movies. But it’s not practical. It’s unsustainable. Alternatively, living like you’ll be around forever is foolish too. None of us know how long we’ll live. 

My uncle decided that living like you have two years left is optimal. Two years is enough time to accomplish the projects you see in your mind—but it’s not enough time to delay. Two years is too little time to sit around, hoping your relationships improve. But it’s enough time to work to improve them. Two years is enough time to do the things you really want to do, and not enough time to waste on the things you don’t. 

For a while, I’ve wrestled with a similar idea: what if you only had two years left to live? Would you hustle on decade-long dreams, sacrificing moments with friends and family? Would you enjoy your hobbies, even if they didn’t help you advance your career?  

Wisdom lies in the balance of long-term goals and short term presence.