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Author Robert Greene asks in his book with 50 Cent, The 50th Law, “what good is it to work so hard, defer immediate pleasures, and accumulate money and power, if one day, perhaps tomorrow, we die?

Fair question.

The Stoics 2,000 years ago would carry a coin in their pocket that said, “Memento Mori” which means “remember you must die.”

This historical account from Psychology Spot goes deeper:

According to the Galileo Galilei Institute in Turin, the origins of this phrase go back to Roman society, which had developed a special sensitivity towards death and life. It is said that it comes from an ancient Roman custom: When a general returned to the city after a great victory over his enemies on the battlefield, he would parade through the streets on a golden chariot receiving the applause and cheers of the crowd.

However, those achievements and praise could make a dent in his “hubris“ leading to a state of pride, excess and arrogance that made him develop a true delusion of omnipotence. To avoid this, a slave – precisely one of the humblest servants – was in charge of reminding him of his human and mortal nature (limited and perishable) whispering to him: “Respice post te. Hominem te memento”, which meant “Look behind, remember that you are a man”.

What may sound depressing or dark at first, to think of death, is quite the opposite. Pondering on the fact that we must die, redirects our focus to the present. Of how lucky we are to be alive this day, and what can we do today to become the best version of ourselves.

Reminding ourselves of death paradoxically reminds ourselves of our life and the brevity of living. Death is the great equalizer. Therefore, if we all must die, how do we begin to live more each day?

We become so distracted by frivolous dramas in pop culture, politics, or on social media when in the end it is all meaningless. What did you control today? How did you live today? Were you disciplined in your actions? Were you kind to others? Did you help make living on this planet with our fellow humans just a bit merrier?

When if comes to living our best lives, reminding ourselves of death and that we only have so many days to live creates urgency. Rather than cling to relationships, jobs, or commitments we are not truly happy with, remember you will die and is it worth holding on to unhappiness?

Robert Green in The 50th Law writes:

“When you choose to affirm life by confronting your mortality, everything changes. What matters to you now is to live your days well, as fully as possible. You could choose to do this by pursuing endless pleasures, but nothing becomes boring more quickly than having to always search for new distractions. If attaining certain goals becomes your greatest source of pleasure, then your days are filled with purpose and direction, and whenever death comes, you have no regrets.”

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