There are moments in life when we stop and ask ourselves: What am I really doing with my time? The truth is, most people live as if they have an infinite supply of days. They push their dreams to tomorrow, their discipline to next week, and their purpose to “someday.”
But what if you knew that 2025 was your last year on this earth?
Would you still wake up and scroll endlessly?
Would you still waste time on laziness? Or would you finally treat your life with the urgency it deserves?
This blog is about turning death into the most powerful motivation of your life.
The Power of Remembering Death:
Human beings often fear death, but rarely fear wasting time. That is the greatest tragedy of our generation. Think about Robert Greene, the author of The 48 Laws of Power. At the peak of his career, after publishing The Laws of Human Nature, he suffered a stroke that left half his body paralyzed. Suddenly, the man who wrote about power could no longer even tie his shoelaces without effort. And yet, instead of surrendering, Greene became more active than ever. He showed up on podcasts, gave interviews, and continued writing. Why? Because once you face death, life stops being casual. Every day becomes urgent.
Steve Jobs followed the same principle. For years, he would look in the mirror each morning and ask himself: If today were the last day of my life, would I still do what I am about to do? If the answer was “no” too many days in a row, he knew it was time to change. Death was not a morbid thought for him; it was the compass that kept him on track.
This idea is ancient. The Stoics carried a coin called Memento Mori, which means “remember you will die.” They didn’t do this because they were negative people. They did it because they understood that mortality creates clarity. If you remember your days are numbered, you won’t waste them on arguments, gossip, and meaningless distractions. You will put your attention only on what matters your work, your loved ones, and your higher purpose.
Laziness Is Just Forgetting the Reward:
Why do so many people waste their years in laziness?
Because they focus on effort instead of reward. Laziness is not a disease. It is a habit of thinking. You imagine the pain of waking up early, but forget the reward of achieving your dream. You think about the discomfort of working out, but ignore the reward of health and confidence.
Consider the example of childbirth. For a mother, pregnancy is filled with pain and discomfort. The actual process of giving birth is one of the most painful human experiences. And yet, millions of women choose to go through it again.
Why? Because they don’t focus on the pain, they focus on the reward of holding their child.
History is full of people who endured suffering because they kept their eyes on the reward. Muhammad Ali, the boxing legend, once said: “I hated every minute of training, but I said, Don’t quit. Suffer now and live the rest of your life as a champion.” Ali did not romanticize the pain of training. He knew it was brutal. But he also knew that the reward of victory was worth it.
Laziness disappears when your vision of the reward becomes larger than your fear of discomfort. If you can treat your dream like a child you are willing to sacrifice for, you will no longer run away from the hard work it demands.
Consciousness – The Secret Multiplier of Time:
We think life is measured in years, but in reality, it is measured in conscious moments. Jim Rohn once asked:
What is a big life?
Is it living 900 years?
No. A big life is made up of the moments you live fully aware, fully present, and fully engaged.
Look back at the last year. Do you remember every day? Every hour?
No. You only remember a handful of conscious experiences, moments when you were truly alive, moments when your awareness was sharp. That is the real currency of life: consciousness.
One conscious hour is worth more than several days of autopilot living. In fact, with just four or five months of living consciously, you can achieve what others fail to do in decades of unconscious repetition.
Alexander the Great is the perfect example. By the age of 27, he had conquered most of the known world. How? He lived every day as if it counted. He wasn’t scrolling, procrastinating, or overthinking. His actions were charged with clarity and intention. Meanwhile, millions of people waste their twenties in unconscious living chasing pleasures, fearing risks, and repeating routines.
Consciousness turns ordinary time into extraordinary results. Even if you live only 40 conscious years, you will achieve more than someone who drifts for 90 years.
Time Is More Precious Than Money
There is nothing scarier than wasting time. Money can be lost and earned again. But once time slips away, it is gone forever. Every billionaire on the planet would happily trade his fortune to be twenty again, to have the energy and years you have right now. Yet most young people don’t value their time—they waste it on distractions, on meaningless entertainment, on “tomorrows” that never come.
Think of money as renewable energy. It can flow in and out of your life. But time is not renewable. Every day is one less day in your account. If you spend money badly, you can learn and recover. But if you spend your time badly, there is no refund.
Jim Carrey once said, “I think everybody should get rich and famous and do everything they ever dreamed of so they can see that it’s not the answer.” What he meant was that money is not the ultimate currency time and how you use it is.
Ask yourself: what should you fear more, death or wasting time? Death is inevitable. But wasting time is a choice. And it is this choice that buries people’s dreams with them in the graveyard. In every cemetery, it’s not just bodies that are buried. It’s also the unfinished books, the unbuilt businesses, the unspoken ideas, and the unlived lives of people who kept saying: I’ll do it tomorrow.
Living 2025 as If It Were Your Last:
The truth is simple: if you live as though this is your final year, laziness will disappear. Excuses will vanish. Discipline will no longer feel like a burden, it will feel like survival. Every day will carry urgency. Every task will matter. And in the end, whether 2025 is your last year or not, you will have lived with the intensity that makes life worth living.
Here’s a simple framework:
- Every morning, remind yourself of death. Write down: “If this were my last day, how would I spend it?”
- Replace effort with reward. Don’t focus on the pain of work, focus on the prize of achievement.
- Create conscious hours. Eliminate distractions, enter deep focus, and multiply the value of your time.
- Respect time more than money. Treat every hour as currency that you never get back.
Stop waiting for motivation. Stop waiting for the perfect moment. Stop waiting for tomorrow. Death is certain. Time is limited. But today is still in your hands. Treat 2025 like it’s your last chance, and you’ll finally live like you were meant to.
FAQs:
1. Why should I live 2025 as if it’s my last year?
Because most people waste time assuming they have unlimited years ahead. Living with urgency helps you focus on what truly matters: your purpose, your relationships, and your dreams without postponing them to “someday.”
2. Isn’t thinking about death too negative or depressing?
Not at all. Remembering death isn’t about fear; it’s about clarity. It motivates you to avoid wasting time on distractions and instead spend your days consciously on meaningful actions.
3. How does focusing on rewards help overcome laziness?
Laziness comes from fixating on the discomfort of effort. When you shift your attention to the reward of health, achievement, freedom, or fulfillment, the pain of discipline feels worthwhile, and laziness fades away.
4. What does it mean to live consciously?
Living consciously means being fully aware and present in your daily actions. Instead of drifting through life on autopilot, you intentionally create experiences and results that matter, multiplying the value of your time.
5. Why is time more valuable than money?
Money is renewable you can lose it and earn it back. Time, once gone, is gone forever. Every wasted hour is a lost opportunity to create, love, or grow. That’s why respecting time is the ultimate form of wealth.
