A Stanford professor says writing your own eulogy can change your life

We have multiple checklists, bucket lists, planners, and often find our notes apps filled with things we’d like to do. Unfortunately, sometimes, it's too late to get to them, and they remain as unchecked lines on a list. Stanford professor Dave Evans shared a unique approach on how to not miss out on the life you want. The clip shared on February 23 from the Mel Robbins Podcast suggested that instead of writing what we want to do, we should focus on what we wish we’d done by writing our own eulogy. According to Evans, this holds some transformative power to push ourselves and finally achieve what we’re after. 

Evans revealed he was part of a group of boys for 51 years, and as they were approaching their 70s, they took up an activity — to mention the age at which they think they’re going to die and write a eulogy for themselves. The latter had to include “things that aren’t true yet” but ones they will have hoped to achieve by the time they’re nearing the end of life. Sharing why this exercise would work more than a planner or to-do list, the professor mentioned that it helps add to the aspiration to make that eulogy true. It’s no longer something you want to do; it's something you hope to have completed. 

 Evans brilliantly explained that human beings are meant to grow and “become” more and more. Even though constraints hold us back, it shouldn’t completely stop us from “becoming.” So, writing your own eulogy adds more honesty, more realism than a hurriedly scribbled list. Anne-Laura Le Cunff, neuroscientist and founder of Ness Labs, quoted Steve Jobs while sharing her insight on the topic. Jobs said, “Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life.” He added that when we ponder that we one day won’t be here anymore, a lot of decisions are easier to make. “You are already naked. There is no reason not to follow your heart,” he remarked. 

And Cunff couldn’t help but agree. She mentioned that writing your own eulogy serves as a “blueprint” for the future. She added that when you picture yourself in a coffin, thinking about what you’d want your friends and family to remember you and your life by, will help map out how to go about life. Once you jot these down, you can simply go backward to act on each of the steps mentioned. In a study published by the National Library of Medicine, it was revealed that many older people die with regrets. The data from the study shared by Direct Selling News revealed that around 90% of people have severe regrets either about themselves or about something they were unable to do. The major amount of dissatisfaction with incompletion came from leaving things undone or not being able to do something they really wanted. 

The study also found that people with such regrets showed poorer life satisfaction and lower quality of life with regard to health and well-being. We all know we’re gonna die someday, so instead of waiting to rush, let's move the planner into action so it proudly stands as a remembrance as we hoped it would. @karenfgeiger wrote, "My coach had me do this, and it has changed my trajectory completely." @nepitaylor_ added, "Thinking of my own tombstone helped me change careers 11 years ago." 

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