Thread by @SahilBloom

I made a list of 10 things I know I’d regret on my deathbed.

It was illuminating and inspiring.

Here’s my list (and why everyone should make one):

Deathbed Regret: Not spending enough time with my kids during the magic years.

There's a devastatingly short window of time during which you are your child's entire world.

After it, they have friends/partners that fill that role.

I refuse to miss those precious years.

Deathbed Regret: Not spending enough time with my parents during their remaining years.

The time we have with our parents is limited—the vast majority of it behind you by the time you leave school.

I won't hide from the scary math—I will prioritize this special time with them.

Deathbed Regret: Not training my body and mind during my middle years.

It's easy to let other priorities step in front of your physical and mental health in your middle years.

But if you stop training body/mind, they will fail you in your later years.

I will prioritize it.

Deathbed Regret: Allowing true friendships to atrophy over time.

True friends are few and far between.

It's easy to let these friendships wither—distance and life make get togethers harder.

I will be the friend who checks in and plans the gatherings to keep them thriving.

Deathbed Regret: Allowing negativity to linger in my life.

It's easier to allow negativity to linger than to have the tough conversations to eliminate it.

But negativity is a black hole—it sucks the happiness from your universe.

I will confront it and ruthlessly eliminate it.

Deathbed Regret: Letting money control my life.

There are very few things in the world I find as sad as the "rich-yet-miserable" existence.

I have no desire to be the person who lets money rob me of my time or fulfillment.

I will place family and my core values ahead of money.

Deathbed Regret: Not leaving something that lasts beyond my life.

Your children and grandchildren will remember you, but your great-grandchildren probably won't.

Family memories only go so far.

I will strive to leave a mark on the lives of those less fortunate than I was.

Deathbed Regret: Wasting precious time stressing about stupid little things.

It's so easy to get caught up in the daily stresses of life.

But if you get absorbed by every little stress, life takes on a sad dullness.

I will handle real stressors and "opt out" of stupid stress.

Deathbed Regret: Not working on things I consider meaningful.

We get one chance, so why use our precious mental energy on things that feel small.

This isn't about someone else's definition of meaning—it's about yours.

I will make sure I work on meaningful projects.

Deathbed Regret: Allowing my quest for more to distract me from the beauty of enough.

Ambitious people will chase whatever more is on the horizon.

But true wealth is found not in attaining more, but in discovering your version of enough.

I will always be grounded by my enough.

Those were the 10 things I know I'd regret on my deathbed—and my plans for how to live to avoid them.

I conducted this exercise to clarify my core values and design my life in a way that would minimize my regrets in the end.

I think everyone should go through this exercise…

The questions to ask yourself:

What are the things you know you'd regret on your deathbed?

If you continue on your current path, will you have those regrets?

If so, what changes need to be made to avoid them?

How can you design your life to avoid those regrets?

The Deathbed Regret List is an illuminating and inspiring exercise that everyone should consider going through.

If you got value out of this thread:

1. Follow me @SahilBloom for more of these
2. RT the tweet below to share this thread with your friends

https://twitter.com/sahilbloom/status/1632006130867027971

P.S. I will be writing a newsletter deep-dive on the topic of the Deathbed Regret List (and using inversion/regret minimization more broadly).

Join 250K+ others who will receive it. sahilbloom.com/newsletter

This exercise is closely related to the @JeffBezos Regret Minimization Framework:

Goal is to minimize regrets.

When faced with a tough decision:

(1) Project into future.
(2) Look back on the decision.
(3) Ask "Will I regret not doing this?"
(4) Act accordingly.

Beautiful.

I wrote this piece while my little dude napped on a walk this morning.

He woke up and gave me the biggest smile.

Cherishing these moments!

The exercise is grounded in the concept of inversion.

When faced with a challenging problem, reframe it in inverse form.

New perspective allows you to solve the problem more creatively.

“All I want to know is where I’m going to die, so I’ll never go there." - Charlie Munger

Have gotten a lot of messages about this one.

It may sound morbid, but I really believe it’s an exercise everyone should go through.

Uncovers and clarifies your core values in a way that few things really can.

Deathbed Regret: Wasting too much time worrying about what other people think of me.

The Spotlight Effect says that we overestimate the degree to which other people are noticing our actions.

I will stop worrying about what others think and just live according to my values.

Magic Saturdays with my boy Rome.

The days are long but the years are short…