What If You Only Had 6 Months Left to Live?
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What if you only had six months left to live?
Would anything change?
Would you keep doing the work you’re doing?
Would you stay in the same relationship—or seek one out?
Would you move? Play more? Worry less?
Sometimes, it only takes a small shift in perception—or a few brave small steps—to change everything.
The first time I asked myself this question, I was in my early 30s and reeling from a series of losses. I’d spent nine years climbing the corporate ladder, only to realize: my ladder was against the wrong wall.
Cue the bathroom cry breaks. Something had to change.
But what? And how?
For years, I tried everything but leaving: Scuba diving in the dark. Dancing onstage at a company holiday party. Skydiving. (Only later did I realize all of these were “don’t-make-me-face-my-life” strategies.)
Eventually, I had to admit what had always been true: I was here to explore psychology, transformation, metaphysics, human potential. I wanted to live inside the big questions—until either the questions dissolved or I did. Maybe then I’d write. Coach. Share what I’d learned.
But I resisted. Why?
Because I didn’t like the answer.
I wanted something more… reasonable. A practical dream.
Even when your heart is whispering loud and clear, the mind has its own agenda. It clings to safety. Spins stories. Tries to scare you out of change.
But I kept moving towards my vision—one trust-fueled step at a time.
Slowly, my real self started taking the wheel. I left my marketing job. Went back to grad school to study psychology, mythology, and ancient wisdom. Ended a marriage that no longer fit. Became a certified life and executive coach. Made partner at my firm. Wrote a book (publishing in 2026!). Met my soul mate. We sold everything and spent nearly six years vagabonding the world.
All of that… sparked by one question: What would I do if I only had six months?
I still ask it, regularly. It’s my alignment check. When something feels off, I ask:
Do I just need a shift in perspective—to savor and appreciate life, right here, right now? 🌻
Do I need to reprioritize how I spend my time and energy? 💫
Or… is something deeper calling me into a new direction altogether? 👇🏻
If it’s a fundamental pivot, there are only two choices:
(1) Trust yourself enough to take the first step.
(2) Keep living someone else’s life.
If you choose the first, I can almost guarantee this:
You’ll look back and laugh at all the fear stories that tried to stop you. 90–100% of what those gremlins tell you? Pure fiction. ((ne research study had people record their daily worries over a ten-day period and track which ones came true. The result? A whopping 91 percent were false alarms.)
Following your calling isn’t always easy. But it’s never as scary as the mind makes it out to be.
So let me ask you again:
What would you be doing right now if you had six months left?
Who would you talk to?
What would you let go of?
What would it look like to actually enjoy your life?
Isn’t life too short—and too long—not to?
Be you. Do you. All the way through.
KB
