No, we’re not talking about flesh-eating zombies or bloodsucking vampires today (sorry!). Instead, I want to talk about death.

Yep – it’s one of the most uncomfortable topics to breach, but its impact on you, your work, your relationships and your life in general can’t be ignored.

And it’s something that we can always – always – learn from. Throughout our lives, the inescapable reality of death moulds us, shapes us and challenges us and, eventually…

It takes us.

But did you know that there’s more than one kind of death that you can succumb to? It isn’t necessarily just about parting ways with this mortal coil…

I’m about to tell you why.

 

The Three Types of Death

1. The Metaphysical Death

The first kind of death is a metaphysical death – and this one happens when you’re very much alive. I firmly believe that we’re here in this universe to serve a particular purpose, and if you’re not serving that purpose you die a metaphysical death.

Think of the sad sack who spends his days complaining about his “soul crushing” corporate job. The metaphysical death is one of the soul and the spirit – not in a religious sense, but in the sense of our own internal drive, hopes, dreams and fulfilment.

If those are abandoned through not pursuing your purpose, then what exactly is life? It’s a hamster wheel – a rote activity that gives you nothing but the opportunity to see another day despite being utterly dead inside.

 

2. The Physical Death

The second form of death is the physical death, which we all go through sooner or later. It’s inevitable, a natural part of existence that can’t be escaped. Not yet, anyway.

But ask yourself: are you helping death, or hindering death? Are you doing things each day that are bringing you closer to that final, icy grip?

Are you lying around like a slob, eating junk and not giving two shits as cholesterol chokes your arteries? Are you drinking yourself to death to escape reality, or to avoid coming to terms with more deeply buried issues?

Are you – consciously or unconsciously – doing the best you can to have your family and friends bury you ahead of your time? Be honest.

And ask yourself why.

This kind of self destruction is heavily tied to the first death – the metaphysical – like a natural extension; a fast-forward to the “real thing” once our existence lacks purpose.

 

3. The Ultimate Death

The third, and most terrifying, kind of death is the ultimate death. It’s also the most important and most relevant kind of death for us to think about.

Because, you see, the ultimate death happens on the day your name is mentioned for the last time in this universe.

Think about that.

It could be one day after you die… one week… one year… even tens, hundreds or thousands of years down the line.

It might even be that your name lives on until the very last day this universe exists.

So… how are you living your life? How are you conducting your career? Is it done in a way that your ultimate death might not even come about?

How are you contributing to society? To your family, to your community, to your neighbours, your loved ones, your collaborators and your competitors?

Are you acting like a name to remember, or a name for which the ultimate death can’t come soon enough?

 

I hope you can see the thread that runs through all three of these deaths. It starts with the metaphysical – our loss or abandonment of purpose – which pushes us early to the physical death and, in turn, robs us of the opportunity to carve a name that avoids the ultimate death for a long time to come.

I hope this causes you to do some soul searching – to open your third eye and take into account everything you think about, from your purpose, to your body, and your legacy.

What’s your purpose? How will your name live on? What can you do to escape the grip of the metaphysical death and the road it leads down?

And if you’re already feeling the metaphysical death setting in, what can you do today to chart a new course?

Take some time and think about this… and if you get stuck or can’t quite figure it out, go ahead and contact me for a chat. Don’t worry – I challenge, but I don’t bite.

Whether it’s making a change or getting in touch with me, today is always better than tomorrow – because there are no exceptions when death comes calling.