A Big Secret Some Shaman Taught an Entrepreneur About Leadership, Success and Fulfilling Potential

You will be able to use the secret I learned from these remarkable people in every area of your life. It will add energy and imbue every action you take with an ineffable power. Applying this secret will naturally weed out what is not important and provide a focus on what really is.

The secret?

To make death your friend and best advisor!

Steve Jobs spoke about using this secret when he would stand in front of the mirror every morning and ask himself,

“If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I’m about to do today?”

If we’re honest with ourselves, deep down we realize that we never really know which day will be our last. This approach has made me realize (and then live in the power) that there are no ordinary moments.

With death being my best advisor, I show up fully everyday and squeeze as much juice and joy out of the day as possible. This is a way to stay present in each moment and with each person you come in contact with every day.

Leadership:

To honor life and the fact that you don’t know if this will be your last chance to have an impact on a team member’s life…

• Let them know they’ve been seen by recognizing their accomplishments. 

• Inspire them by holding them accountable to fulfilling their potential.

• Coach them to increase their impact and value to the organization.

• Take the time, and show you care, by finding out what they really want. Then use respectful persuasion to promote mutually beneficial outcomes. 

Clients:

Hold nothing back, and while honoring your values, go to any length to add extraordinary value to their businesses and lives.

Because death is your best advisor…

• Honor the unique greatness in every human being and use yours to help your clients achieve their goals.

• Make it your goal that they will comment one day that choosing to work with you was one of the best decisions they’ve made.

• With every action you take look to increase your value and impact in their businesses and lives.

• Use the powerful energy you’ll have with death as your best advisor to inspire them to show up fully for their lives.

Friends and Family:

Once you’ve made friends with death and it’s become your best advisor a level of clarity will be present in your life in most everything you do.

With your relationships…

• You won’t hesitate to let someone hear, see, feel and thereby know, how much you love them.

• You will find a new level of joy in how you show up in every one of your relationships.

• You will forgive and forget old grievances because in the face of death they have no importance.

• The powerful love you have for yourself, others and life will attract new powerful relationships and add new life to the ones you have currently.

The shaman of the high Andes taught me to honor and uplift all of life, and that to do so, I must accept that life is a gift and it’s fleeting. None of us know which day will be our last or what action might be our last.

Therefore, if you want to show up fully and really truly go all out to fulfill your potential, then I highly recommend that you embrace death and make it your best advisor. When you do so, you’ll realize there are no ordinary moments.