You may have heard the expression Y.O.L.O - you only live once. Often this is used for people to live an experience they never would have before. Perhaps it may be asking that person you like out on a date. Or it could be making a purchase that you have been thinking about for some time. YOLO can be a great way to look at life. Depending how you apply it.
You may or may not subscribe to the idea of YOLO. Especially when among us, there are some people with reckless behavior. The point of this expression and some may say mantra, is to live a life remembering that we all only live once. We will all have our moment in time to transition out of this life and into the next. YOLO is a modern day mantra compared to what the ancient stoics might say, memento mori - remember you will die or remember death.
Seneca, ancient stoic and philosopher noted in his Moral Letters, 49.10b;
“Show me that the good life doesn’t consists in its length, but in its use, and that is it possible—no, entirely too common—for a person who has had a long life to have lived too little.”
WOW!
A good life isn’t how you live you but how you use the life you have. It’s too common Seneca notes for a person to live a long time in age, but live a little life in experience. Change. Growth. Etc.
Similarly, I recently shared a quote from Benjamin Franklin;
“Many young men die at age 25, but are not buried until they're 75.”
By using YOLO with a purpose you can live a quality life despite your age. Remember, you only live once or remember, death is certain. Use this time you have now to be the person you want. To do the things you want. To have the experiences you’ve always wanted. Use now to be the parent you should be. The professional you want to be. The good neighbor and friend. Be the person who gets out of a bad relationship or job. Or be the person to stay with it. You get to decide. You Only Live Once. Be selfish with yourself. Take care of yourself. Yesterday is gone. Today is all we have.
Thought Provoking Question 1 : How can you use YOLO to live a better life?
Dan Roman is a Husband, Father, and writer that releases a daily blog. A quick read on sharing wisdom and asking though-provoking questions.
What are your thoughts on this piece? Comment below…