Three Life Lessons I Learned From A Terminally Ill Man That Started With A Pick Up Line

One of the best lines I’ve ever heard was delivered to me by a terminally ill man. He knew I was looking for something more, more specifically something within myself. Guess I looked like I needed a laugh!

I was working in patient access as a phlebotomist & registration right out of college (Which I LOVED!). I didn’t know if I needed to go back to school, I was unhappily married & more so unhappy with myself, physically & mentally.

He said, “I hope you know CPR, because you just took my breath away! So, aside from taking my breath away, what do you like to do?”

I laughed, “Self sabotage, apparently.”

He passed away from lung cancer a few months later. He was one of many people I got to know (& lose) in my time working in healthcare.

The message I want to share with all of you is just a short synopsis of the golden nuggets he shared with me.

He said, “Being close to fear & death, in many ways, taught me to live. Successful & happy people don’t self-sabotage. They quietly quit the past. So what is it you need to let go of? What lights you up & fills you with purpose & fulfillment? That’s your answer to making changes to live your heaven everyday.”

It wasn’t a transformation overnight but decades of making different decisions & shifting my perspective because of that one conversation.

I went to radiology school. I started doing sh*t I loved. I started slowly forgiving & loving myself. I started releasing people & habits that didn’t serve (which meant a divorce years later). It meant changing numerous jobs, failed relationships, & trying on a multitude of hats in every facet of life over my 40 years.
And I continue evolving, trying on new hats, & making mistakes, too.

3 lessons that I took from this gentleman:

Life (& the world) is a malfunctioning machine, the more pissed off we let ourselves become about it, the more likely we are to crash. Try again.
Happiness is not a consumable product or end goal. It is not something you find by searching or achieving. It is an arising byproduct of a fulfilling, well-lived life.
A well-lived life has more to do with perspective than anything else. As long as you can evolve & laugh, there is hope.

oxox Coach K