What Works: Celebrity deaths wake us up to our own mortality
Submitted by editor on Tue, 12/27/2016 - 1:51pm
No one makes it out of life alive. Sadly, it’s a fact. We all know it. But when celebrities from some of the best times of our lives pass, like today’s passing of Carrie Fisher, we come together with a collective sigh. We are human. Our icons are passing. Gene Wilder, George Michael, Prince, and David Bowie have all passed this year. We are all collectively conscious of the impermanence of life. This is nothing new.
I remember growing up among older siblings and parents, watching with wide eyes as they mourned the passing of their icons. It didn’t create the same feeling back then as it does now. This is what it feels like to be mortal. So, what do we do about it? How does it impact the way we live our lives?
There’s a country song, “Live Like You are Dying.” How many people do? How many people tackle what they love each and every day? How many people set out to make a difference in the world? Our icons did. Maybe that’s why we love them so much.
Their lives weren’t perfect. They certainly didn’t handle adversity in productive ways sometimes. But they took those occasional black holes of life and turned them into inspiration, for art, music, and film. Sometimes we loved them at their best. Maybe we cheered for them to pull out of their worst. But they added to our lives and that is where their small piece of immortality lies.
It’s where it lies for all of us.
It lies in the impact we can make it someone else’s life. It lies in volunteering, mentoring, and helping someone who doesn’t have what we do. It lies in doing what you do best every day. It doesn’t matter if you are serving coffee, changing tires, or putting a roof on a house. It’s doing what you do with quality, integrity and the mindset that your best influences the rest.
Yes, we are all mortal. But we can all have a legacy. We can let the passing of our icons remind us one person can make a difference in this world. They can make a heart-stopping, collective sign, social media explosion of a difference. We just have to be willing to create our own legacy.
Are you willing to take a shot at it?
What have you been hemming and hawing about in your head? I don’t have the time. I don’t have the money. I don’t have the energy. Let me be the first of many to tell you this. You do. No one makes it out of life alive. But many make it out having made a lasting footprint. Mourn Carrie Fisher today, but use your Force to make a difference in the world.
LEARN FROM DIANE AND EMBRACE CHANGE IN 2017
January 6, 2017: “Vision Board and Statements Workshop” – Gaia Wellness and Yoga, Carson City, NV: 6:30 pm – $20/Adults, $10/Ages 10-18. All materials provided. Learn more and purchase your ticket in advance here.
January 21, 2017: Paradise Salon Spa and Wellness Fair – Save the Date – Details TBD
What Works Coaching
Diane Dye Hansen is the Chief Inspiration Officer of What Works Coaching, a business coaching and marketing services firm based in Carson City. She has 20 years of experience working with top corporations, growing businesses, motivated entrepreneurs, and individuals hungry for a fresh start. Diane holds a Bachelor’s in Business Administration and Marketing from Cal State San Bernardino. She is also a candidate for a Master’s degree in Communications Management from the University of Southern California. Her column appears every Monday, and sometimes Tuesday, in Carson Now.
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