| Case Studies | Margo | Daniel | Bill | John | Denise | Jane | Rocky | Samantha | Roy | Sam | Frank |
Bill's problem:
"I have a problem no one can solve, except maybe
God. My doctors tell me that I have at most three months to
live. I have inoperable cancer. How does one deal
with something like this?"
Dear Bill,
Your case defies a clear classification. Incurable cancer is
a problem without a solution. Still, as long as we are alive, we
still have to make choices or from a more positive perspective, we get
to make choices. These choices may be the most important
ones of your life as they are likely to be your last. How
do want to go out of this life and enter into the next?
You get to choose. Since time is of the essence, one of your
criteria is one of timeliness. You need to pick your projects
wisely. Do not start any four month tasks unless someone else
can complete them for you without your direction. How much
of what you still want to do can you do in three months? I
expect one could do a lot. What resources could you hire
to leverage or expedite what you want to accomplish?
What can you do that gets you the most satisfaction in the time you
have remaining, creates a lasting legacy, and prepares you and your
loved one's for the end?. I suspect that you still
have some burning passions left in you that need to come out in the
next three months. So, I would classify your case as one
of decision making.
I suggest you start with a list of everything you want to accomplish between now and the end...whenever it comes. The list should include the obvious preparations for death. The list should also include as much living as one can squeeze into three months. Once you write this list, rank-order everything based on you personal values. Remember, time is a constraint. If an item on the list exceeds three months, it should be practical to complete even in your absence. Find people who can help you fast-track or compress time for anything on the list that requires time to complete. Delegate anything on the list that is grudge work so that you can devote yourself to what is most pleasant and enjoyable to you. Start on the items on the list that are the most important to you and that takes the longest to complete. And then, proceed down the list until time runs out. Repeat the items on the list that give you the most pleasure. Build them into each day. Eliminate anything that give you grief. Give them to someone else to deal with.
Finally, your attitude will the most important choice for you to make. There is only one real choice here for attitude, you must choose to be as upbeat as possible. You want the last days of your life to be the best days of your life. My wish for you is the best three months any person has every lived.
