(Note: This is based on one of the prompts from Robert S. Kaplan’s book What You’re Really Meant to Do.)

OK, this is a basic one and something that I’ve kind of talked around in previous posts. It’s the classic question that’s meant to get to the heart of what’s really important to you, where you would be putting your time and energy if you literally had nothing else to lose, if you were able to no longer worry about “making a living” and just live, with the added benefit of there being no repercussions to your actions.

So what’s on my list?

Family

This one’s a no brainer. If I have one year left to live and money isn’t a concern, I’m spending time with my family. Let’s travel, let’s go for walks in state parks and otherwise let’s experience the world. I may not have much time left but my kids still have a lot of years ahead of them. So let’s let them see as much of it as possible and enjoy everything being offered.

Writing

This might seem silly, but I’d put everything else aside – ditch the blog, ditch freelancing and everything else – and focus on finishing my novel. That’s because I’d like to put something positive out into the world, something original and something tangible. This blog is great, as are all the other opportunities I’ve been given, but I’d finish my novel and try to get it published so that there was something my family could hold and say “He did this,” some marker that I was here.

How about you? How would you answer this question?