"Your time is limited, so don’t let it be wasted living someone else’s life." -Steve Jobs, CEO Apple Computer, CEO Pixar

For Steve Jobs, getting a college degree meant living someone else’s life; so he dropped out. But studying unrelated subjects that interested him represented his own life, and so he started “dropping in” on classes that piqued his curiosity. One of those classes was calligraphy—a class that included the study of fonts. No one could have guessed that this seemingly frivolous class would one day culminate in the magnificent fonts displayed on the Macintosh computer. Of course, no one could have guessed it, because Jobs hadn’t yet co-founded Apple Computer. For that matter, he hadn’t founded NeXT software yet or inaugurated the revival of animated films through his leadership of Pixar. And he certainly hadn’t introduced the iPod—a product that relegated the once mighty Walkman to the status of an also ran. The calligraphy class was at the start of living his own life and he’s spent his adulthood doing just that. But it wasn’t until he was diagnosed with cancer (a rare, but treatable form) that he realized just how limited time could be.

Too many folks spend their entire lives living someone else’s life. From how to make a living, to where to live, to whom to marry: they move with the flow of someone else’s expectations. Sure, they get by, they’re comfortable and they even find some degree of pleasure. But there are always soft, lingering regrets and barely acknowledged what ifs that invade their solitary moments.

If circumstances haven’t handed you someone else’s life to live, the media will help you out. They’ll make sure you understand that you can never be thin enough, rich enough, sexy enough or interesting enough. And when you’re convinced, they’ll sell you everything you need to lead that magical celebrity lifestyle. You’ll realize too late that it’s all hype and that it can’t give you what you need.

And it can be the same way at work. What once looked like a challenging opportunity becomes just a job. The culture is a bad fit and no amount of complaining will make it better. But it’s steady and you have responsibilities and bills to pay, so you try to live the life the company has handed you. In the end, you become someone you don’t even recognize.

Your time is limited. Are you living some one else’s life? Do you even know what your own life looks like? Now is the time to connect with your interests, your passions and most of all, your values. If you live what you value you can’t help but discover your own life. This isn’t about being blithely happy; although that might be a byproduct. When you live your own life, everyone you touch and everything you do is enriched. When Steve Jobs introduced the Mac, it was described as an insanely great product. You can have an insanely great life. But do it now. Your time is limited.

About the Author:

George Ebert is the President of Trinity River Seminars and Consulting, a firm specializing in the custom design and delivery of team building, personal growth and ethical development programs. Mr. Ebert is a highly sought after speaker, educator, and consultant with over thirty years experience in both the public and private sectors. He has presented widely throughout the Unites States. George is the author of the management cult classic, "Climbing From the Fifth Station: A guide to building teams that work!"

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