19 Thought Provoking Questions to Contemplate Before You Die

“The unexamined life is not worth living.” ~ Socrates

It’s a crazy thing isn’t it?

That as human beings, we’re blessed, or cursed, with the knowledge that we will one day die.

But you know what’s even crazier? That in our everyday lives, we forget that our time on earth is limited. We simply move from day to day without ever stopping to reflect on what our lives are about.

All the hours you spend at work. All the people you spend your time with. All the things you worry about. What’s it all for?

You’ve probably stopped and asked yourself this question a time or two, especially in moments when it felt like life was knocking you down. The blessings of times like this is that you’re forced to slow down and reflect on the life you’re living.

It can be hard to examine your life, but doing so can yield powerful insights to help you enrich your life and the lives of others.

If you’re living with the vague feeling that life feels more like a series of meaningless moments, contemplating these questions may provide the antidote to your spiritual malaise:

1. What are you willing to die for?

Not sure what your core values are? Contemplate this question. Study the lives of martyrs down the ages. People like Dr. Martin Luther King, Mahatma Gandhi, or Dietrich Bonhoeffer.

2. What would you do for free?

Not sure what to do with your life? Find out what you would do for free and start doing it. Trust that the money will follow in order to sustain you in what you were made to do.

3. Who do you worship?

Religious or not, humans are made for worship. If it’s not God, it’s something or someone else. Who is it? What is it? Are they worthy of your worship?

4. Who do you blame for your problems?

Who have you locked away in your hidden dungeon of blame? Your mom? The stranger? God? Your boss? What if you freed them? How might you free yourself from your self-imposed prison?

5. Who do you need to forgive?

This question is for the people who legitimately “deserve” to be in your dungeon. Can you find it in your heart to free them, too?

6. What pain are you willing to tolerate?

May not look like it on the surface, but your approach to this question can make all the difference between success and failure. What pain are you willing to tolerate in order to have a good marriage? Or to become a bestselling author? Or to live a life of integrity?

7. How would you like to be remembered a hundred years from now?

Would it matter whether or not you were remembered? If so, what are the top three words you’d like people to use when describing you?

8. What will happen to you after you die?

Do you believe your soul will live on in one form or another? Do you believe in a bodily resurrection? Do you believe it all ends when you die? Not sure? Examining your beliefs can help you gain clarity on how to live.

9. Who would you handpick to accompany you in battle?

Make a list of three to five people. These are probably the people you have the deepest friendships with. These are the people to whom you entrust your deepest secrets, and your life. No one on the list? It’s time to start developing some friendships.

10. What is the value of suffering?

Next time you’re tempted to ask, “Why me?” ask this question instead. It’s a much more useful question that can potentially allow you to thrive no matter what’s going on in your life.

11. Where are your blind spots?

Just asking the question alone puts you in rarefied company since precious few of us actually believe we have any blind spots. Exploring the question will undoubtedly lead to greater self knowledge.

12. What do you love most about yourself?

So many of us struggle to love, even like, ourselves. Challenge the internal belief that you’re unlovable with this question. Force yourself to come up with a few answers, even seemingly trivial or insignificant options.

13. What do you fear most?

Your shadow? Your wildest dreams? Death? Allow yourself to explores your biggest fears with this question. You might be surprised to learn that they’re not as scary as you once thought.

14. What world are you creating for your great-great-grandchildren?

Would they be happy about what you left them? Would they have clean water to drink and clean air to breathe? Would they have any privacy, or will there be a data point for their every moment from birth to death? Would you be happy to see them living in the world you are creating?

15. What gives you joy?

Bathing under a waterfall? Making a baby belly laugh? Feeding the poor? Do more of that.

16. Who’s holding you back?

Think of a person or circumstance you believe is holding you back from pursuing something you want? Are they really that powerful?

17. Who do you want to inspire?

Do you want to inspire young people to care about public policy? Or people to care about the environment? Start crafting and sharing the message you’re most passionate about.

18. What are your beliefs about money?

Do you feel like you don’t have enough? Do you feel guilty for having some? Do you believe it’s a measure of your worth? Are you willing to give anything in exchange for it?

19. What would the final sentence of your autobiography say?

Would it be inspirational? Tragic? Unfinished?

Question your way to a better life

Spend time with these questions. Which ones were the most thought provoking for you?

Allow them to challenge your thinking. Who knows, they may pave the way for new possibilities you never imagined for yourself.