"People can tell you what to do, but ultimately, we're all going to die, so how do you want to live?"

Advice from others is a constant presence in life, echoing through families, cultures, schools, and the media. Recommendations, rules, expectations, they all attempt to shape choices and steer destinies. Yet, despite all external influence, the inevitability of mortality looms for every individual. No matter how many prescriptions for happiness, warnings against mistakes, or instructions for success we receive, none of them change the fundamental fact that life is finite.

Understanding life’s limited duration gives every choice a distinct weight. With death as the common denominator, the pressure to blindly conform to external expectations diminishes. The question then shifts from “What should I do?” to “What do I truly want out of my life?” There is sudden freedom in knowing that the only certainty is the end; therefore, authenticity takes priority over obligation. There may always be people advising a certain career, relationship, or lifestyle, sometimes out of love, sometimes out of cultural inertia, but only the individual bears the consequences and rewards of their own decisions.

When mortality becomes central in contemplation, everyday choices acquire urgency and clarity. Time wasted fulfilling someone else’s vision is time irretrievably lost. Each day becomes an opportunity to live intentionally: to choose relationships that enrich, to pursue passions that ignite, to speak truths that matter, and to heed one’s own inner compass. Living with awareness of death is not morbid; rather, it brings attention to what is vital, joyful, and meaningful.

Ultimately, the quote urges a kind of radical self-responsibility, an invitation to reflect on what genuinely matters and to shape existence accordingly. Freedom resides in recognizing the limits of life and embracing the agency to define what makes each moment worthwhile. In the end, the way one chooses to live is the only legacy left behind, making it essential to live authentically and boldly, while time remains.