“If you only had one year left to live, how would you invest your remaining time?
I'd want to launch my son into his next chapter in a meaningful and powerful way."

If you only had one year left to live, how would you invest your remaining time?

I had to answer this question a few years ago.

A few things came to mind immediately...

At the top on my list was the following; a Rite-of-Passage ceremony for my first-born son, by gathering influential men together for Jacob’s 18th Birthday.

I’d want to launch my son into his next chapter in a meaningful and powerful way.

I talked to my wife Beverly and told her what I was feeling. We both got emotional talking about it.

I knew we had to act.

I’d had heard of something similar from a mentor of mine named Mike Hardwick, and I called him to get a better idea of what he had done for his son Lawson many years back.

This invitation then went out to a select respected group of men of wisdom and influence.

It came with two specific requests:

1) Bring a book as a gift. Choose a book that has helped shape your thinking.

2) Write a life lesson or share something meaningful on the inside cover.

(This will help my son jumpstart his library with 20+ books that he can read and reference.)

Each man will have a few minutes to also share along the following lines:

What book did you choose? Why?

Share a life lesson with Jacob.

(Or, what advice would you give your 18 year old self?)

21 men were chosen to participate in the ceremony, present a book, and share from both the mind and the heart. The majority of them have had some level of influence, whether small or large, in Jacob's life over the years.

The evening really came together beautifully, as we had perspective and wisdom spanning 5 decades of life.

I decided to have my dad share first to kick off the evening.

Dad is 73 and is as smart and as wise as they come, decorated both academically and professionally. (In fact, he has read 1293 books since Jacob was born. Yes, he kept track.)

After my dad, we went to the younger men and rolled through the decades, having each man share his book and his lesson.

The youngest presenter was a very successful business owner, wise beyond his years at only 29.

We moved through time and ages... 30’s, 40’s, 50’s, 60’s and 70’s.

Some men shared successes.

Some men shared failures.

There were some emotional moments.

Half a century of perspective and experience poured into an 18 year-old young man (and into 5 of his buddies that served as wingmen).

It was fascinating to hear each man speak and to see what book they chose and why.

So much thought and care poured from each man. I was in awe.

To close our the evening, I asked Todd Duncan, a long time mentor of mine (and best selling author many times over) to present his book and share with my son and the group of men.

He spoke from the heart. Todd is a gifted speaker, and as good as it gets when delivering a powerful and relevant message.

The evening was everything I hoped it would be and more. (We also recorded the evening and each man's presentation for Jacob’s future reference.)

I personally believe that we have way more influence on our future and the future of our loved ones simply by living with intention.

At the top of the list is learning through mentors. The shared wisdom of others accelerates our path toward purpose, success, and fulfillment.

Here is a picture of the books he received. I’m still processing the evening, as I’m sure I will be for some time. I have no doubt my son will be as well.

Fortunately, this “one-year-to-live” was a theoretical exercise. But I’m forever grateful for being challenged to think through this.

It moved me beyond my self-centered interests toward thoughts of giving and legacy.

If you’d like to do this wisdom-for-the-next-chapter “Rite of Passage” event or something similar, I’m writing out the evening and ceremony in play-by-play format.

(Send an email or a message through the contact form if you liked the play-by-play format of the evening)

I’d be more than happy to share this blueprint to help inspire as many adults and young men as possible.

Life is a gift. If you had just one year to live, what would you do with your remaining time?

Think about it.

Talk about it.

Pray about it.

Now take action.