Life's Fragility: Embracing What Truly Matters Before It's Too Late

What would change in your priorities if today was the day your life was turned upside down?  I explore how quickly time passes and why we continue postponing our dreams with the false promise of "tomorrow." Whether it's a devastating diagnosis, sudden loss, or unexpected disaster, these moments instantly render our career ambitions, social media metrics, and material pursuits meaningless. Yet we don't need tragedy to realign our priorities.

This episode serves as both wake-up call and invitation to examine what truly matters. Are you putting off that career change because you're afraid? Neglecting relationships while chasing status? Delaying experiences that would bring genuine joy? I challenge you to stop waiting for some future ideal moment and start living authentically now.

The most ordinary days—the ones we take for granted—are often what we'll miss most when they're gone. By recognizing life's fragility, we gain perspective that can transform how we spend our precious time. After all, for someone out there, today is the day they'd give anything to return to what you might consider just an ordinary day.

Take chances. Express love. Forgive quickly. Appreciate simple joys. Because one day, your life will change in an unexpected way—and when that happens, what will you wish you had done differently? Don't wait for that wake-up call to start living fully.

Instagram: @mikemuldoonlc
Website: www.themikemuldoonpodcast.com
Linkedin: www.linkedin.com/company/mike-muldoon-podcast

Episode Transcript

Speaker 1 (00:00):
Hey y'all, welcome to this episode of the Unlikable
Dude Podcast.
Thanks so much for joining me.
Glad you're here Always, alwaysappreciate that.
Thank you so much.
Been here for years.
I'm glad a lot of you're stillwith me.
Please just make sure thatyou're hitting that subscribe
button, your Apple, your Spotifyand maybe sharing it with a
friend or a family member whomight be able to use it.
But anyway, today I'm here alittle late.
I'm here a little bit late.

(00:21):
Normally I try to do my podcasta little bit earlier in a week,
but this is going to getreleased in a few hours.
It's Thursday night.
But I want to talk aboutsomething that I often think
about and it's kind of ironicbecause sometimes I use it as a
motivating thing in my life tokind of push through things,
especially about to take a riskor just try to push through some

(00:42):
fear or something like that,and it's probably not the best
thing to think about, but itreally is true and really what I
want to talk about today isreally just focusing on again
what I do talk about in the past, about living your life, just
understanding that time is shortand you've got to take chances
and you've got to live your lifeand also use it with life.
Remember to really focus onthings that really truly matter.

(01:05):
So you know, I guess what I'msaying here is every single day
someone somewhere receives lifeshattering news.
Now I wish the news every dayeverybody got was life altering
in the most positive, incredibleway.
You got the best job, the bestgig, the best whatever, the best
relationship, whatever.
But a lot of times, you know,you know someone somewhere is,

(01:26):
and it happens every day becausethat's just the reality of it's
going to happen.
Every day somewhere around theworld that's happening where
people are really receiving thislike life shattering news.
You know it's a diagnosis, it'san accident, it's a sudden loss
, it's a phone call that shiftsreality in an instant.
You know, just a few weeks ago,those fires in Los Angeles.
You know how many people justone day house was there, next

(01:49):
day everything is gone.
And it's in these moments thatall these things right, that you
know we may chase or thinksimportant.
Or you know our careers,promotions, money, status
suddenly mean nothing.
You know we go through lifewith an unspoken belief that

(02:10):
tomorrow will look a lot liketoday.
Right, that we'll wake up, goto work, check our emails, run
errands and continue the cycle.
We stress over deadlines, weobsess over job titles, we
measure success in paychecks andpossessions, we put off chasing

(02:32):
dreams or doing things that wewant to do because we just
figure we'll get to it tomorrowwhen, realistically, we're just
too scared to take that firststep.
If you really dig deep, that'sreally what it just comes down
to taking a risk.
But for someone out there,today is the day where
everything changes, and that'swhat I want to talk about today.

(03:18):
Again, as much as I'd love thatchange to be something
life-altering in terms of, hey,you won the lottery or, you know
, you got that big promotion,job, romantic relationship
opportunity, whatever it isyou're looking for.
That I wish it was, but forsome it's not.
You know, maybe it's a.
It's a mother who found out herchild is sick.
It's a.

(03:39):
It's a man sitting in adoctor's office hearing words
that will alter the rest of hislife.
It's a.
It's a woman who, or a man whojust lost their spouse in some
unexpected tragedy.
I mean, their world was oncefilled with plans and ambitions
and it's completely reduced to asingle overwhelming reality,
which really just becomessurvival.

(04:01):
And the thing is when thesemoments come and they will come
for all of us.
At some point, these things weonce prioritized seemed
laughable.
You know, when that momenthappens, all these other things
will seem just so insignificant.
The work meeting that felt sourgent, meaningless, the
instagram likes irrelevant, theendless chase for the next big

(04:24):
thing hollow.
Because what matters in thosemoments are the things we often
take for granted the people welove, the time we have with them
, the simple joy we oftenoverlook.
You know, think about the lastargument you had over something
trivial.
Think about the last time youput off calling someone because
you were too busy.
Think about those hours lost instress over things that, in the

(04:46):
grand scheme of things, won'teven be a footnote in your life
story.
Yeah, that's why it's importantto live like it matters, before
it's too late, you know.
Take those chances that you haveto Take those risks.
Step into the fear to pushyourself forward if you're

(05:07):
unhappy.
See, the thing is we don't haveto wait for tragedy to remind
us of what is important to us,which is again whether it's
family, friends, whatever it is,or what we really want to be
doing with our lives, like wecan choose right now to shift
our priorities to chase ourdreams, to refocus ourselves

(05:29):
back in with the people thatmatters Again.
Maybe you know, shifting yourpriority away from your family,
not your family.
Shifting your priority awayfrom your work to your family.
Or shifting your priority awayfrom your family, not your
family.
Shifting your priority awayfrom your work to your family.
Or shifting your priority awayfrom doing something that makes
you unhappy to something that'sgonna make you happy, you know,
to stop living like you know youhave all this time in the world
.
Or maybe stop measuring successby things that again won't hold

(05:53):
meaning when your life turnsupside down.
So, in personal ways, you know,tell people you love them.
Don't assume they already know.
Say it, show it, be present.
The best moments in life are.
They're happening in front ofyou, they're not on a screen.
Forgive quickly, life's tooshort to hold on to resentment.
But really, where I'm gettinghere?
Stop waiting to do the thingsthat you know you want to do, to

(06:17):
step out of that career, tostep into that relationship,
whatever it is for you, you know.
You know you're just lying toyourself about I'll do it
tomorrow.
I'll do it tomorrow and itcould be something.
Maybe not even that major, youknow, maybe it's that trip you
want to take, you know, or again, you know this dream vacation
that you've been holding ontobut you, you know you just won't

(06:40):
find the time for you know, oragain, that that dream that you
just have in general, whateverit is, start now, see,
appreciate the ordinary Of eachday right now as an opportunity
To then move into the life youwant, because one day you may
look back and realize it wasnever ordinary at all.
One day, your life will changein a way you've never expected,

(07:05):
and when that happens, what willyou wish you had done
differently?
Don't wait for that wake upcall.
Live now, chase your dreams now, love now, because for someone
out there, today is the daythey'd give anything to go back
to Just an ordinary day, allright, and that's what I got for

(07:29):
you today.
I know that was a little heavy,but again, this is the stuff
that sometimes I think about,that when I'm about to try
something new or step into a newuh, venture which I'm doing
right now and we'll talk moreabout it over the next few weeks
Um, I try to remind myself andlife short, you got to take
chances.
It's an opportunity to just gofor it.

(07:49):
You know there are people outthere dealing with much worse Um
, and I hate saying it as amotivating factor, but it's just
, it's just a gentle reminderthat again, life's too short.
I'm at 50 people, I'm 50.
I don't feel 50.
I don't think I look 50.
Maybe I do, I don't know.
But I just how did I get here?
I know how I got here.
I mean, I know how I got here,but time is zipping, it's moving

(08:12):
, you know, and it's's insane,and there's just still so much
that I want to do and um, and Ijust I try to remind myself that
don't fall into just this lullof just every day is guaranteed
and everything is tomorrow'spromised and all that stuff.
That life is now and you've gotto make these decisions now,
whatever it is for you, andthat's what you have to do have

(08:33):
to sort of dig down deep likewhat is it for you?
What?
What's holding you back?
What haven't you been doing?
What you could you be doing alittle bit more?
You know it's really hard,because for everybody that's
going to be something different.
Though, when I hear a lot ofpeople are unhappy and a lot of
times it is careers, it'srelationships.
It's money, whatever it is, butI'm going to do it tomorrow.
I'll do it tomorrow, I'll do itnext week.

(08:56):
I think I've talked about thisin the past with me.
I remember smoking.
I used to be a smoker way backin the day, 20 something years
ago and I remember, ah, I'llquit smoking when things get
better.
But you know what?
The day you quit smoking, it'sthe worst day in your life, it
doesn't.
So, anyway, all I'm saying hereis take an opportunity,

(09:17):
prioritize the things thatmatter to you and start moving
into the direction of the lifethat you want to be living,
because, like I said, every daysomebody gets a call that sends
their whole world completelyspiraling and gets them looking
at all the stuff that theythought was important, or all
those things that they didn't dothey would have loved to have
had an opportunity to do now.
So, all right, everybody,that's all I got for you today.
I wish you the best.
Thank you again for being here.

(09:39):
My book's out Five Basic Keysfor Living Successfully In
Between.
You could probably read it inone sitting.
I'd love to hear your feedbackon it.
So when you're buying a book,make sure you just leave a
review Again.
Podcast, apple, spotify.
Please make sure you're savingme so you get every episode.
I'm here with you.
I've been here for years.
Share with your friends,families, people you think might
need it.
You know there's a lot of stuffgoing on in the world right now

(10:00):
, so you know people might beuneasy.
I'm sure I've got a podcastepisode now that might just feel
like you know somebody's therewith them.
Because that's my journey here.
I never come at you from apoint of view so successful.
Now Let me tell you how I gotthat.
If you go back and listen to mypodcast in the beginning,
you're going to go through a lotof things with me, including
loss, including one of thosedays where my life changed when

(10:21):
I got the phone call from mymother that my father passed
away.
So you'll experience my journey.
I'm here with you on thejourney.
I'm continually on my journey.
I'm continually trying to getto other places as well and keep
living more of a fulfillinglife.
So I'm glad you're with me.
Thank you next time.