The below book review is from Jerry Lopper on Suite101.com
Five Secrets You Must Discover Before You Die reveals the recipe for living happily and dying well. Izzo, author of Second Innocence, compiled interviews of over 200 people over the age of 59, looking for common threads and themes for how to live so that one could die happy.
Izzo and his team asked over fifteen thousand people to recommend "wise elders," those who might have the answers to finding happiness and living wisely. Of the one thousand nominated, Izzo's team focused on a diverse group of 235 people from all over North America.
Meaning, Purpose, and Regret
Izzo found that the two things humans want most are to find joy and contentment (happiness), while living a full life with meaning (life purpose).
The greatest fear expressed was not the fear of death, but the fear of dying with regrets about life.
The Five Secrets
Izzo chose the word secret to describe the five common themes for living wisely not because they are unknown, but because so few people apply them to their own lives.
Live Life's Purpose
The first secret is Be True to Yourself. Another way to state this is to find your life purpose and live it. Izzo found that people facing death with anger and bitterness were likely to be harboring regrets about their lives. Those who were true to themselves and life purpose were more peaceful and serene about the natural end of the life cycle.
Leave No Regrets
The second secret Izzo learned is to Leave No Regrets. "One of the most interesting things I discovered ... is that almost no one regretted risks they took that did not work out and most said they wished they had risked more." Izzo advises that we move toward what we want rather than moving away from what we fear.
Choose Unconditional Love
Become Love is the third secret. Izzo's description of becoming love is the act of choosing to love others and to act with love in all situations. This is also known as unconditional love. He found that "the greatest source of happiness for people and the largest place of regret had to do with people."
Stop Judging Start Living
The fourth secret is to Live the Moment. The interviewees commonly reflected on how fast life goes by and how important it is to enjoy each moment. One woman said, "You have to stop judging your life and start living your life. Stop keeping score trying to decide if you are winning. Instead live each day fully and stay in the moment."
Several wise elders revealed how they start each day with a prayer of gratitude for the opportunity to live that day, and end the day with thanks and appreciation for the day's experiences.
Be of Service
The fifth and final secret is to Give More Than You Take. Izzo indicates, "When I asked people what gave their life the greatest meaning, people told me again and again that being of service and knowing that you made things better because you were here was by far the greatest source of meaning."
The Wisdom of Elders
None of the secrets are new revelations, but learning the tenets of living that these people, all viewed as wise by those who know them, embraced is a valuable handbook enabling those early in their lives to benefit from the wisdom and experience of those who have gone before.
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