Run Your Business Like It’s Your Last Day
(Because One Day, It Will Be)
What Marcus Aurelius Knew About Success That Most Entrepreneurs Ignore
Bobby was the kind of doctor everyone wants to have. His patients loved him. His staff loved him. We loved working with him. Even in an age of rushed appointments and assembly-line medicine, he took time with his patients. He had a stellar reputation. He was doing everything right.
Then, in his early forties, he had a massive stroke. Just like that, his medical career was over.
But here’s the thing: if you’d asked any of his patients or staff, they would tell you he practiced medicine exactly the way it should be practiced, right up until his last day. He didn’t cut corners. He didn’t rush patients. He did the job the way it was meant to be done.
He didn’t know his last day in medicine would come so soon. But if you asked the people around him, they’d tell you this: he practiced every day as if it might be.
Marcus Aurelius wrote, “Do every act of your life as though it were the very last act of your life.”
That doctor lived this principle. So did my friend Carlene, a nurse who used to work for my home health agency. She left to open a personal care home for seniors who needed extensive personal attention. Some people thought she was crazy to leave a stable job for the risks of business ownership. But she had a calling—she knew exactly how she wanted to care for seniors, and she went for it.
She ended up opening more than one home and cared for countless seniors along the way. When she was diagnosed with cancer, she could look back knowing she hadn’t waited to make her impact. She hadn’t postponed her dreams until “someday.” She lived her calling every day she had.
These stories keep coming back to me because they highlight something most business owners get wrong: we act like we have all the time in the world.
The Someday Trap
Business today feels more chaotic than ever. We’re constantly connected and endlessly interrupted. It’s easier than ever to lose sight of what matters. We spend our days putting out fires. Technology promises to make everything easier, but somehow, we end up working more and meaning less.
Most of us live like we have unlimited time to get things right.
“When business is more stable, I’ll…” “Once we hit our revenue goals, I’ll…” “After we get through this busy season, I’ll…”
Too often, we postpone the meaningful parts of business for some future date that may never come. We put off:
- Having difficult conversations that could make our businesses better
- Making changes that would align our work with our values
- Building the kind of business we really want to run
- Spending time with the people who matter most
I hear you saying, “That sounds nice, but I have bills to pay. I have employees who depend on me. I can’t just focus on meaning and ignore profits.”
We convince ourselves we’re being responsible. Strategic. Smart.
But what if today really was your last day in business? Would you be proud of how you’re running things?
The Hidden Cost of Waiting
I knew a business owner who spent fifteen years building a successful company. He had plans to change things “someday”—to spend more time with his kids, to mentor his employees, to give back to his community. But he was always too busy putting out fires, chasing the next deal, and keeping up with competitors.
By the time he was ready to make those changes, his kids were grown, some of his best employees had left for more fulfilling work, and his community had given up asking for his help.
Marcus Aurelius warned us about this, too: “You could leave life right now. Let that determine what you do and say and think.”
What Changes When You Run Out of Time
People who know they’re running out of time stop pretending they have endless time to waste. I’ve seen it happen—when business owners face their own mortality, or when they lose someone close to them. They stop:
- Tolerating toxic clients or employees
- Putting off difficult decisions
- Making compromises they don’t believe in
- Waiting to make a difference
They start:
- Building businesses that reflect their values
- Making time for what matters
- Having honest conversations
- Doing meaningful work now, not later
Here’s the paradox: businesses run this way often become more successful, not less. When you stop postponing meaning for profit, you often end up with both.
Your Business Ripples Further Than You Know
That doctor’s impact wasn’t just on his patients—it was on their families, who had peace of mind knowing their loved ones were in good hands. It was on his staff who learned what good medicine looks like. It was on the next generation of doctors who heard stories about how medicine should be practiced.
My friend’s care homes didn’t just help seniors—they gave adult children peace of mind, showed staff members what compassionate care looks like, and set a standard for what senior care could be.
Every business decision you make creates ripples that extend far beyond the immediate transaction.
Three Questions That Change Everything
- If this was your last day in business, would you be proud of how you treat your employees and customers?
- Are you building something worth leaving behind?
- Does your business enhance your life, or is it consuming it?
These aren’t theoretical questions. That doctor didn’t know his last day was coming. My friend didn’t know cancer was in her future. None of us knows how much time we have.
Making It Real: Starting Today
So how do you actually run a business this way? Start here:
- Stop Postponing Impact What meaningful change have you been putting off? Which relationships have you been neglecting? What conversation have you been avoiding? What difference could you make today?
- Build What Matters Now Beyond profit, what does success in business mean to you? How do you want customers to feel after interacting with you? What do you want your employees to say about working for you? How can you create the culture you want today, not “someday”?
- Start Small but Start Now
- Choose one meaningful change you can make this week
- Have one conversation you’ve been putting off
- Make one decision based purely on values rather than profits
Marcus Aurelius reminded us: “Waste no more time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one.”
The same applies to business: waste no more time arguing about what a good business should be. Build one.
The Real Bottom Line
Your business isn’t just about what you build. It’s about who you become while building it. And none of us knows how much time we have to become that person.
That doctor? His patients still talk about him years later. Not because he had the biggest practice or made the most money, but because he practiced medicine the way it was meant to be practiced, every single day.
My friend? The families of the seniors she cared for still remember how she transformed their loved ones’ final years. Not because she built an empire, but because she lived her calling fully.
Marcus Aurelius also wrote, “Do not act as if you had a thousand years to live… while you have life in you, while you still can, make yourself good.”
The same applies to your business: don’t act as if you have forever to build something meaningful. While you still can, build something good. The time to build something meaningful isn’t someday. It’s today.
What would you do differently if you ran your business like today was your last day?
What’s stopping you from doing that now?
The clock is ticking. Start now.
