I thought Steve Job’s last letter was really inspirational, since the stage he’s reached in life is what we all (especially as engineers/tech majors) strive to, but in the end he’s learned that there’s a world outside of what we esteem: He died a billionaire at 56 yrs of Pancreatic Cancer and here are his last gifts to us…his thoughts on Life.

Steve Jobs said before his death:

“I reached the pinnacle of success in the business world. In others’ eyes my life is an epitome of success. However, aside from work, I have little joy. In the end, wealth is only a fact of life that I am accustomed to. At this moment, lying on the sick bed and recalling my whole life, I realize that all the recognition and wealth that I took so much pride in, have paled and become meaningless in the face of impending death.

You can employ someone to drive the car for you, make money for you but you cannot have someone to bear the sickness for you. Material things lost can be found. But there is one thing that can never be found when it is lost – “Life”. When a person goes into the operating room, he will realize that there is one book that he has yet to finish reading – “Book of Healthy Life”. Whichever stage in life we are at right now, with time, we will face the day when the curtain comes down. Treasure Love for your family, love for your spouse, love for your friends… Treat yourself well. Cherish others.

As we grow older, and hence wiser, we slowly realize that wearing a $300 or $30 watch – they both tell the same story at the same time… Whether we carry a $300 or $30 wallet/handbag – the amount of money inside is the same; Whether we drive a $150,000 car or a $30,000 car, the road and distance is the same, and we get to the same destination. Whether we drink a bottle of $300 or $10 wine – the hangover is the same; Whether the house we live in is 300 or 3000 sq ft – loneliness is the same.

You will realize, your true inner happiness does not come from the material things of this world. Whether you fly first or economy class, if the plane goes down – you go down with it… Therefore… I hope you realize, when you have mates, buddies and old friends, brothers and sisters, who you chat with, laugh with, talk with, sing songs with, talk about north-south-east-west or heaven and earth, that is true happiness!! Steve Jobs’ ‘genius’ stemmed from being ‘one of the most disagreeable people in history,’ Marc Andreessen says

Five Undeniable Facts of Life:

1. Don’t educate your children to be rich. Educate them to be Happy. So when they grow up they will know the value of things, not the price.

2. Best awarded words in London. “Eat your food as your medicine. Otherwise you have to eat medicine as your food.”

3. The One who loves you will never leave you for another because even if there are 100 reasons to give up he or she will find one reason to hold on.

4. There is a big difference between a human being and being human. Only a few really understand it.

5. You are loved when you are born. You will be loved when you die. In between, You have to manage!

NOTE: If you just want to Walk Fast, Walk Alone! But if you want to Walk Far, Walk Together!

Six Best Doctors in the World;

1. Sunlight
2. Rest
3. Exercise
4. Diet
5. Self Confidence and
6. Friends

Maintain them in all stages of Life and enjoy a healthy life.

6 Best Doctors in The World (Evergreen List)

“You can employ someone to drive the car for you, make money for you, but you cannot have someone bear your sickness for you. Material things lost can be found or replaced. But there is one thing that can never be found when it’s lost – Life.” – Steve Jobs

This brilliant excerpt from one of Steve Jobs’ last essays truly resonates with us. We all have a finite number of breaths in this life. Instead of endlessly pursuing materialistic pleasures, let’s redirect our attention to what truly matters: elevating our quality of life.

Are These the Last Words of Billionaire Steve Gouves? | Snopes.com

As Wayne Fields said in his nursery rhyme, “the best six doctors anywhere and no one can deny it, are sunshine, water, rest, and air, exercise and diet.

“The best six doctors anywhere
And no one can deny it
Are sunshine, water, rest, and air
Exercise and diet.
These six will gladly you attend
If only you are willing
Your mind they’ll ease
Your will they’ll mend
And charge you not a shilling.”

— Nursery rhyme quoted by Wayne Fields, What the River Knows, 1990”

There is a lot of truth to the above quote. Let’s break it down further.

The Six Best Doctors in the World

In our fast-paced lives, we often overlook the simple yet profound elements that contribute t o our well-being. Today, let’s explore the six best doctors in the world, which are not found in a clinic but in the essence of life itself:

1. Sunlight

Sunlight is a natural source of Vitamin D, which is essential for bone health and immune function. Exposure to sunlight can boost your mood and energy levels, making it a vital component of a healthy lifestyle. Try to spend at least 15-30 minutes outside each day!

Plan to get in both morning and midday sun; as little as 3-15 minutes of sunshine per day has been shown to have benefits for certain populations.

Research has shown sunshine has a positive effect on mood and sleep and is critical for producing vitamin D in our bodies. The primary way to get vitamin D is by exposing your bare skin to sunlight; the secondary method is to take vitamin D supplements.

You can’t get the right amount of vitamin D your body needs from food alone. Recent studies have found that vitamin D helps you make serotonin, one of our bodies feel good hormones. Healthy serotonin levels result in a more positive mood and a calm yet focused mental outlook.

Studies have also found that when people are exposed to sunlight (or very bright artificial light) in the morning, their nocturnal melatonin production occurs sooner, and they enter into sleep more easily at night.

Beyond the obvious improvements in wellbeing with improved mood and sleep, optimal vitamin D levels have been found to be of clinical benefit against cancer, cardiovascular disease, high blood pressure, obesity, type 2 diabetes, cognitive impairment, Parkinson’s disease, fractures and falls, autoimmune disease, influenza, and more.

The exact amount of sunshine needed per day to maintain optimal vitamin D levels depends on many factors, including where you live, the time of day, the color of your skin, and the amount of skin you expose.

2. Rest

Rest is crucial for both physical and mental health. Quality sleep helps our bodies recover and rejuvenate.

Prioritizing rest can improve focus, enhance mood, and increase overall productivity. Aim for 7-9 hours of sleep each night for optimal health.

Make sleep a priority, not a luxury; get a minimum 7-8.5 hours of sleep per night.

Under strict experimental conditions, short-term restriction of sleep results in a variety of adverse physiologic effects, including activation of the sympathetic nervous system (our ‘flight or fight’ or ‘stress’ response), high blood pressure, impairment of blood sugar control, increased inflammation, depressed immunity, and poor cognitive performance. Imagine what it can do over a lifetime.

Just one night of poor sleep has been shown to have a significant impact on affect/mood, anxiety levels, and emotional reactivity. Your body actually remembers all the sleep it should have gotten but didn’t – something called sleep debt – and the more in sleep debt you are, the less capable you are of recognizing it. When fatigue, irritability, and brain fog have set it, we can hardly recall what it is like to feel truly rested.

If you have an issue with sleep beyond prioritizing its hours, speak with your health coach to devise a plan on how to get you sleeping better. A health coach can discuss the importance of sleep hygiene (bedtime routine and environment) and what else may be getting in the way (for example, hormones – elevated stress hormones, fluctuations in sex hormones, or melatonin).

3. Exercise

Regular Exercise is a powerful medicine.

It strengthens the heart, improves circulation, and releases endorphins, which are natural mood lifters.

Whether it’s a brisk walk, yoga, or a gym session, find an activity you enjoy and make it a part of your routine.

Plan at least 150 minutes of moderate paced exercise into each week; that means breaking a sweat and getting your heart rate up.

The benefits of exercise are numerous – stress relief, improved mood, it is protective against depression, stronger muscles and bones, a more robust immune system, healthier weight and a higher metabolism, keeps blood sugars in check and insulin working well, lowers blood pressure and cholesterol, helps the body detox, and so on.

Something is always better than nothing – start small, with attainable goals, and work up from there, as you get stronger. Don’t let an all-or-nothing mentality rob you of doing what you can manage each day or week, starting now.

Benefits of Meditation | Global Spiritual Community

Practice deep breathing each day or for at least 90 minutes each week. Deep breathing has now been confirmed to improve mood and reduce stress. It actually reduces objective measures of stress such as elevated heart rate and cortisol (stress hormone) levels in the body. I often suggest clients incorporate yoga or Pilates into their weekly routine alongside daily deep breathing exercises.

4. Diet

What we eat significantly impacts our health.

A balanced Diet rich in fruits, vegetables, whole grains, and lean proteins nourishes our bodies and supports our immune system. Remember, you are what you eat, so choose foods that fuel your body and mind!

Eat whole foods wherever possible; think 80:20 rule – you can still eat well without feeling deprived!

As a Precision Nutrition Nutritionist, I could speak on diet for ages. But one truth rings true across almost all diet interventions for most any indication – we need to eat more whole foods (i.e. as close to their natural form as possible, unprocessed, no boxed or packaged foods).

This looks like eating more veggies, fruits (but more veggies than fruits), lean protein, and healthy fats like fish, avocado, nuts and seeds, and coconut. Limit white or refined foods like white potatoes, breads, and pastas. A good way to think about it is adding healthier options, rather than “taking away” less healthy options.

For example, incorporating more sweet potato or yam in place of white potato or choosing brown rice over white rice. With a whole foods diet, not only are you maximizing micronutrient intake (vitamins and minerals), you are reducing inflammation in the body, which contributes to many chronic diseases.

Mood wise, diet is very important. Balancing your blood sugars (via proper intake of complex carbs and fiber) can reduce anxiety and keep energy consistent throughout the day. Protein is crucial to a healthy mood as it is the building blocks of all of our hormones. Healthy fats are critical for proper brain function that impacts mood and performance.

All of this and I have not begun to discuss digestion – if you have signs of poor digestion such as gas, bloating, abdominal pain, constipation or diarrhea, seek out an expert who can get to the bottom of this with you. Something termed “leaky gut” (aka intestinal hyper-permeability) has been associated with anxiety, depression, OCD, ADD/ADHD as well as many other chronic symptoms and conditions.

Of course, this is a brief overview of the above topics but reinforces what most of us already know – that these 6 “doctors” can have a huge impact on our health and for very little in terms of financial burden. In my initial visits with clients, I always go over what I call the foundations of health – diet and digestion, stress management, sleep, and movement.

We always work to build these 6 doctors into their daily routines. If you are curious to learn more about what you can do each day to improve your overall well being, and have someone to help keep you accountable, consider a discovery call to discuss what we can do for you.

5. Self-Confidence

Believing in yourself is essential for mental wellness.

Self-confidence can lead to better decision-making and resilience in the face of challenges.

Practice positive self-talk and set achievable goals to boost your confidence levels.When we believe in ourselves, it can help us achieve our goals, manifest our dreams, and increase our well-being. But the flip side is also true. Lack of belief in ourselves means we are less likely to act, to change, or to push to make things better.

In fact, when we expect we will fail, we are actually more likely to fail (Bénabou & Tirole, 2002).

That means that believing in ourselves is kind of like the key that turns the ignition and starts the car. We can’t really go anywhere without it. Try as we might to push ourselves forward, we’re blocked because our thoughts, attitudes, and actions aren’t in alignment with our goals.

So, we either don’t do what we need to do, or we sabotage ourselves along the way, sometimes in obvious ways and sometimes in unconscious ways.

So, how do you believe in yourself?

Believing in yourself includes things like self-worth, self-confidence, self-trust, autonomy, and environmental mastery.

Self-worth is the sense that you have value as a human being.

Self-confidence is a positive attitude about your abilities, qualities, and judgment.

Self-trust is faith that you can rely on yourself.

Autonomy is feeling able to choose and direct your own behavior.

Environmental mastery is your belief that your efforts will result in the changes you desire.

These are some of the key components involved in believing in yourself. Maybe you struggle with just one of them or maybe you struggle with all of them. By understanding where your struggles lie, it’ll be easier to start shifting your attitudes about yourself.

6. Friends

Social connections are vital for emotional health.

Friends provide support, laughter, and companionship, which can reduce stress and improve happiness. Make time for your friends and nurture those relationships; they are invaluable to your well-being.If you’ve ever had a friend that you could laugh, cry, and share your most intimate secrets with, then you know how powerful friendship can be. It’s having someone in your life that can lift you up when you’re low and celebrate your victories with you.Friendships can have a major impact on your health and well-being, but it’s not always easy to build or maintain them. Read on to understand the importance of friendships in your life and what you can do to develop and nurture new ones.

Benefits of Friendship

Friends not only prevent loneliness but they also:

Increase your sense of belonging and purposeBoost your happiness and reduce your stress

Improve your self-confidence and self-worth

Help you cope with traumas, such as divorce, serious illness, job loss, or the death of a loved one

Encourage you to change or avoid unhealthy lifestyle habits, such as excessive drinking or lack of exercise

Help put your problems in context to develop a stronger sense of meaning and direction

Increase feelings of security and help protect against stress

Ease the emotional impact of difficulties and offer new ideas about tackling them

*Water

Everyone has heard by now that 70% of our body is made up of water.

Your body truly needs water to function properly. It is one of the simplest health habits you can follow to improve energy, flush out toxins, improve skin, aid digestion, promote weight loss, prevent headaches, and more.

Once you are thirsty, you are already dehydrated. Many mistake this for hunger as well. I recommend to clients that they drink 250-500mL of warm or room temp water upon waking to help kick start the healthy habit all day.

Adding ¼ to ½ of a fresh lemon juice will promote greater detox (when implementing this into a daily routine, I suggest using a straw to avoid damage to the tooth enamel). Drink at least 2 liters a day or take your body weight (in pounds), divide it in ½, and drink that many ounces each day.

The amount of water you need each day depends on your body, lifestyle, and environment—but general guidelines do exist. According to the U.S. National Academies of Sciences, Engineering, and Medicine:

Men should aim for about 15.5 cups (3.7 liters) of fluids daily

Women should aim for about 11.5 cups (2.7 liters) of fluids daily

This includes fluids from water, other beverages, and even food (which typically contributes around 20% of your daily intake). If you’re active, live in a hot climate, or are pregnant or breastfeeding, your needs may be higher.

A good rule of thumb?

Listen to your body—thirst is a reliable signal. And if your urine is pale yellow, you’re likely well-hydrated. Want help calculating your personal hydration needs based on your weight and activity level? I can walk you through it. However, this will vary based on body weight and physical activity. 1www.mayoclinic.org 2www.webmd.com

In conclusion,

While traditional medicine is important, these six doctors—Sunlight, Rest, Exercise, Diet, Self-confidence, Friends and Water—are equally essential in maintaining a healthy and fulfilling life. Embrace these elements daily, and you’ll find yourself on the path to better health and happiness!

The World’s 6 Best Doctors – Harvey Mackay Academy

Wishing you all a wonderful day ahead!

Steve Jobs Conflicted Life

Steve Jobs Cancer Story – Search