The Deathbed Exercise: Making Decisions That Truly Matter

In our latest podcast episode, Trust Your Timeline: Energy Healer Cheryl Stelte on Real Transformation, we explored the journey towards authentic living and overcoming the blocks that prevent us from aligning with our true selves. A key element discussed with Cheryl was the 'deathbed exercise,' a powerful tool for evaluating our decisions and ensuring they resonate with our core values. This blog post delves deeper into this exercise, offering practical insights and guidance on how to integrate it into your daily life to cultivate a more meaningful and fulfilling existence.

Aligning with Your Values

Values are the bedrock of our lives. They dictate our choices, shape our perspectives, and ultimately define who we are. Living in alignment with our values brings a sense of peace, purpose, and authenticity. However, in the hustle and bustle of modern life, it's easy to lose sight of what truly matters. We often find ourselves chasing societal expectations, financial gains, or fleeting pleasures, only to realize later that these pursuits left us feeling empty and unfulfilled.

The deathbed exercise serves as a potent reminder to prioritize our values and make decisions that align with our deepest desires and aspirations. It encourages us to step back from the daily grind and envision our lives from a future perspective, allowing us to gain clarity on what truly matters.

What is the Deathbed Exercise?

The deathbed exercise is a thought experiment designed to help you prioritize your values and make decisions that are aligned with what you truly want out of life. It involves imagining yourself on your deathbed, looking back at your life, and reflecting on what you have accomplished, the relationships you have nurtured, and the impact you have made on the world.

This exercise forces you to confront your mortality and consider what will truly matter to you at the end of your life. Will you regret spending too much time at work and not enough time with your loved ones? Will you wish you had taken more risks and pursued your passions? Will you lament the opportunities you missed because you were too afraid of failure? The answers to these questions can provide valuable insights into how you should be living your life right now.

It's not about dwelling on regrets, but rather using the perspective of your future self to guide your present choices. It's a tool to help you identify what truly matters to you and to align your actions with those values.

Cheryl Stelte's Insights: Transformation and Decision-Making

In our conversation, Cheryl Stelte shared her profound insights on transformation and decision-making, emphasizing the importance of connecting with our inner wisdom and aligning our actions with our soul's purpose. She highlighted the significance of releasing limiting beliefs and embracing our authentic selves to create a life filled with joy, abundance, and fulfillment.

Cheryl's work focuses on helping individuals identify and clear subconscious blocks that prevent them from living in alignment with their values. She emphasized that early conditioning and unresolved traumas can create a 'throat chakra bottleneck,' stifling our voice, visibility, and ability to receive the good things life has to offer. Through her Azarius Energy Healing system, she facilitates a deep, spirit-led release at the soul level, empowering her clients to reclaim their authentic selves and step into soul-aligned success.

Cheryl advocates for practicing receiving, a simple yet powerful technique that involves placing your hand on your heart, saying "Thank you, I receive that," and breathing it in. This practice helps to rewire overgiving and people-pleasing tendencies, allowing us to embrace our worthiness and receive the love, support, and abundance we deserve.

Cheryl shared practical tools, powerful stories, and the life-changing deathbed exercise to make better decisions now by asking what will matter at the end. This exercise is a key component of her approach to helping individuals create a life that is aligned with their values and brings them true fulfillment.

The Importance of Values in Decision-Making

Our values act as a compass, guiding us through the complexities of life and helping us make choices that resonate with our authentic selves. When we are clear about our values, we can make decisions with greater confidence, knowing that we are acting in alignment with what truly matters to us.

Without a clear understanding of our values, we are more likely to be swayed by external pressures, societal expectations, or fleeting desires. This can lead to a sense of disconnect, dissatisfaction, and ultimately, regret.

Values-based decision-making involves taking the time to reflect on your core values and considering how each potential choice aligns with those values. It requires a conscious effort to prioritize what truly matters to you, even when faced with difficult or challenging circumstances.

For example, if one of your core values is family, you might prioritize spending time with your loved ones over pursuing career advancement that requires long hours and frequent travel. If one of your core values is creativity, you might dedicate time to artistic pursuits, even if it means sacrificing other activities or opportunities.

How to Practice the Deathbed Exercise

The deathbed exercise is a simple yet profound tool that can be practiced regularly to gain clarity on your values and align your decisions with your long-term goals. Here's a step-by-step guide to help you get started:

1. Find a Quiet Space: Choose a time and place where you can be alone and undisturbed. Allow yourself ample time to relax and reflect without distractions.
2. Relax and Breathe: Begin by taking a few deep breaths to calm your mind and body. Visualize yourself in a peaceful and serene environment.
3. Imagine Your Deathbed: Imagine that you are on your deathbed, looking back at your life. What do you see? What have you accomplished? What relationships have you nurtured? What impact have you made on the world?
4. Reflect on Your Regrets: What are your biggest regrets? What opportunities did you miss? What risks did you not take? What did you wish you had done differently?
5. Identify Your Priorities: What truly mattered to you in the end? What brought you joy, fulfillment, and a sense of purpose? What relationships were most important to you?
6. Align Your Actions: Based on your reflections, what changes do you need to make in your life right now to align your actions with your values and priorities? What steps can you take today to create a life that you will be proud of when you reach your deathbed?
7. Write Down Your Insights: Take some time to write down your insights and reflections. This will help you to solidify your understanding of your values and priorities.
8. Review and Revise: Review your notes regularly and revise them as needed. Your values and priorities may evolve over time, so it's important to stay connected to your inner wisdom and adjust your actions accordingly.

Connecting the Exercise to Chakra Healing

As Cheryl mentioned in the podcast, our energy centers, or chakras, play a crucial role in our overall well-being and ability to live in alignment with our values. The throat chakra, in particular, is associated with communication, self-expression, and the ability to speak our truth.

When the throat chakra is blocked or imbalanced, it can manifest as difficulty expressing our needs, fear of speaking up, or a tendency to suppress our emotions. This can lead to feelings of frustration, resentment, and disconnection from our authentic selves.

The deathbed exercise can be a powerful tool for identifying and addressing imbalances in the throat chakra. By reflecting on our regrets and identifying our priorities, we can gain clarity on what we need to express and communicate in order to live a more fulfilling life.

For example, if you realize that you regret not expressing your love and appreciation to your loved ones, you can make a conscious effort to communicate your feelings more openly and honestly. If you realize that you regret not pursuing your passions, you can take steps to dedicate time to creative pursuits and express your unique gifts to the world.

By connecting the deathbed exercise to chakra healing, we can gain a deeper understanding of the energetic blocks that are preventing us from living in alignment with our values and take steps to clear those blocks.

Real-Life Examples and Transformations

The deathbed exercise has the potential to inspire profound transformations in people's lives. Here are a few real-life examples of how this exercise has helped individuals align their actions with their values and create more meaningful and fulfilling lives:

• Sarah, a busy executive, realized that she regretted spending too much time at work and not enough time with her children. As a result, she decided to reduce her work hours and dedicate more time to family activities, such as attending her children's sports games and having regular family dinners.
• David, a retired teacher, realized that he regretted not pursuing his passion for writing. He decided to enroll in a creative writing class and start working on a novel, which brought him a renewed sense of purpose and fulfillment.
• Maria, a stay-at-home mom, realized that she regretted not taking better care of her health. She decided to prioritize her well-being by exercising regularly, eating a healthy diet, and getting enough sleep.

These are just a few examples of how the deathbed exercise can inspire positive change. By reflecting on our regrets and identifying our priorities, we can gain clarity on what truly matters to us and take steps to create a life that is aligned with our values.

Overcoming Limiting Beliefs

Limiting beliefs are deeply ingrained thoughts and beliefs that hold us back from achieving our full potential. These beliefs often stem from early childhood experiences, societal conditioning, or past traumas.

Common limiting beliefs include:

• "I'm not good enough."
• "I'm not worthy of love and happiness."
• "I'm not capable of achieving my dreams."
• "I'm afraid of failure."
• "I don't deserve success."

These limiting beliefs can sabotage our efforts to create a life that is aligned with our values. They can prevent us from taking risks, pursuing our passions, and expressing our authentic selves.

The deathbed exercise can help us identify and challenge our limiting beliefs. By reflecting on our regrets and identifying our priorities, we can gain clarity on the beliefs that are holding us back and take steps to release them.

For example, if you realize that you regret not taking more risks, you can challenge the belief that "I'm afraid of failure" by reframing failure as an opportunity for growth and learning. If you realize that you regret not pursuing your passions, you can challenge the belief that "I'm not capable of achieving my dreams" by focusing on your strengths and celebrating your successes.

Integrating the Deathbed Exercise into Daily Life

The deathbed exercise is not a one-time event but rather a continuous process of reflection and alignment. To fully integrate this exercise into your daily life, consider the following tips:

• Schedule Regular Reflections: Set aside time each week or month to reflect on your life and your alignment with your values.
• Use It as a Decision-Making Tool: Before making any major decision, consider how it aligns with your values and your future self's perspective.
• Journal Your Insights: Keep a journal to record your reflections, insights, and action steps.
• Share Your Journey: Connect with others who are also on a path of self-discovery and share your experiences.
• Be Patient and Compassionate: Transformation takes time and effort. Be patient with yourself and celebrate your progress along the way.

Resources and Further Exploration

To deepen your understanding of values-based decision-making and personal transformation, here are some additional resources:

• Books: The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey, Daring Greatly by Brené Brown, Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl
• Websites: MindTools, Psychology Today, Greater Good Magazine
• Workshops and Courses: Consider attending workshops or courses on values clarification, goal setting, and personal development.

Remember, the deathbed exercise is a powerful tool for aligning your present choices with your long-term values. By integrating this exercise into your daily life, you can cultivate a more meaningful, fulfilling, and authentic existence.

In conclusion, the deathbed exercise, as highlighted in our podcast episode Trust Your Timeline: Energy Healer Cheryl Stelte on Real Transformation with Cheryl Stelte, offers a transformative approach to decision-making. By envisioning our lives from the perspective of our deathbed, we gain clarity on what truly matters and can make choices that align with our core values. This exercise, combined with practices like chakra healing and overcoming limiting beliefs, empowers us to live more authentic and fulfilling lives. We encourage you to explore this exercise and other tools discussed in the episode to embark on your journey toward self-discovery and alignment.