I intend to Live Forever—and You Should Too
I intend to live forever, and I’d like to convince you to do the same.
And I’m not talking figuratively, metaphysically, or spiritually. I mean it literally—at least when it comes to biological decay.
This raises three questions: how, why, and how (again).
They are all important, but the third question is the trickiest—and most fun—as it involves forging a pact with two of life’s most notorious villains. But let’s start with the basics.
How Can We Avoid Death?
Before pondering the "why" of immortality, we must first tackle the "how."
The answer, in short, is science.
From the dawn of humanity, we’ve been on a quest to outrun death. Early on, that meant avoiding predators, starvation, or infectious diseases. Later, it meant building tools, medicines, and systems to keep us alive longer. And when it came to the mind, it meant manifesting the afterlife. Most religions offer a framework for what happens after death, because that’s how we shield our minds from the looming threat of non-existence.
Perhaps that’s what I’m doing now—seeking comfort through my own beliefs—but like any believer, I think my faith is justified. After all, the science of longevity is advancing rapidly. It’s entirely possible to live a long, active, and meaningful life while waiting for breakthroughs that could extend it indefinitely.
How do we get there? Start with the fundamentals of longevity:
Adequate sleep
Regular physical activity
A good diet
Social connections
Engaging in mental and cognitive activities
Stress management
Maintaining a healthy weight
Avoiding health risks, such as smoking
That’s my plan. Follow these simple steps to live long enough to let science cook up something more potent and permanent. With humanity’s aforementioned drive to avoid the inevitable, breakthroughs are a matter of time. Here’s hoping a rogue aneurysm or a falling coconut doesn’t get me while I wait (or after) 🤞
For a deeper dive into actionable tips for longevity, I highly recommend starting with this episode of the Modern Wisdom podcast featuring Dr. Mike Israetel.
If you want to go even more in-depth with longevity, including some experimental and philosophical ideas, you can explore resources like CRISPR, the works of Aubrey de Grey, or Bryan Johnson.
Why Should We Want to Live Forever?
Now that we’ve discussed some practical steps to extend our lives, let’s consider why we’d want to do so in the first place.
This question is deceptively easy to answer, with emphasis on ‘deceptively’. I want to live forever because I’m a human. But what does that mean?
It comes down to a combination of two things—neuroplasticity and happiness normalization.
Neuroplasticity
Rationalizing neuroplasticity is paramount, because I swear every time I hear someone say “I’m too old for this” it makes my eye twitch. You’re not too old and you will never be.
Neuroplasticity is the brain’s ability to reorganize itself by forming new neural connections, or in English, it’s our ability to learn new things.
Here’s the layman version: kid brains are always primed to learn, while adult brains require some work to get there. Around the age of 25, our brains shift from “I can learn anything” to “learning requires a lot of effort now”. As someone in my 30s, I’ve been working through the difficulties of learning for a while now—and still, I advocate for living forever.
If you would like to dig into the science of neuroplasticity, I recommend the Huberman Lab, which offers an accessible dive into the topic.
Happiness Normalization
Okay, we can always learn new stuff. But why would we want to? The answer lies in a phenomenon called happiness normalization, also known as the hedonic treadmill in psychology.
No matter how good life gets, we always adapt. This is why we can live in luxury unimaginable to medieval kings and still complain about slow Wi-Fi. We get used to comfort—electricity, heating, cat videos—and need more to stay happy.
That’s good news for our immortal selves! We will never be satisfied and will always crave novelty! That may not sound so great now, but if you were facing another 1,200 years of doing the same things you are doing now, you’d probably see the appeal.
When we combine neuroplasticity with our incessant hunger for novelty, the case for living forever becomes rather obvious, doesn’t it? We’ll always be capable of learning, and we’ll always want to. Immortality would give us the time to master new skills, explore new hobbies, and reinvent ourselves over and over again.
Why not live forever?
How to Fill Your Life
Finally, the third question. If we’re going to live forever—or even just for a very long time—we need to figure out what to do with all that time.
My approach? Befriend Death.
Philosophically speaking, that is.
And also Suffering. I advocate for befriending Death and Suffering, and I am willing to explain myself.
Befriending Suffering
I use "suffering" as a catch-all for negative emotions. Emotions are the most primitive language we have—the one we use to communicate with ourselves. Emotions, including and perhaps especially the negative ones, are signposts to where we should go in life. We must not avoid them but seek to understand them and follow their wisdom.
I’m not saying this as an outsider. 2024 was a particularly difficult year for me, and I only wish I’d faced those challenges earlier. The suffering I endured was very useful and I am grateful for it.
When Suffering inevitably comes for you, don’t endure it for no reason—learn from it.
Befriending Death
Now the good stuff: Death—one of my favorite concepts.
Here’s how I use Death to make decisions in life. I imagine myself on my deathbed and ask: would I be satisfied with my life if I made no changes? If the answer is yes, I stay the course. If the answer is no, I make changes.
Death, like Suffering, is a good friend showing us the way. Accept them. Use them. And consider this: when Death visits, we must greet her at our best. But she won’t judge us by our appearance or wealth. She will judge us by our regrets.
Avoiding physical decay indefinitely does not make us immune to the call of Death. So even if we play our cards right and never meet her, we should prepare ourselves. Death will always be with us, and that’s all we need for this exercise.
For a daily application, consider the Stoic practice of Memento Mori (“Remember you must die”). Reflect on the fact that today could be your last. If you don’t wake up tomorrow, will you be satisfied with how you lived today? This mindset encourages living according to your values every single day.
Not sure what your values are? Check out Arthur Brooks’ work on happiness (podcast appearances—one, two, three) or explore the 4 Stoic virtues.
Death and Suffering are our allies in taming the wild beast that is Time. They may be difficult to work with sometimes, but the pros outweigh the cons.
Life is a Playground
Ultimately, life is a playground where we get to craft ourselves into the version of ourselves we aspire to be. Don’t question whether you can—test your limits so at least you know you went as far as you could.
After all, if you're going to live forever, why should you be afraid of failure? With an eternity to learn, does it really matter how much time you sink into that wild idea you’ve been daydreaming about? If time is no object, what would you be doing right now?
Go do it.
Here is an argument for ‘doing it’—even if you don’t believe in the bold promises of the longevity field—in the form of a short fiction story that explores the concept of using Death as a measure of our lives. If you find yourself inspired to start something new but don’t know how, I wrote a post about that, which you can find here.
Stay safe and live long 🫡