In many buddhist traditions, its encouraged to think about death on a regular basis. I remember reading from a zen book: “make sure to treat each visit with your parents as your potential last time you will see them, because eventually it surely will be.” I do think about death to help me focus on what is important to me and to not get carried away by the typical dramas of human society. It is helped me to really make sure I prioritize how I want to spend my time. When I do yearly reviews, the topic of death is on my mind.
Steve Jobs really summed it up best, 2 different times:
“If today were the last day of my life, would I want to do what I am about to do today?” And whenever the answer has been “No” for too many days in a row, I know I need to change something.
“Remembering that I’ll be dead soon is the most important tool I’ve ever encountered to help me make the big choices in life. Because almost everything — all external expectations, all pride, all fear of embarrassment or failure — these things just fall away in the face of death, leaving only what is truly important.”