Not giving in to old age

I can probably talk about this some, now that I am 61 years old.

I think mentally we all see ourselves as young men and women for a long time.  But then aches and pains we never had begin to show up.  Our bodies change.  Our skin gets thinner, and our hair turns gray or falls out.  Flexibility and strength wane.  Maybe there are injuries and diagnoses that get in our head.  We start to limit our activity.

“I can’t do that anymore” sets in.  Once we start to use that excuse, we accept it again for other things.  We act like older people.  This is an arc that most travel.  

But is it compulsory?  Is there a choice?

In getting older – there is no choice – it is going to happen.

But in giving into aging and acting old, I think we can do much better than average if we resolve to.  We can delay “acting our age”.

My advice?  Stay active.  Workout.  Hang around with younger, healthy, active people.  Keep challenging yourself physically.  Eat right.  You cannot outwork a bad diet.  Don’t drink sugary drinks.  Don’t eat fast food.  Eat lots of plants.  Don’t drink much alcohol (maybe none.) Don’t do drugs. Don’t smoke or inhale anything.  Avoid injury if you can by being smart.  Get enough sleep.  Have your bloodwork done once a quarter and make adjustments to make it better.  (I use Lifeforce for this).  Most of all, don’t feel like you have to do what everyone else your age is doing and not doing.  Have a young mindset, a young heart, and young ambitions. 

If you do get injured, don’t give up.  I had my knee replaced.  It was very tough and still is.  But I worked through it and go on.

I hurt my back or neck many times.  I did not go to a surgeon who wants to do what surgeons do.  I went to a chiropractor, stretched, and moved as appropriate.  I have been going to a good chiropractor for most of my life.

Take responsibility for your own health and physical fitness.  Use professionals, but know that many of them only know what they have been taught – and now they make money doing that.  You have to make the decisions.

I am not an expert, but I have learned some things and made observations I’d swear are better than average.  

For those of you who are young, at the age of infinite wisdom, and who will live forever – you’ll see.  

When we are young we have energy but little wisdom and no money.

Then we enter a period where we have energy, a bit of wisdom and a bit of money.

Then we have wisdom and money – but what about the energy and health?

Extending this period where we can have all three, wisdom, money, and energy, as long as possible, can make the best years of our lives.

Set yourself up.  Only you can do that.

It’s work, but in many ways, I’m going to be 45 next year!  

Delusional?  I take it!

What about you?

Living a life that matters

Building your resume and building your legacy are different.

What “matters”?

Relationships – that people were better off for knowing you.  Love and kindness in all its forms and amplitudes.

Growth – that you didn’t settle for far less than you were capable of.  You developed your talents to build your ability to make an impact.

You mattered – You made a positive difference for someone else, or a lot of other people.  Maybe for people you know, or maybe for people you don’t know and will never meet.  Things were better because you showed up and made it so.

There are different seasons of life.  What matters in our teens falls away in our 20s, and our 20s seem immature in our 30s, and the seasons continue to change.

It’s good to think about what really matters – what survives the seasons.

Make adjustments – while you still have time. 

Are you a slave to your phone?

Each time your phone gives you a notification of some kind, do you grab it and look?  

Do you splinter your precious attention and give it over to every person, robot, corporation or machine that wants a piece of it?

To do high-quality work, it requires focus.  To be your best, you need to put sustained attention on what you are doing/creating.

Every time you shift your attention from one target to another, you are reducing your cognitive capacity.

Reduce the number of things you have to pay attention to.

Protect big blocks of time from distraction.

Take charge of your attention.

Bet on yourself

When you bet on yourself, it’s a low-risk wager.

It’s amazing what you can do.

Set a goal.  Make a commitment.  Resolve in your mind you will complete the task.

Unlock your reasons – to get unstuck, to move forward, to show you can do it, to “show them”, etc.

Do the work.  

It requires getting out of your comfort zone?  Go BOLDLY.  Learn.  Break new ground – it’s called growing.

Bet on yourself.

“Death is as real as it gets”

Some people need some real reasons to change their behavior.

“Death is as real as it gets” – Steve Aoki

There’s one.

Will you change your diet?

Will you get in shape?

Will you stop smoking (anything)?

Will you wear the helmet and the seat belt?

Will you not drink and drive?

The problem is that we discount what will happen in the future and prioritize feeling good/it being easy now.

But when death comes or approaches, you can’t go back.

Think ahead.  Act now.

Spend less on useless junk

We all buy stuff.  And some stuff is good stuff that we need and love and makes our life better.

But much stuff is bought on impulse.  Looks neat in the store or on the screen and we buy it.

Look around your house.  I bet there is a lot of stuff you would trade to have your money back.

Here’s your challenge – consider if you really need the thing before you buy it.  

Sleep on it,  you’ll probably be over it in the morning.

Stuff clutters our space.  Life with less stuff can be a good life.

When you blame you give your power away.

You can either take responsibility for your situation or you can blame other people or circumstances for it.

When you blame you give your power away.  You say someone else is responsible for my life and not me, and therefore have no power to change it.  You give away your freedom.  You become a victim.

When you take responsibility, you claim your power over the situation and your ability to change it.

Have you been blaming? 

Or have you been saying “It’s on me, and I can/will fix/change it?”

Expiring Information vs. Permanent Information

We are awash in information.  Included is news, gossip, social media, current events, and what’s for dinner.  Then there are books, timeless ideas, principles that work, natural law, and the psychology of humans.  

Top people focus most on “permanent information”, while others pay most attention to “expiring information”.

Expiring information has no value in the long run, and maybe not even tomorrow.

Permanent information can be used and built on for long periods of time – even forever.

What kind of information do you predominantly pay attention to?

Self-respect fuels courage

To keep the peace, I could let my values cave.  But then who am I?  I create inner conflict.

When you honor your values and stay true to what you believe in, bravery follows naturally.

Character is built in choice.

Character is built in choice.

How you choose to respond to challenge defines who you become.

How are you choosing right now?