One Number That Has The Power to Change Your Life

confused-children-keep-going
Photo by Thomas Hawk

No, I’m not talking about your credit score, your social security number, or your net worth. I’m talking about your age! This one number can hold you back, and stop you from doing what you want in your life. But contrary to popular belief, this number is only able to hold you back if you let it.

In fact, it can be liberating to follow your dreams despite your age.

What Is “Age”?

Age is a concept that differs from culture to culture. Basically it is the number of years that have elapsed since you were born. In certain parts of the world, older people are revered and respected as wise men and women. People are happy to grow older. But today in the Western world, we believe that growing old is a bad thing, or that we become less useful as the years go by. You could say we are living in a youth-obsessed culture. Yet young people are not afforded the possibilities to test themselves, to try new things, and to grow into their own shoes until they reach a certain age.

Once again, the way we talk reflects our views about age. We often hear words like “old fart”, “over the hill”, or “old age club”. How do you think your inner self reacts to these derogatory words? On the flipside, young people are told that they cannot do certain things without experience, yet they cannot get experience without doing those things. Similarly, younger people often have to prove themselves before their true worth can be acknowledged. All of these societal stigmas are causing lower self-esteem, which leads to less joyful and productive lives.

So if society and the media are causing us to berate ourselves for our age, what are we doing about it?

We All Make Excuses About Our Age

If you like to use the excuse that you are too old or too young, you are not alone. Many people stunt their own growth by making up excuses why they cannot continue pursuing their goals. One of the most popular reasons of all is age:

Now if half of us say we’re too old, and the other half says they’re too young, who is in the right age group? There is no magical middle-age group where everything is possible. We are all at the right age for each of our goals, right now.

How Would Your Life Be if You Stopped Making Excuses?

Never too old for love
Photo by Patrick

Relationships

If you didn’t use your age as an excuse, would you be in a new relationship? Or would you prefer to stay single? Many people decide based on a silly little number (their age!), what is acceptable for them to be doing relationship-wise. If you are divorced or widowed, don’t let your age stop you from meeting new people. If you are a teenager, feel free to profess your love to someone, but remember that you still have years ahead of you to meet new people if it doesn’t work out.

Money

When it comes to money, we always tend to think we need more of it. But we also tend to think that we need to be something other than what we are, in order to get more of it. That something else can sometimes take the shape of an age group. Maybe you think that only adults can make money, or that you’re too old to start a new moneymaking venture. It is never too late or early to work on your relationship with money.

Career Changes

If you feel that you’re too young to start working towards your career goals, think again. Remember those kids on the side of the street with their lemonade stands? No one ever told them they were too young, and you shouldn’t let your age stop you from your aspirations. If on the other hand, you think that you’re too old to change careers, remember that it is possible to teach an old dog new tricks. Many successful people change horses midstream.

New Sports

Trying out new sports and physical activities can be a daunting task for anyone. Is it any wonder that we use our age as an excuse? Generally younger people don’t think twice before starting a new sport, older people make up excuses all the time. This is counter to building good mental and physical health, because learning a new physical activity later on in life is a great way to stay in great shape.

New Hobbies

Whether you’ve always wanted to try your hand at a new hobby, or you’ve just discovered a new pastime, the timing is always right. Delaying your experimentation with new hobbies is only going to make you feel less fulfilled, and give you regrets. Trying a new hobby is good for you and for your mental well-being, no matter your age.

So young, yet so dedicated
Photo by Taro Taylor

New Languages

We keep hearing that learning a language is easier for children than it is for adults. But studies are showing that adult language learners progress faster than children. Using your age as an excuse against learning a new language is like cheating your abilities. If you want to learn a new language, no matter what your age, just dive right in. It’s another one of those good for your brain things.

Travel

Travel expands your horizons, and your horizons can never be wide enough. If you are young, don’t wait until you retire to travel to the places that excite you. You will look back on your life and see only what could have been. If you are older, now is the time to travel. Don’t let the idea that the world outside of your home town is scary take hold, go boldly where you have yet to go.

How do you get over it?

So how do you get over your age? There are a few techniques that I’ve observed through my research. Not all of them work though, and you’ll have to see which one will work for you. Some people like to hang out with people of a different age group: Young people hang out with older people, older people hang out with younger people. But that seems like a temporary solution.

What are you waiting for?
What are you waiting for? Subscribe for more Billionaire advice. (Photo by Luis Sarabia)

Is this really the issue?

If you’ve been using your age as an excuse, you really have to ask yourself if your age is the real issue. Oftentimes, using your age as an excuse is much easier than owning up to your fears. Pushing yourself and your limits is one of the most difficult things we do as human beings. But it is also the most rewarding because that is what truly living is all about.

If there’s something that you’ve been putting off or avoiding, write it down on a blank piece of paper. On the same sheet, write down what is holding you back (this could be your age, or something else), and what your life would be like if you got it. Next, write down what scares you about that outcome.

You might realize that you are holding yourself back because if you reached your goal, you would have greater responsibility, and your life would change. Once you work through these issues, you will realize that your age is not the main problem. Do not try to ignore these fears, they are there to tell you something about yourself and this situation. You should however, understand what the fear is telling you, prepare yourself for the change, and take action.

Look at examples of successful people your age

If you need inspiration to get yourself going, here are a few examples of young people who have done amazing things, and older people who have done amazing things.

Morjorie Newlin: An 86 year old weight lifter champion. This woman started with weight lifting when she was 72, after she realized that she couldn’t lift cat food bags anymore. She was never particularly athletic, so when she started going to the gym and lifting weights, it took her family by surprise. She competes in many weight lifting championships all over the world, against women half her age, and she wins!

Christopher Paolini: A 15 year old writes a book and has it published. This young boy had a vision and wrote this book for himself at age 15. He then went on to self-publish it with his family, and is now a working with a publisher, and writing follow up books. Christopher and his family toured the world doing book signings, and publicity. Now imagine if his parents had simply told him he needed to graduate from school before he could write a book?

You are made of the same stuff as everyone else

Being hopeful is good for you
Be optimistic. (Photo by Sup3)

If you still think that your age might be an issue, even after looking at successful examples, you might be putting yourself down. Maybe you think that other people are special. Maybe you think that they have abilities that you don’t.

The truth is that we are all equally special, the difference is that other people have chosen to go after their dreams. Other people feel fear when they get out of their comfort zones, just like you do. They simply choose to embrace the fear, learn from it, and push through to the other side.

What are you waiting for?

So go out there, decide what it is you want, and make it happen. Forget about that little number that increases year after year. You don’t need it. And once you stop caring about your age, other people will too. You will feel young at heart, mature in spirit, and qualified to fulfill your dreams.

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