Pathways to Leadership

Our Mission is to unleash the verybest in People, Teams and Organizations.

How Do You Feel About Aging?

by Steven W. Vannoy and Craig Ross

Look for "Leadership Gold," the soon to be published book by Steven W. Vannoy and Craig Ross.

We want to share with you Larry Miller's "View on Aging." Every time we read it, we think of how many special ways the Pathways to Leadership® concepts relate to aging well.

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Do you realize that the only time in our lives when we like getting older is when we're kids? Ten-year-olds are so excited about aging that they think in fractions. "How old are you?" "I'm four and a half!" You're never 36 and a half. You're four and a half going on five. Teens can't wait till they're twenty. They will often claim to be 18 when they're really 16. "How old are you?" "I'm gonna be 18!" You could be 14, but hey, you're gonna be 18! And then the greatest day of your life - you become 21. Even the words sound like a milestone: YOU BECOME 21 YEARS OLD.

But then a person turns 30. Oooohh, what happened there? Makes you sound like bad milk. He TURNED, we had to throw him out. There's no fun now, you're just a sour-dumpling.

What's wrong? What's changed? You BECOME 21, you TURN 30, then you're PUSHING 40. Whoa! Put on the brakes, it's all slipping away. Before you know it, you REACH 50 -- and your dreams are gone. But wait!!! You MAKE it to 60. You didn't think you would!

So you BECOME 21, TURN 30, PUSH 40, REACH 50 and MAKE it to 60. You've built up so much speed that you HIT 70! After that it's a day-by-day thing; you HIT Wednesday! You get into your 80s and every day is a complete cycle: you HIT lunch; you TURN 4:30; you REACH bedtime.

And it doesn't end there. Into the 90s, you start going backwards; "I was JUST 92."Then a strange thing happens. If you make it over 100, you become a little kid again. "I'm 100 and a half!" May you all make it to a healthy100 and a half!
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Now, we hope the tools and concepts we share via Pathways to Leadership will add value beyond measure to these universal truths and allow all of us to age with ever more dignity and aliveness. Here's some ideas on how to age with grace and vigor:

1. Stop worrying. One of the main outcomes of worrying about things we have no control over is to accelerate the aging process. Every moment you focus on what's not working, what's wrong with everything and everybody, all the reasons it won't work, all the things that might go wrong, and why you can't get all of that done is to vote against your health and yourself. Conversely, every moment focusing on what's working, your blessings and where you want to go allows you to live life fully and happily.

2. Choose your friends and acquaintances carefully. Yes, it's still true: Grouchy, backward focused friends not only pull you down and waste your time, they're no fun and you just might become just like them.

3. Live in a state of gratitude. Treasure every moment, every person, every opportunity, every blessing. Give thanks for every moment and opportunity life gives you.

4. When you master number three above, you will be in the moment living in peace rather than living in worry, the past, or in fear.

5. There will be sadness. Life is a continuous process of change and letting go. Grieve fully. Cry your very last tear, and then focus forward and get on with living your life with dignity and aliveness!

6. Keep Learning. Use every opportunity you have to ask questions, read, take classes, listen and learn. This keeps your brain alive and keeps life exciting, plus it allows you to contribute more in countless ways.

7. And speaking of contributing, make your life primarily about giving back and serving others, not getting. Throughout history, the happiest and healthiest people are the ones who discover the beauty and joy of service.

8. Every single day and in every way you can, surround yourself with the things you love - things like flowers, pets, music, the great outdoors, special people and activities.

9. Laugh a lot. For people who age well, laughter and joy are not an occasional off-shoot from a busy day. Laughter and joy are some of the main reasons they get up - and stay up. There's no scarcity here. Healthy people give themselves as much laughter and joy as they can.

10. And speaking of scarcity, there's even less when it comes to love. In fact, there's none. The more you give, the more you create and the more you receive. Every day and in every way you can, give as much kindness, caring and love as you can -- to people you know as well as total strangers - whether they know who's giving it or not.

Here's to living our life's journey to the max!

"Life is not measured by the number of breaths we take, but by the moments that take our breath away."