Walking into your 50's
The psychological impact of the number 50
The phrase ‘Fifty is the new Thirty’ is one that we have come to embrace with confidence, thanks to medical progress and better living conditions. We are however not lost to the fact that the big 5–0 is in reality half a century.
The weeks leading to my 50th birthday, (two days ago) were a little confusing to say the least. Some days I would wake up full of excitement, thinking about all the things I’ll be able to do once the kids leave the nest. The travelling, the adventures — the freedom that comes with being older.
The next day I’d wake up feeling anxious and fearful; thinking about all the opportunities I missed, the many businesses that failed. Wondering if there’s anything I could have done better, if I made the right decisions in my younger days to see me through the next half-century.
Face to face with myself
As I looked back and reflected on the positive and the negative, I realised that I have more to be grateful for than to worry about. Whether I have achieved much or little materially, I am not in hospital, in jail, or incapacitated in any way. I am whole and well.
The fine lines I see around my eyes and the grey hair on my head do not amount to incapacity. They help me have an honest understanding of who I am at this point, and who I’m not.
When we embrace our station in life, we have a better focus moving forward. We cannot go back and do the things we missed out on, or right the wrongs in our younger years but we can live the rest of our lives like every day is a chance to build something incredible.
Here are some of the things I’ve learnt
1. Having not realised some dreams and aspirations at 50 does not mean you have failed. As long as you have good health, every day you are awake is a chance to succeed.
2. We spend our younger years caring for others; our children, our parents, family members and friends. It does not hurt to be a little selfish and put ourselves first. After all, we don’t want to be a burden to others when we’re older.
3. It’s okay to be scared, but it’s not okay to live in fear. Fear is your worst enemy. Don’t see yourself as old and live like your productive days are over. Don’t start anticipating complications that come with age either. Live like age is just a number because it is. As someone once said, ‘There’s nothing to be feared except fear itself’.
4. Getting older is a blessing, it means you have a warehouse of experience and have acquired some wisdom along the way. Wisdom and integrity are the greatest wealth one can acquire, you can’t put a price on them.
5. Connecting with others and letting people into your life enriches your life in ways you cannot imagine. Diversity is empowering, and when you get to a certain age, you want to be informed and see things from different perspectives.
6. Each stage of life involves a crisis that we need to get through to move on to the next. Some people say adolescence presents the greatest challenges, others think teenage is the worst phase while others argue that midlife is the most critical. Whatever the argument, we must embrace the changes in every stage.
The key to living your best life at 50 and beyond:
- Embrace your age
- love your life
- Get as healthy as you can
- Be physically active
- Be Bold
- Be fearless
Walk with confidence no matter how old you are. As they say, age is just a number. Be brave, then you’ll be truly fearless!
