“You’re not just deferring your dreams, you’re missing out on your next great purpose in life!”
Does the term middle age make you cringe? What about midlife?
If you are like many you probably just had the visual of some creepy guy in the 80’s with a comb over, fake leather pants, convertible and a barely 20something girlfriend. Why is that? Seriously, that couldn’t have been the norm. The media must have helped us along with that image. It’s so weird that this stigma has been put on midlife and how much change happens.
This crazy, unrealistic image does have some really good points to it though. The guy wasn’t happy in whatever life he was living and he changed it. There is nothing wrong with that and no one should be judged for making changes in their life that make them happier, even if they are drastic.
This is not my way of telling you to runaway from your life and create a new one. Nope, you worked too hard to create the great things you’ve got. I want you to improve on you and really rock your life. Take everyone with you on your journey.
I believe you are never too old to go for any goal.
You still have decades left and you don’t want to live them out in mediocrity. What a waste!
I bet you could use some help figuring out what those goals are. How deep are your dreams buried after years of taking care of others?
Before you figure out your next dreams to tackle, how about a little of the why it’s important?
The kid in you still has dreams.
Remember that crazy school list you made every year of all the careers you were going to have? Astronaut, President, dancer, teacher…sound familiar? lol
There are still many of those wants inside you and it’s time to let them out. If you are not in politics already it may be difficult to become President now, but you can be president of something and run it! Make a huge difference in a business or your city council or a charity.
Same with astronaut. By midlife, I’m going to have to be real and tell you it’s not really an option to work for NASA. But, your love of space and the stars doesn’t have to be pushed back. Go get a job at a planetarium and geek it up as you get other people excited with your passion for the topic. At minimum go online and find a group with the same interest. You never know where that could lead.
Make a list of all the realistic and silly dreams you can remember and see where the brainstorming leads. There is no reason why the kid in you can’t turn the dreams into awesome adult realities.
Yes, trying new things is scary, but also super exciting!
Do you remember the last time you rocked something new? I mean really rocked it. As in, “holy crap, I didn’t even know how great I’d be at this” kind of rocked it.
Truth is, I have a huge issue with not being great at things. For years it held me back from trying new things. I think it’s part of my competitive nature. If I do it, I want to be one of, if not, the best at it. EEEK, who would try new stuff with that mentality? You can rarely learn new things and always be amazing right off the bat.
But, there’s this strange little flight or fight adrenaline rush that happens when you try new things. You get to choose if that adrenaline tells you to stop and run or gets you giddy and you laugh your way through any errors that come along.
Hint: if you go for giddy, it gets addicting and you find you enjoy trying more and more new things to get that rush. Be prepared.
You now have time, money, experience and wisdom in your toolbox.
Alright, I’m not saying you may be rich. My 20something’s cost way more now than they ever did growing up.
But, you should be better off than you were in your 20’s and trying to figure out career and life goals right?
Now that the kids are grown and you can focus on you, the only thing holding you back is YOU. You choose if you have time to go back to school or join a new group. I know it’s weird, but you don’t have to coordinate with the kids schedules anymore. What a big change.
Wisdom and experience, man these are fun when you try new things. You are bringing years of experience to situations. It’s awesome to get into a new project and realize that your life experiences are going to help you learn faster or even create a new way of doing something.
That last phrase is what I really want to leave you thinking about.
Your life experiences are going to help you learn faster and possibly create new ways of accomplishing things.
You must share that experience with your community and the world. Until you try new things you have no idea where your next life’s purpose could take you and who you could be helping.
It’s time to find your dreams and next purpose in life. Because baby, it’s your turn.
If you aren’t sure what you want to do next, join us in the What Do I Want? workshop.
Remember, happiness is a choice. Live with no regrets.
Leave a Comment