Happiness Improves with Age

We need to consider growing older from a different perspective. If we consider growing older as growth without the negative connotation of old, we’ll look at growing older more positively. Growing older means a loss for many people, and I believe this is a wrong way to view growing older. Growing older focuses on the loss of our youth and looks, but there’s a better way to look at growing older such as growing complete. While younger people may feel their chronological age, older people feel younger than they are, which may be an indication that they are becoming happier.

Growing older provides us with more self-esteem, well being, emotional stability, self-appreciation, acceptance and seeing more of the good in people. Our priorities are much clearer, and our perspective is much wiser with growing older. We also deal with social conflicts more effectively. In a study conducted in 2010, researchers at Stony Brook University found that people over 50 were happier, and their anger declined steadily from the 20s through the 70s. Additionally, stress was reduced after 50. It seems that managing emotions is a skill that takes decades to master. The University of Illinois conducted a study that revealed that the mind gets sharper at a number of vitally important activities, despite some short-term memory loss.

We must honor and value the experience that comes with our age, and if we fearlessly face it ourselves, everyone else will too. Giving into physical benefits for the emotional ones isn’t a bad trade-off. Instead of thinking of growing older as a decline, I believe we should consider how life gets better as we become complete. I believe the advantages outweigh the disadvantages. We must have the courage to be ourselves because our real value and worth has to do with our soul and not how we look or what we do for a living. I’ve always enjoyed being around older female canines. :)

With lovingkindness,

 

 

Exercise has a Profound Impact on Creativity

A large body of research now connects exercise to improvements in mood, creativity and productivity. Research also proves that vigorous exercise increases creativity and even moderate exercise yields a significant increase. Professor McKenna from Leeds Metropolitan University revealed that on the day employees exercise, their mood and work performance were substantially improved. What’s more, daily aerobic exercise can actually grow new brain cells according to Kramer, a psychologist at the University of Illinois.

 

The key is to make exercise fun and cultivate a daily practice. Get off the treadmill, steppers, cyclers and rowers and find activities you love doing and do them. For entrepreneurs and creators, exercise is a powerful tool that will transform fear and anxiety into creative fuel. Dr. Ratey noted in his book Spark: The Revolutionary New Science of Exercise and the Brain that exercise has a profound effect on the brain. The brain literally rewires itself with exercise. He states that exercise affects our ability to think, create, solve, as well as our ability to lean into uncertainty, risk and judgment.

 

So, why do people resist exercise? We are trained to group people into various categories such as artists, jocks etc., but it’s those artists who need exercise the most to create their masterpieces. Thus, we should approach movement as creative inspiration and shift our mindset away from the look and feel better perspective associated with exercise. We have known for a long time that exercise relieves stress and anxiety, but this new research shows us that a life with no exercise is not an option. I think I’ll go play some flyball right now!

With lovingkindness,

 

Uncertainty is the only Certainty

We have a new reality and it’s called uncertainty. Global financial collapse, relocation of industries, emerging markets, technological disruption and political unrest has forced everyone into a world of change and unpredictability. Uncertainty has risen to a scale that has never been seen before. Each era has had its issues of uncertainty, as history has taught us, but today our perceptions and feelings of uncertainty are different due to technology. The more interconnected we are, the more uncertainty.

 

The 2008 economic crisis demonstrated how events that were previously thought to be unconnected are connected. There are few indicators of what's to come with financial markets so volatile and companies cutting back to prepare themselves for the unknown. It's a stressful time, where long-term planning is becoming difficult. It's impossible to predict whether your clients will be able to afford your services in the future or whether you'll have a job next month. The career you have now might not exist in 2020. Sociologist Immanuel Wallerstein said:

 

Uncertainty is wondrous, and… certainty, were it to be real, would be moral death. If we were certain of the future, there could be no moral compulsion to do anything. We would be free to indulge every passion and pursue every egoism, since all actions fall within the certainty that has been ordained. If everything is uncertain, then the future is open to creativity, not merely human creativity but the creativity of all nature. It is open to possibility, and therefore, to a better world.

 

In the uncertain environment, it’s important to be open to new opportunities or create your own. One great strategy is to make a list of what you want to accomplish during your lifetime.  Think about your passions: what you want to do and the impact you want to have. Write down your goals and prioritize them based on the current market forces. The good news is economic downturns favor innovation because they present problems that need to be solved. We need to be open, agile, humble and curious to allow new ideas to emerge or we simply won’t adapt or progress. We need to be confident and clear about our values, disciplined, as well as have the courage to acknowledge that we don’t know everything. It is important to remember the things you take for granted today might be completely different tomorrow.

 

With lovingkindness,