How To Enjoy The View From Over The Hill

You'd think that grey hair would mean a lot. Some lessons learnt at the School of Hard Knocks can derive only from experiences that come with ageing. I'm not sure about where you live, but this isn't the case in Australia, where, as we age, we're put out to pasture. (London, we're told, is not an ageist city; experience is valued and others are prepared to pay for that experience.)

In Australia, it's usually someone other than us who decides that we're past our use-by date: pack your things it's time and move on. There seem to be three main options available to us. We can volunteer our services; we can engage in a pursuit that is likely to pay significantly less than we received during our time in the salt mine, fun palace, or whatever we call the place we spent a big chunk of our life; or we can opt out completely.

Underemployment is alive and well in The Land of Oz; particularly when it comes to those who would like to make their own decision about when it's time to pull the plug on their wage-earning capacity. How is it where you live?

Rather than die holding your breath waiting for an attitude change by governments, employers, and others, you can consider trying these things.

Try staying productive. As the saying goes, 'The moment you stop being productive, you start dying'. Be ready - build fitness (physical, mental, emotional, and spiritual), remain optimistic, get plenty of sleep).

Try to find out what you're worth. If you consider that grey hair should count for something, then know how much that is. Prostituting yourself is OK, if you're a prostitute.

Try creating demand for what you've got to offer - be passionate about it and get your timing right. Social media can be a big help. The speed of computers doubles every eighteen months so make use of this development to increase demand for what you've got to offer. As the Seven Dwarfs' sang, 'You're never too old to be young'.

Try getting off the couch and become involved. Most initiatives fail to get off the ground, principally because people never get started; procrastination, excuse-making, and other time-wasters kick in. As Lao Tzu (Laozi) told us a couple of thousand years ago, 'The journey of a thousand miles begins with a single step'.

Try to do what's necessary to achieve your desired outcome, and this might include reinventing yourself.

By Dr Neil Flanagan

How To Enjoy The View From Over The Hill 2015-06-11T16:22:00-07:00 Rating: 4.5 Diposkan Oleh: Admin