Have you ever thought to “find your music” or something that makes you different from everyone else? I was watching the TV show “Nashville” the other day. If you haven’t seen it, it revolves around the music industry. An aging country music star, Rayna, deals with growing older in an industry focused on youth as talented young people make their way to the top. It’s an honest and heartfelt look at ageism in our culture. Deacon, one of the show’s “older” and “seasoned” performers, questions a young mentee who has spent considerable time helping others grow their dreams singing in the background. He asks:
“Are you hiding from your own music?”
It hit me because many of us over 50 have spent our lives either working for other people, tending to our family’s needs, or supporting a spouse or partner. It’s easy for us to lose our sense of self and not know who we truly are.
Now that we’re older and wiser, we have the opportunity to find our true selves and live our purpose.
- Our children are either out of the house or will be soon.
- We’ve reinvented ourselves multiple times.
- We have more time to explore.
- We’ve had more experience and hard knocks.
When you find your true self you begin to live in the flow
Once you have a goal you’re working on, it will give you the incentive to expand and fine-tune your mind, which is an effective way to prevent dementia. It’s also a reason to continue living.
If you stop learning or are no longer open to new ideas, your mind will begin to wither and slowly die. I believe we’re on this Earth to learn lessons and that may encompass various areas of our lives. When you find your true self or purpose in life it helps propel you forward to change for the better.
It’s sad to see someone give up on life because they feel too old, stupid, or not deserving of feeling joy. They become depressed, negative, and self-destructive. Suddenly the world is their enemy and everyone is conspiring against them. They play the blame game, accusing everyone but themselves of their misfortune or unhappiness.
It helps to put your goals and dreams on paper or “someplace” where you can sort out what makes you happy and what you want to strive for.
Vision boards are powerful, even though some may think they’re airy-fairy. You can build a vision board by cutting inspiring pictures out of magazines or printing them off the Internet. When you paste them up on a board that you look at every day, it makes it easier to visualize what you want to achieve in life.
If you’re passionate about traveling, you might include destinations you’d like to visit. If you want to lose weight, post images of yourself when you were thinner, or clothing that reflects who you want to be.
Design your vision board for specific areas of your life or combine them into one large poster.
The areas of life you may want to include are:
- Family/Love
- Financial
- Spiritual
- Personal Development
- Social
- Vocation
- Physical
Ask yourself these questions:
- What are you passionate about?
- What steps do you need to take to achieve your goals and dreams?
- What goals will specifically make you happy and fulfilled?
- What is the next step to move you closer to your dream?
- How do-able is your goal or dream? If it will take you 50 years to achieve it and you’re already 60, it may not be realistic.
- What deadline will you set to achieve a goal or dream?
All dreams, passions, and goals need a hard deadline. If you simply say I’ll achieve my goal “someday” it’s not going to happen.
Instead, write down, “I will achieve ___________ one month from now on this date ___________.” That way you’ll have a better chance of achieving it in a shorter period of time.
Take baby steps that are realistic and always set a date that’s not too far in the future.
Venture into this “journey” to find your true self and live your life authentically.
If you could achieve anything you want in the next year, what would it be? Please leave a comment below and share.
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