Hi everyone! It has been awhile since we connected at “Sizzling After 60.” The world certainly has changed. We are living and loving differently. The pandemic of COVID-19 has forced us to look at life and all that we bring to it, and what it brings to us in ways we could not have imagined. Many of us have tragically lost loved ones. For thousands, the world has simply turned upside down.
And yet, this is also a time where we have been forced to prioritize how we use our time.
I took a break from SA60 given a heavy schedule of teaching and consulting. Teaching marketing to both undergrad and graduate business school students at Loyola University was tremendously gratifying. It was remarkable to discover that I loved teaching and had a gift for it.
It did, however, take a lot of work, energy and training, once we had to move teaching online when COVID-19 hit. As I’ve often said, even doing what you love requires balance to avoid burnout and undue stress. So, I stepped back from writing my blog, but I was so glad to see my readers visiting past articles.
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As we all are looking at our lifestyles now and determining what is working in the “new normal,” there are amazing discoveries being made.
Many are finding new skills that they didn’t know they had. From bread baking, knitting, writing and home schooling, to decorating, painting, landscaping, counseling, singing, consulting and more, isn’t it wonderful to find out how GOOD you are at these new skills and gifts? Many of you are finding that you are not only good, but EXCELLENT at them.
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And that is my point. Excellence has no expiration date. YAY!
This time of staying in can be a time of reinvention and rejuvenation. Of looking at yourselves and thinking about what you’ve always wanted to try your hand at. Who knows?
You could start a new career, side hustle or a bona fide new business. According to an article in the Los Angeles Daily News, “The highest rate of entrepreneurial activity in the U.S. is among those 55 to 64 years of age, according to The Kauffman Index of Startup Activity.
AARP indicates that the most important reason for men to become entrepreneurs is to be their own boss; for women, it is the desire to follow a long-term passion. Other reasons include dissatisfaction with...
the corporate world, not wanting to retire and just seeing a golden, irresistible opportunity.” And gaining more income is also important to those who lost income during the 2008 recession, and during this pandemic time as well.
As we are learning new skills, a critical one to learn is technology. With the world becoming more digitized, knowing how to fully use your smartphone, tablet and laptop to navigate the Internet will be key to using your skills and gifts to their highest potential.
And critically, using technology to find important information about your health and finances is easier now. There are all kinds of apps that can help you live your best lives by learning how to click-on and click through.
You can check your heart rates, blood sugar levels and stock portfolios without ever leaving the sofa. Don’t become dependent on your grandchildren to show you the way!
Get great at technology. Lifelong learning helps keep your brain in active mode. Surprise your kids and grandkids with a TikTok video! Why not? They will love it, and so will you.
The key to healthy longevity is staying engaged, so I encourage you to develop a “Longevity Mindset.” A longevity mindset means not thinking that your best years are behind you.
Grandma Moses started painting at the age of 78. Colonel Sanders didn’t start Kentucky Fried Chicken until he was 65. Toni Morrison was 62 when she won the Nobel Prize for Literature.
Gordon Parks directed his first major Hollywood movie at age 57. There are many stories of famous people who were late bloomers. Do you know some in your family, circle or neighborhood? Share them with us! We need to know about them!
And, become a late bloomer yourself! Try some things you’ve always been curious about. Then, work at developing new skills and new gifts to share and keep being excellent! There is no expiration date.
It will keep you sizzling!
Hugs,
Amy
