Better All the Time—Building on Your Wisdom and Experience
Some people, as they move through life, begin to feel out of touch. It may start with the interests of younger people—music, apps, gadgets, etc.—and extends to a general feeling of being left behind. But it’s all a matter of perspective.
As you get further down your path, you should feel more and more confident, and increasingly trust your judgement based on your experiences. It’s not necessary to like, or even be aware of, every new trend. You should remain open to new ideas or experiences, but should not worry about those that don’t interest you—don’t think that you’ve become irrelevant just because you’re not engaged in the latest rage. Develop a balance between what’s known and comfortable and what’s new and different. And trust yourself to know what you like.
Learning that you don’t have to know everything
As people move through their lives, it’s very normal not to be up on the latest technological innovation, the latest social media app, or the newest music (the list can go on and on). A lack of awareness of something doesn’t necessarily mean that you’re not in touch; it can simply mean that it’s not of interest to you. There should be a specific reason you should adopt something new. You shouldn’t force yourself to use or like something just because it’s new or popular, or even because it’s innovative.
On the other side of the coin, you shouldn’t avoid adopting something because it’s unfamiliar. A reasonable balance might involve an approach that allows you to become tangentially aware of new things that might interest you, without going so far as to become a slave to each wave of new “stuff” that breaks over society. My approach involves having a man on the inside (my son) who can give me a brief scoop on and a sample of what is out there. In some cases, I adopt it (e.g., societal perspectives and some of his music), and in other cases I ignore it and don’t learn any more about it (e.g., new social media apps). Other approaches might include a scan of the technology press or a playlist of new music. With the pace of change that exists in our society, if you tried to stay fully informed about everything, that’s all you’d ever do.
Wisdom and sagacity
You are wise.
You might not always feel like it, but it’s true. Everything you’ve been through, every experience you’ve ever had, has taught you something. The trick is to realize it—to pay attention to your experiences, both good and bad, and think about what you’ve learned. Become aware of your wisdom; collect it and categorize it. Every person has the potential to be a wealth of knowledge and experience, it just takes a little awareness and a little reflection. You’re wiser today than you were yesterday, and tomorrow you’ll be wiser still. Or not. It’s up to you.
Keep moving down your path
Building on your wisdom and experience and keeping abreast of new developments that will enrich your life (not everything!) does require being intentional. You need to keep evolving and growing. You need to be OK with moving on from old practices and old ways of thinking if they are no longer relevant for you. You must pay attention to your experiences and reflect on what you’ve learned. Otherwise you will become stagnant. Being stagnant means you’ve stopped learning about yourself and the world around you. It means you’ve closed in on yourself and entered spiritual torpor.
The alternative takes energy, courage, and gumption, but the rewards are enormous. Taking chances, constantly learning, and being open to new ideas will allow you to continue to build on your wisdom and become a more vibrant and dynamic person who is always evolving.
You should, every day, be the best version of yourself so far.
