In my fifties, I started to see people struggle with a midlife crisis. Perhaps the decisions we made in our youth come back to haunt us later in life. A good portion of our twenty plus years focused on being married and raising our children. We were in survival mode! If life loses meaning after you are done, you start to question your life’s purpose. ONE CRISIS COMING UP! DING!
Midlife Crisis or Growth
If someone today asks you: What is your life’s purpose and what gives brings you meaning? Would you be able to answer that? The way you answer leads the way to your future. If you tell me that your children are your only life purpose, I will understand your sentiment but whisper a word of caution. They are only on loan. If you neglect yourself, who you are at the core, all for the sake of your children and your spouse, you may be setting the foundation for some confusion down the road. I think that it’s about balance for all of us at this stage. Seek growth in every stage of your life. Lack of growth will lead to a midlife crisis.
Decisions From Your Past
Those decisions that you made in your youth will now become the midlife elephant in the room. He will trumpet and stomp and ask you uncomfortable questions. Questions like:
- Have you saved money?
- What are your hobbies?
- Do you love your spouse?
- Are you taking care of yourself?
- What brings your life meaning?
- Has your marriage and the example you have set helped or hurt your children?
- How much time do you think you have left to take that trip?
- Exactly what day will you start to exercise?
- What else do you have besides your looks because…ummm…they are disappearing!
- Do you need glasses? (LOL sorry why yes, yes I do).
- When will you retire?
- Are you taking care of your health and securing your health for the future?
- What are your goals? What do you want to achieve?
We build prisons of our own making. It’s never too late to write the second half of our lives. Midlife is a blank page and can be a new beginning. I don’t care if you’re in your forties, fifties, sixties or seventies – your time is NOW. Rewrite your story or finesse it. It’s never too late to stop making excuses. Face the elephant in the room and have your answers ready. Live your best life.
Leave a Reply