Four critically important actions can help create a positive second fifty years. Each week for the next four weeks one of the actions central to living a long, healthy, happy and accomplished 2nd fifty years will be published.
Each of these chapters will ask you to answer questions in A PLANNING GUIDE EXERCISE designed to provide self-assessment data you will be able to use in the fourth and final chapter to create a Mission Statement and Action Plan designed to help you and/or others you might be helping to move forward in a successful, data supported manner. There is a link to a free Power Point deck, Planning Guide and complete version of this four-part article at the end of each of the four chapters for those who want to dig in quickly.
Current Life Expectancy in the USA
-According to data compiled by the Social Security Administration: A man reaching age 65 today can expect to live, on average, until age 84.3.
-A woman turning age 65 today can expect to live on average, until 86.6.
-And those are just averaging. About one out of every four 65-year old’s today will live past age 90, and one out of 10 will live past age 95.
Where not otherwise indicated, the scientific data included in this article comes from the textbook for the course I teach on this subject: The Brain Training Revolution by Paul Bendheim, M.D. I am not affiliated in any way with Dr. Bendheim and believe that his is a major resource for anybody looking to live a long, healthy and productive life. I encourage you to consider purchasing that foundational resource.
Chapter 1. THE CRITICAL IMPORTANCE OF LESSENING STRESS
The Brain Training Revolution by Paul Bendheim, M.D.
Let’s start our discussion about effective strategies by talking about how individuals can lessen the stress that is a major demotivator and killer of individuals of all ages.
-There is stress that enhances memory and other body functions. Two examples are the enjoyable stress of modest physical exercise and healthy emotions.
-Memory deficits and a brain that ages before its time are results of chronic stress. Stress proneness is a personality trait that reflects a person’s tendency to suffer psychological distress in response to unpleasant or negative emotional events in life. Dr. Robert Wilson at the Rush Center & Institute for Healthy Aging found in a study of eight hundred 75-year-olds that those who had high stress proneness had twice the risk of developing Alzheimer’s than those with low stress proneness or hardiness personalities.
Managing Stress in Your Life: A Quick-Start Guide
1. Listen to your body. Frequent nervous-stomach sensations, recurrent tension headaches, muscle tension and soreness and chronic fatigue can all be physical manifestations or symptoms of stress.
2. Recognize if you are in a stressful situation or that your life has too much chronic stress. Admit you feel stressed beyond your comfort zone.
3. Finally, and this is usually the most difficult step, adjust your attitude.
4. NOTE – much of the content in this program is designed to create a positive attitude and lessen your stress.
Pillars of Stress Management
1. Keep at it. Believe in your chosen stress management technique and be disciplined.
2. Pay attention and stay focused. Focus intently on what you are doing, and this will help reduce your feeling of stress.
3. Repeat it; practice makes perfect. Most successful stress relief techniques are repetitious. The so-called zone of mental calmness and focus can be achieved by repeating either mental or physical activity. Try repetitive and focused breathing or visualizing a pleasant image such as a still lake lined with majestic trees, or a stanza of a song that brings relaxation, or a like or two of poetry.
4. Combining mental and physical components. Many stress-reduction techniques combine a positive mental effort with a physical component. Deep, slow breathing combined with a mental focus on the repetitive cycle of deep inhaling and slow exhaling is a stress-busting technique used around the world.
Activities for Stress Relief
Building a regular-based stress-relief program into your daily routine is a kind of preventive maintenance for your hippocampus and overall mental state. Stressed out at home or at work? Simply walking out the door of your home or office and paying attention to nature is a potent way to de-stress. Can’t get outdoors? Walk up and down several flights of stairs in your office building or go to your bedroom, close the door, and walk in place for 10 minutes while shadowboxing with your arms.
Stress-Busting Physical Activities
Yoga or Pilates_____
Tennis_____
Bicycling_____
Rowing_____
Golf – walk rather than ride a cart; even hitting a bucket of balls at the driving range is a powerful outlet for stress _____
Dancing_____
Tai chi_____
Swimming pool exercise_____
Bowling_____
Ping-Pong_____
Practicing fly casting_____
Gardening_____
Pool or billiards_____
Gym or exercise activities: treadmill, stationary bicycle, spinning, rowing, jumping rope_____
Weight training, stretching and toning exercises, and other forms of nonaerobic activity_____
A PLANNING GUIDE EXERCISE: Put a check mark next to those physical activities that you do regularly. After you have done that go back over the list and circle any activities that you could see yourself adding to your stress reduction routine. Also add additional ideas to the list that were mentioned in the Pillars of Stress Management section above or that you personally know would be helpful.
A Non-Traditional Stress Management Technique
We are now going to move from traditional stress busting actions described in The Brain Changing Revolution to a non-traditional technique I have used with hundreds of individuals to lessen stress by concentrating on how close one lives to their values. I want to give a shout out to my good friend and colleague Lisa Lawrence for this strategy.
A Definition of Stress: Straying from too many of your values for too long a period.
Values Defined: Principles, standards, and qualities versus a specific person, place, object or goal.
Identify Your Work Values?
Set aside time to give serious thought to where the work values (paid or volunteer work) that you have developed over your life span that are listed below fit for you on a scale of 1 (absolutely NOT a work value for me) to 10 (absolutely IS a work value for me). You do not have to be working or plan to be working to benefit from completing this exercise since it is a guide to what you have valued in work and in general.
Help Society_____
Independence_____
Moral Fulfillment_____
Location_____
Communication_____
Physical Challenge_____
Time Freedom_____
Help Others_____
Public Contact_____
Work with Others_____
Affiliation_____
Friendships_____
Competition_____
Make Decisions_____
Work Under Pressure_____
Power and Authority_____
Influence People_____
Work Alone_____
Knowledge_____
Intellectual Status_____
Artistic Creativity_____
Creativity (general)_____
Supervision_____
Change and Variety_____
Precision Work_____
Stability_____
Security_____
Fast Pace_____
Recognition_____
Excitement_____
Adventure_____
Profit, Gain_____
The Complete Job Search Handbook, Howard Figler, PhD
Values Drive Commitment Because…
-We cannot fully commit to something that is not important to us.
-We cannot fully commit to something that doesn’t fit with who we are and how we see ourselves.
-In order to expend the energy, devote the time, and make the necessary sacrifices we must know exactly what makes it worth doing in the first place.
***CONCLUSION: Research has shown that the more closely you work and live to the values that are most important to you, the less stress you will feel and the healthier you will be, at any age.
A PLANNING GUIDE EXERCISE: Spend some time looking over your answers to the values exercise you just completed. Write down your thoughts about how closely you are living your life to the values that you scored highest. In the next chapter we will be discussing the critical importance of developing the behaviors consistent with a resilient personality.
Next week we will be discussing the critical importance of developing the behaviors consistent with a resilient personality.
Free Resources
A Power point deck, Planning Guide and complete copy of this four part article are available for free in the workshop section of this website at: https://havepositiveimpact.com/workshops/. You do not have to register on the site, and your downloading of those resources will not be tracked. If you are a trained presenter, teacher, facilitator, workshop leader, HR professional and/or all related titles you can use those materials which I have used in a course with the same title as this article without attribution. I want as many people as possible to know how to live a longer, healthier, happier and more impactful life.
Foundational Resources
–The Brain Training Revolution: A Proven Workout for Healthy Aging – Paul Bendheim M.D. is a foundational resource and the text for this article and the program Making the Most of Your 2nd Fifty Years. As I have said previously, I am not affiliated in any way with Dr. Bendheim. If you have found these articles helpful, I encourage you to buy his book.
– www.job-hunt.org This is the best job search website available and therefore is the 2nd of 4 foundational resources for this article and the Making the Most of Your 2nd Fifty Years program. This site has many articles for those who are looking for jobs in their 2nd fifty years. Some article titles include: Job Search Advantages of Being Over 59…LinkedIn Profile Photos for Job Seekers Over 50…Remote Jobs in Retirement: What You Need to Know…10 Keys to a Rewarding Second Act Career.
–www.aarp.org – AARP provides dozens of resources that help individuals find a job and lead a healthy, purposeful 2nd fifty years. An example is Great Jobs for Everyone 50+, Updated Edition: Finding Work That Keeps You Happy and Healthy…and Pays the Bills– Kerry Hannon.
Therefore, AARP is the 3rd foundational resources for this article and the Making the Most of Your 2nd Fifty Years program.
https://greatergood.berkeley.edu The Greater Good Science Center is a foundational resource for this article and program because its entire focus is on helping people lead happy, healthy, purposeful lives. It has many articles and resources relevant for your second fifty years including: What Neuroscience Can Tell You About Aging Better…How Optimism May Keep You Alive Longer…Do we Need a New Roadmap for Getting Older? … Can a Happier Spouse Help You Live Longer? The Greater Good Science Center is our 4th foundational resource.
Additional Resources
-Have a Positive Impact During Uncertain Times www.amazon.com is my 3rd book and an Amazon International #1 Bestseller. It provides numerous additional ideas and resources that support the exercises and actions mentioned in this article/workshop about leading a long, healthy, positive and impactful life.
–The Resiliency Advantage: Master Change, Thrive Under Pressure and Bounce Back from Setbacks – Al Siebert, PhD.
–The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People – Stephen R. Covey.
–Peak Performance: Mental Training Techniques of the World’s Greatest Athletes – Charles Garfield PhD.
–Your Retirement, Your Way – Alan Bernstein & John Trauth.
–Career Anchors – Edgar Schein PhD.
–The Retirement Boom – Allen, Bearg, Foley & Smith.
–www.encore.org The Encore Career Handbook: How to Make a Living & Difference in the Second Half of Life.