Getting older is not the definition of growing up: Important things I’m learning as I grow

Is age just a number? “No” is what the common answer tends to be. On the surface that may be correct, as there are things that just naturally come with age such as physiological growth and general life experience within the laws of society (i.e. alcohol consumption and consensual sex). However, knowledge, wisdom and alternative types of experience can be learned at your will.

See, time is a relative concept and your age may depend on how you’ve used time.

People often automatically look at someone younger than them and assume there’s no point communicating with them on any level or vice versa and that is something which has always irked me. What if said person has experienced things in their life you can’t even imagine? Or has been successful in areas you have not? The truth is we can always learn something from others.

 

Okay, so here are some important lessons I am discovering as I grow.

Accept how much you don’t know. Our intuition is powerful but is often mistaken, take time to analyse further before jumping to a conclusion.

Studying psychology has really put this one into perspective for me. Intuition has become our primary system – through evolution – we resort to when making judgements and decisions but has proven inaccurate in many situations. A book called “Thinking, fast and slow” by Daniel Kahneman is the one to read for this, I may do a whole post on that book one day. For certain situations we must take a step back and consider the information in more detail before concluding so wholly. So just remember, whatever you think you know, you may be mistaken and there’s nothing wrong with that.

It’s okay to make mistakes. The important thing is to try and correct previous errors as to not make those same mistakes again.

Eurgh, cliche I know, but it’s something that is often forgotten or even frowned upon. There is nothing wrong with making a mistake, in fact it’s lesson most of the time. “A person who never made a mistake never tried anything new” – Albert Einstein. The problem arises if you keep reiterating the same mistake, it arguably becomes a choice.

Accept when something is out of your control, taking responsibility for an incident that you have no control over is unnecessary stress.

This is an important one especially for when you are made to feel anxious in situations you really shouldn’t be. It’s pretty self explanatory but it can be hard to enact. It may require you reminding yourself regularly. Acceptance in general plays a big part in growing and living more peacefully.

Take responsibility for things that are within your control. Don’t pass the bat or shy away/make excuses, take it as an opportunity for growth.

This had to be added on the contrary of course so you don’t get too comfortable and feel as if you’re not responsible for anything. Taking responsibility for your actions should be learned as soon as possible really.

 

I’ll leave this post short and sweet as although it is positive psychology, it’s a little too preachy really.

Peace, Love and all that Jazz.

Geo