Stardom comes sooner in this age of high-level competition than at any time in the past. Whether we are looking at writers or actors, politicians or even corporate head honchos. One does not need to have the gravitas of grey hair to be accepted into the ranks of achievers these days.
More and more people are now talking of retiring from their careers at 40 and doing the things they have always wanted to do but could not do because of the hectic rat race. But the flip side of this age of high achievements and quick burnouts is that many of us slide into becoming has-beens at relatively younger ages than in the past. And that has its own share of problems as semi-retirement stretches on endlessly; in fact longer than our active working lives.
The sad part of all this is that more and more people tend to live in their past rather than look ahead to the future.
There is something very disturbing when you have a marketing whiz or an advertising creative hotshot in their mid-forties talking about their glorious years in the profession. They still have so many active years ahead, I believe. Yet the truth that emerges is that they do not wish to keep at the job till they drop dead. They are fatigued and they wish to reinvent themselves. Possibly, they would like to contribute more to society.
All that is noble but the trap to avoid is in being pessimistic and falling in the company of the whiners — people who are constantly whining at the world but doing precious little about it.
The pet phrase you hear in their conversation is, “Things were not so bad in my time…” The moment you start mouthing such statements, you are on a one-way trip to self-pity. What follows is predictable. The actor will speak of his great roles, the writer will speak of her great stories and the marketing genius will speak of his great campaigns. All the emphasis is on the past with not even a peep into the world of tomorrow.
When you speak in that language, you are making yourself much older than you actually are. And the mental age of a person is more relevant than his physical age.
Again, by speaking in such tones, you are giving up on life and hope. And therein lies the rub because no matter what problems you encounter, it is the doughty fighting spirit that keeps us all alive. To live in the past is to negate that zest for life.
So even if you are retired and have lived the best years of your life, do not keep living in the past; else you will soon become a relic.
Connect with life in the present and look at contemporary issues and matters, even if you are more familiar with
the days gone by. That is the only way to remain alive and present.