Take a look back to look ahead…
What have you done?
I am 76 years old and find myself asking — how did I get here so fast? I reflect on what brought me this far and where I still want to go. Do I want to achieve more or is it time to coast? R.G. Collingwood, a British philosopher and historian, expressed how to approach your thoughts on the future in this way: “The only clue to what man can do is what man has done.” (506443.R_G_Collingwood) In other words: look back to look ahead, and plan for the future.
A lifelong process
I still remember when one of my mentors asked for a little time alone with me — 25 years ago. My first thought was that he had some constructive criticism. It turned out to be quite the opposite. At 70 years old, this sage asked me to help him discover what he was going to be when he grew up. In a short time, we uncovered it: he was still passionate about writing a daily journal for seniors.
Today, my two closest friends and mentors are 71 and 93. The three of us share some amazing threads – we’re all enjoying life, and we still treat acquiring wisdom as a lifelong process. We’ve taken unique paths, but we share common interests, and we all have a life plan.
Creating the Plan
That mentor, Dr. Gordon VanRooy, published his book, Nuggets for the Golden Years, on May 7, 2009 – the fruit of the conversation we had 25 years earlier. Gordon lived to be 90, and his book is still available on Amazon.
Remember, “The only clue to what man can do is what man has done.” Take a deep dive into your past to uncover what matters most to you. Revisit your life story and identify what motivates you to succeed. Recognize what makes you unique and what abilities set you apart from your peers. Then build your plan for the future from what you find.
The question of who you’re still becoming doesn’t retire when you do.
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