How to Make Progress Later in Life

When you were young making progress was easy. You had near limitless time, energy and motivation to do the things you wanted to. You could learn any new skill quickly and easily. Technology didn’t baffle you and making friends was a cinch.

Added to that relationships were easy and straightforward.

And you didn’t have kids.

You could do any thing at any time. I remember as a 19-year old traveling from Aberdeen to Nottingham on a whim just for the fun of it. I picked up work easily and had a huge circle of friends. I barely studied at University but still passed.

Then over the years something changed. Gradually, imperceptibly you began to lose your ability to learn quickly. You also lost your ability to function on three hours of sleep a night which you didn’t find out until your first child was born.

Your energy and motivation waned until you are where you are now. Not exactly stuck in a rut but neither are you killing it every day like you used to.

So how do you regain the glory days of your youth. As you march towards your 40’s, can you regain the roll you were on in your early 20s?

What if You’ve Been Lying to Yourself?

No, I mean it: What if you’re kidding yourself into thinking your 20’s were some kind of golden era of your life? Yes you had few responsibilities, disposable income, abundant free time. But was it really that great?

When I look back on parts of my 20s I see a lot of wasted time. I wasn’t really serious about health and fitness until I was in my mid to late 20s so for the first 5 years my weight fluctuated and with it my health. I’d get headaches all the time – probably due to chronic dehydration.

I had time, energy and money but I wasted most of it on self-destructive habits.

Socially I probably wasn’t that fun to be around at times and I partied hard, often over the course of several days. Yes I had time, energy and money but I wasted most of it on self-destructive habits like gaming addiction, pornography and junk food.

Were you the same? It’s easy to look back on the past with nostalgia but were they really all good times? What about now? Are you making progress now?

If you’re reading this post then you clearly have a desire to be more and to do more as a man and a Dad. Which is great, you’re in the right place!

But now you’ve made the mistakes of your youth and come out the other side, are you ready to make real and lasting progress?

If you are, keep reading because I’ve compiled three things that you can do to ensure you keep making progress through your late 20s and early 30s.

Take Time to Learn New Skills

In terms of new skills and personal improvement I’ve probably achieved more in the last few years than in the 7 or 8 years before that.

Yes that’s right: I’ve achieved more personally since my children were born. Don’t listen to people who say ‘Once you have kids, you’re life is over.’ They’re lying. Or think ‘life’ is getting hammered every weekend and occasionally on Thursday nights.

Some life.

Here are some skills you could learn:

• How to deadlift 315lbs
• How to juggle while riding a unicycle
• How to build a website (go to BADNET – they’ll set it up for you)

Ok, so you might not want to do any of those things, but there must be things you always wanted to do or learn. Why not do them?

Make an Effort to Really get to Know People

Make a list of all your friends. I don’t mean you’re college or high school buddies. I mean the people you would call RIGHT NOW if you had a problem or needed someone to talk to. If you’re like me, it will be quite a short list.

Now out of that list, how well do you really know them? What do you have in common? What do they value? What do they hate? When was the last time you met up just to talk or hang out?

When I was younger, I had lots of friends but now I’m in contact with very few of them. And that’s with the power of Facebook. I guess we didn’t have that much in common other than we went to the same University/Sports Club/Church.

Now my friends are definitely quality over quantity. Real bros in my Dad Network who would drop everything and drive across town (or even the country) if I needed help. I’d do the same for them after all.

Invest time in your male friends. It will pay real dividends in the future. One day your kids will all be grown up and you’ll really have time for each other. Lay the foundations of a friendship that will last the ages today.

Focus on Consistent Improvements and Achievements

I’ve been writing about this quite a lot recently: about the power of consistency and playing the margins. Having this approach to life has a number of knock-on effects. For example:

I train a lot smarter than I used to. Why? Because I still want to be lifting weights, being fit and healthy into my 70s and 80s, even beyond.

If I consistently gain 2lbs of muscle a year for the next 20 years, I’ll be a jacked, old dude.

That means an end to ego lifts and ‘increase your bench by 50lbs in 3 weeks’ training programmes.

If I consistently gain 2lbs of lean muscle a year for the next 20 years, I’ll be a jacked, old dude. If I get a horrific back injury, I won’t.

Since I kicked ‘bulk-and-cut‘ to the kerb, my weight is a lot more manageable. Establishing healthy eating as a habit will be easier for me in the long run as junk food becomes an occasional treat. I don’t really drink that much now either.

That’s why the 20 Mile March struck such a chord with me: because it’s what I’ve started to do in training 5/3/1, writing this website (average 2 posts a week). I’ve even applied the concepts to personal finance and storing wealth for the future.

Look Forward, Not Back

Being fixated on the past and what you lost when you turned 30 is a really quick way to lose years off your life.

Instead, why not use the experience and wisdom you’ve gained in those years to be the best version of you you can be?

I promise you won’t regret it!

 

P.S. Enjoyed reading this? Did you know you can subscribe to my mailing list (no spam. ever). I’ll send you an email once every 2 weeks with details of new articles and little bit of bonus content. Plus you’ll get free stuff. You can unsubscribe at anytime (I won’t be too hurt) Do it….(ready?)….NOW