I just finished facilitating a workshop, where I was one of the youngest in the room. And in that case, I believe that age doesn’t matter.
It’s a prevalent belief that teachers, facilitators, the “sage on the stage” has to be older than the participants. How would they be able to share wisdom and knowledge, and add value to the older participants?
But that’s not always the case.
What are some areas where, I believe, age doesn’t matter?
Learning and Facilitating
You don’t really have to be the “sage on the stage.” You don’t have to be the only one sharing what you know, and having to create a wisdom-filled environment for everyone.
This is not about age. This is about how you can involve everyone to share what they know, their wisdom and experiences as well.
I was able to create an open and fun learning environment, because I didn’t do all the speaking. I asked questions, and allowed my participants to ask questions, and answer questions, as well.
Just because I was younger, was no excuse to not still be able to add value to my participants, and to have them learn meaningful lessons, and come to purposeful realizations.
In fact, my age was one of the first questions asked, and the sooner that I got that out of the way, and still confidently handle the group, the sooner we got to the important matter of having fun, finding what can be effective when we get back to work, and of learning the material at hand.
I don’t believe in the adage “you can’t teach an old dog new tricks” as well.
If you want to learn anything, you have to pay the price to learn it. It has nothing to do with age.
It has everything to do with how much you want it.
Creative Output
I used to write songs. Now I write articles, though I still miss writing songs and being in a band.
I used to believe that I needed to just practice, wait a few years until I got better, and older, with more experience, before I started sharing what I made.
And how wrong I was.
When it comes to creative output, age doesn’t matter. Just because you’re older, doesn’t mean you’re always better.
It’s not the age, but the investment in the practice and the art, that make people better. That make people masters at their craft.
But then again, the songs, and stories, you write at your age now, you will never get to write them when you’re older.
Time passes, experiences, life, emotions, does so as well. You will never be in the same moment 100% exactly as you are now. You might come close, but never exactly.
The same goes for the art, the output that you create.
What you create, will be unique, from where you are right now in your life.
Embrace that uniqueness, and share what you have.
We’re all getting better.
We’re all works in progress.
Dreams.
You’re never too old to go after your dreams.
Lucky are the ones who realize that sooner, than later. And luckier still the ones who are able to accomplish them.
Chasing dreams isn’t about how old you are. This isn’t about waiting for the right time to achieve them.
How much do you want it? And what price are you willing to pay, and what person are you willing to become, to achieve your dreams?
There’s a saying that goes “youth is wasted on the young.”
What a load of crap.
It’s not about age vs. experience.
It’s about desire vs. obstacles.
Bravery and Kindness
The bravery to go for what you want isn’t dictated by age.
I believe we were all born brave, and slowly, we learned our way out of being brave.
Or on the other hand, we learned our way out of being kind, as well.
We learn to keep it, or we learn to lose it.
It’s about adaptation, and about heart.
There are people who find it easier to be brave, than to be kind, and the same goes for the other way around.
Being brave, or kind, doesn’t come with age.
You can cultivate those attitudes, beliefs, at any age. If you want them bad enough.
And the earlier we learn when to be brave, and when to be kind, the easier time we’ll have looking out for ourselves, and those that we love.
Rather, the sooner we realize how to regain being brave, and kind as well, as all children are.
Love
Love knows no age, knows no limits, knows no boundary.
Love is the energy that makes the world go ’round.
And I can’t say that as a person grows older, they know how to love better. That’s just not the case.
Love, and how to love, is borne from experiences, from our desires, and from the love of other people. It’s such an all-encompassing force, that we forget that it’s there.
I can still remember the many times that I was blinded, because I loved myself too much. And to see that in people way more older than me, had me realize something:
At any age, at any point in our lives, we are all still learning how to love.
And it is in embracing that reality – that even when it comes to loving, that we are all also works in progress, are we truly set free from the pressure and expectation to be perfect, and even mature, in the way we love.
We love the way we love, as we are, right this very moment.
Embrace the journey, learn from the mistakes. Learn from the experiences.
And above all, the challenge of love, is to keep on loving.
Even when you don’t feel it.
Even when you feel inadequate.
Keep on loving, despite whatever age you are.
Age does not matter.
Maturity does.
Openness does.
Love does.
As long as we continue to be self-aware, take action, and build rituals to sustain our success, we will keep growing, improving, at any age, at any stage that we find ourselves in.
Where else do you feel age doesn’t matter? Please share in the comments below!
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