11 Tips for Aging Successfully

Written by Richard E. Dodge

Waiting to board a plane recently, I was reading Aging Well, an insightful book on some longitudinal studies of aging. A man noticed my book, paused, and said with a smile: "Good luck."

His comment seemed to suggest a personal struggle with aging. I thought, How do most people face aging? If God allows us to continue living, then aging is inevitable.

Here are some ways to make aging a positive experience.

 

Balance focuses in life. Successful aging seems to be a balancing act among self, others, and God.

Develop a positive mindset. Successful aging means we see the opportunities in life rather than life lost.

Develop relationships. Invest yourself not only in friendships, but also in caring for others in demonstrable ways. Without a social network, we are incomplete.

Learn something new all the time. Growing minds and hearts have a very positive influence on aging.

Become a mentor. Life offers many experiences, both positive and negative. Find younger adults who are willing to partner with you and become their mentor.

Accept some realities. Here are some realities that must be faced: Smoking and alcohol abuse are destructive to good health. Poor diet can destroy our bodies. Without God, we are lost. Cholesterol and stress influence the quality and length of life. The Bible contains God’s plan for successful living.

Be creative. Creativity is an expression of ourselves and how we see that which we create.

Play. Most of us as youngsters were told to grow up and assume adult responsibilities. We need to regain the ability to play and have fun not only alone, but also with others.

Get physical. Everyone needs physical activity, regardless of age and physical limitations.

Learn from the past without dwelling on it. Mistakes are part of life. Mistakes become tragic in two ways: when we fail to learn from them and when we relive them constantly. Grow from the mistakes by integrating the lessons we learned while discarding the mistake itself.

Walk daily with God. Godly friendships do not replace friendship with God. Daily spiritual development is a lifelong process, one that does not end at retirement.

Successful aging includes vibrant faith in God’s ability to help us through life and because we make lemonade each time life hands us a lemon. Sooner or later, all persons begin to dwell on the fact they are aging. How they handle or act upon their thoughts is what David Petty hopes to help them. His book,  Aging Gracefully, provides us with ideas for how to help adults get the most out of getting older.

Richard E. Dodge teaches young adults in Sunday School at Una Baptist Church, Nashville, and is Internet Producer, LifeWay Church Resources, Nashville, TN.

*Aging Well, by George Vaillant, is published by Little, Brown and Company; © 2002 by George Vaillant, M.D.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Get an extended version of this article, providing additional tips for each of the actions suggested here, by clicking on the link to the complete article here: Successful Aging.

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