Three-quarters of all calendar years are 365 days, with every fourth one being 366. Yet, if you live into your mid-life as a man, then you’ve learned how years can actually get shorter. Psychologists have noted that the more years a person experiences, the shorter each coming year seems. This internal clock might drive you to a mid-life crisis, but it can also be the fuel for your mid-life renaissance.
What Is Middle Aged?
You might be wondering what the definition of middle age even is, and it’s one that doesn’t actually have a single answer. The traditional answer for many years was that it was the adult years starting from a person’s 40th birthday until they turned 60.
Viewpoints on the subject have shifted in recent decades, as people not only live longer but are active later in life. Some modern definitions have shifted the dates to ages 45 through 64.
Truth be told, it varies from one person to the next. However, being middle-aged is basically the stretch of life where you are aware of your own mortality but also still enjoy good physical health enough to do most of the things you want in life.
In short, you’ve still got the ability to live your life’s dreams, but you’re also on a clock and need to get moving.
Stop Thinking, Start Doing
If you want to start living your mid-life renaissance as a man, then you need to stop thinking about everything you want to do and start doing them.
Split the List
If you haven’t already done it, then write down a list of everything that you want to start doing. Once you do this, split it into two columns. The first column will be all the things that you can do right now or start soon. The second column would be the things that have prerequisites of some kind or you just have no idea how to begin.
Get going on the things you can do now. There’s no reason to wait on these, and you never know how they might turn into the opportunities or just confidence you need to start tackling other things later.
Get That Motorcycle
It might seem like a cliche that middle-aged men want a motorcycle. The thing is, a lot of them actually do.
Go ahead and get one! You shouldn’t care what anyone thinks anymore, and if you truly enjoy riding one, then people will actually be jealous or even impressed with your passion.
Finding the best motorcycle for you is a combination of staying within your budget and also picking the make and model you want. Shopping online means you can access the nationwide marketplace, and motorcycle shipping means that you can have that bike brought right to your doorstep whether it’s coming from another state or two time zones away.
Once you do find the motorcycle you want, then you can get quotes for shipping it. Once you pick the one that works for you, you can make detailed arrangements regarding your particular motorcycle. Once that is done, you can have it picked up and wait for the transport to bring it to wherever you are.
Once the motorcycle arrives, have your mechanic check it out from end to end and get it ready to ride. Then, once you have a weekend afternoon full of sunshine, you can hit the open road for the first time.
Fleshing Out Your Mid-Life Renaissance
Making your mid-life years matter can start with something simple as getting going with a to-dream list and treating yourself to something you’ve wanted for years. However, you need to keep moving. NPR has good suggestions for other steps to take:
- Think Ahead: When you were a kid, you probably didn’t look past the day you were in. Even as a young adult, you might not have often looked past your next paycheck. Now, you’re old enough to see far into the future, but you can embrace that with long-term goals. That lets you aim higher and dream bigger, but taking steps in those directions can also mean finding short-term happiness along the way.
- Punctuate Your Own Story: Younger years are full of milestones in life, from prom to birthdays to graduations. Mid-life is often a blank page, so use it to write your own story.
- Stave Off Boredom: Most people in mid-life are competent at something they can generate steady income with. However, you might have already faced the decision of playing it safe or taking risks. Being cautious is always good, but if you learned everything there is about your current job in the first year, do another five years doing the same thing get you anywhere? Take a few risks, and always be a beginner at something in your life.
- Beware Boredom in Your Love Life: Boredom isn’t just a risk in your professional life but also any romantic relationships you have. Most marriages that fail wind up doing so because of lack of interest, mutual neglect, or a combination of the two.
- Don’t Look for Love and Happiness: People of any generation who don’t feel like they’re getting all they want from life might decide they need to look for love and happiness. The thing is, the two overlap so much that finding one usually means finding the other at the same time.
- Prioritize: While you might start with the easiest things to do on your list of dreams, you’ll eventually have to start prioritizing. Which ambitions matter the most to you? You’re old enough now to know yourself and what’s important to you. You’re also wise enough to know how to get things done, so enjoy the luxury of picking what really matters to you. When anything is possible, pick the dreams that you can’t live without.
Find Your Balance
Being middle-aged can actually be the best years of your life. You need to take steps to preserve your health and save the money you’ll need in your golden years, but there’s also nothing healthier than living your life with passion and vigor. Becoming your best self now helps these years as much as the ones ahead.