When you think of growing old gracefully, your thoughts might instantly turn to the physical—for example, you might consider how to keep your skin relatively free of wrinkles, how to flatter your changing body, and how to maintain shiny, glossy hair. However, far more important than how you look in older age is the type of outlook you maintain.
In this four and a half minute video from CBC Radio One, a huge range of people reveal the advice they’d like to be able to give their young selves. Some focus on issues connected to self-esteem, while others reflect on how they spent their time or what type of career path is worth following.
Watching this string of confessions and reflections provides you with a fascinating range of insights into the kinds of things that people fear, regret, love and value. Chances are, you’ll find plenty to connect to, and some of it might just change how you think and feel about your life moving forward.
For parents, there is additional food for thought on the type of messages that we impart to the younger generation, and how we might be able to shape their cognitive lives for the better.
After you’ve finished the video, try ask yourself what you would like to tell your younger self at various stages of your life. How much does your imagined advice change over time? And might you be able to imagine what an older incarnation of yourself might want to tell the version of you that exists today?
