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Are you growing bolder as you grow older? I think I am, though perhaps some people who knew me as a kid thought I was bold enough then. The truth is, I wasn’t. I was bold in ways that got me attention. I liked standing out from the crowd and going against what I perceived as outdated, unnecessary, or unjust norms. I still do!
Yet there was a timid dimension to my personality. I spoke up about things I felt were important issues, like race and gender inequality, but I often submerged personal dissatisfaction. I thought I was true to my own needs and dreams, but the truth is, I frequently set them aside or ignored them, because they got in the way of meeting other people’s needs. Sometimes I did this as a conscious choice, thinking it was the right thing to do. Other times I did not even acknowledge my timidity when it came to seizing life by the horns and boldly stepping up to do what I really wanted to do.
One of the perks of getting older is that I feel more free to be bold. I want to keep working on that, because I still need improvement. It isn’t always easy for me. I want to be bold about having fun, about laughing, about aging in a way that ignores how others think I should do it. I want to be bold about doing and saying certain things I didn’t have the guts to say or do at an earlier stage of life.
Some people think that getting to my stage of life means starting to slow down, and to be content doing little or nothing. I hate that idea. It’s not for me. I may not be the biggest success in terms of how much I have earned over my lifetime, or even the things I have acquired. I am grateful for what I have, but I also know I can live without a good part of what I have. I know that because there was a time when I had a lot less and managed just fine. I don’t know what’s in store for me, but I would still like to find one or two more really bold and meaningful things to do for myself, and for the world. I’m working on exploring this.
How about you? How bold are you? Is getting older giving you the desire and the courage to step out into more boldness? Do you ever wake up and feel, even for just a little while, that there is more to life than your obligations and your material possessions? Have you had a dream that you have tried to push off the horizon, but that keeps on rising up and nagging at you?
Is there something in your life that has been begging for reinvention, but you have continued to ignore it to the best of your ability? Do you take the time to be introspective and to even try to identify what is gnawing at you, or what you would like to do instead of what you are doing now?
I want to make a bold request of you, my readers. I am asking you to BE BOLD. A little boldness may even go a long way in your world, so try it.
Is it boldness about your career that you want to try? Is it boldness about ending a career you have been plugging away at forever, that doesn’t feel meaningful anymore, or that doesn’t fill you with delight and positive energy? Is it boldness about an unfulfilled passion? Is it boldness that you need in order to find or keep a relationship, or to let go of a bad one?
I want to share with you a wonderful video about a man, who once was a successful neurologist, who changed his life in a bold and dramatic way. His way is not for most of us, but I found the video quite inspiring. It’s long, but I hope you will watch, enjoy, and take something away from it.
By the way, I also want to boldly wish you a Happy Valentine’s Day. I say boldly, because I don’t just wish you just a day full of romance and chocolates, I am wishing you a day on which you boldly declare your love for all who are important to you, and set your intention to act on that love every single day. I am wishing you a day for taking the time to acknowledge the need to accept and love yourself, and to remember your own dreams and do something about them.
Please do take the time to watch this wonderful video!
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Do you need some help reinventing yourself, and finding your inner courage? Are you going through, or wanting to make a difficult whole life, or relationship change? I am here to help. Let’s have a chat about it.
