One of the many misperceptions that some people have when they reach the period called “middle age” is that it’s too late in life to begin something new. They feel as though they don’t have enough “time”.
In reality, however, if you’re in the “official” period of ”middle age”, then your between age 45-65. So, for the sake of discussion, let’s assume that you’re in the middle of that time, and that you’re at age 55. The World Health Organization has reported that the U.S., factoring in both genders, has an overall life expectancy of 79 (76 for males, 81 for females).
So if you’re at our theoretical age of 55, and you’re male, then you have approximately 24 more years to live. Now, if you were age 25, and you were asked if you could accomplish certain things by age 49 (giving you 24 years to do it), do you think you would say “No, I don’t have enough time”? I believe you’ll agree that you would never say that unless the tasks you were asked to accomplish were something extremely difficult.
So then let’s dig deeper. If we say in middle age “I don’t have enough time”, what are we really thinking? Are we really saying “I don’t have enough confidence in myself at this point in my life”? Are we saying “I don’t believe my health is good enough to allow me to do this task”? I believe that in many cases these are some of the reasons.
Another factor can be our beliefs. I’m 72, so we’re going way back here (LOL!), but I remember when my parents were in their middle age. My father would never have engaged in sports, run or worked out at the gym. My mother, much less so. People were expected in their middle age to be mature, and therefore to act in a “mature” manner. Fortunately, times have changed, but if you’re middle-aged you may still have these same beliefs to some degree.
So where am I going with this thread?
To start with, if you have any limiting beliefs about exercise, including running, hiking, cycling and working out, and believe that they are not appropriate for someone of your age, I strongly suggest that you rethink them. I know it’s a really convenient excuse, but it doesn’t hold up at this time.
And all you have to do, is be aware of the many studies which show that exercise not only leads to a long and healthy life, but also to one with a much more alert mind.
These principles also apply to another very important aspect of your life in middle age. And that aspect is financial security.
Study after study have shown that middle-aged people today in America are generally ill-prepared for their retirement, and many of them are struggling even right now.
And going back perhaps 50 years, very few people would even consider a new career or starting a new business once they reached middle age. They had their job, and they stuck with it hoping that they would have a decent retirement.
We’re living in a different world today. Many people in middle age have changed occupations and employers numerous times, and therefore cannot expect a lot from pension and retirement plans. In addition, we see from time to time how retirement funds have gone broke due to the substantial fluctuations in the economy.
But it’s not all bad news. The very same technology, and I’m talking about the Internet here, that seems to be bringing down businesses on a regular basis, including many brick and mortar companies that have been in business more than a century, can also be used to create income in your life.
Segue back our proverbial 50 years, if you are going to create new income when you were in middle age, you’d pretty much be talking about a “mom and pop” store, or maybe trying to create extra income by working evenings or weekends, as my father did.
Today, however, we live in a miraculous age, where anyone who has basic computer knowledge, an Internet connection, and the desire can create an online business. You’ll notice that I didn’t include “have sufficient funds” in that list. That’s the beauty of the Internet opportunity. If you want to open a brick-and-mortar store these days you’ll need tens of thousands of dollars to get set up and to survive until hopefully it’s profitable, although many new businesses fail.
On the other hand, you can start an Internet business with a few hundred dollars or less. Now I’d like to tell you that you can just take an Internet marketing course and within 30 days you’ll be making thousands of dollars a week. Lots of people sell them based on that claim. But for the majority of people, especially those with little or no Internet marketing experience, that doesn’t happen.
It takes time and effort to truly learn Internet marketing and to be able to create a consistent income. Once you’ve learned, and have created some Internet income, it then becomes ”rinse and repeat”.
If you want to know more about creating income from the Internet, be sure to go to the Financial Abundance section of this website.
So if you’re middle-aged, and you see something on the Internet, or hear something from a friend or significant other about something you’re interested in, I hope you’ll never say “I’m middle-aged and I don’t have time for that”.
