The Art 2 Aging

We’re big fans of Kathie Donovan, here at The Art 2 Aging. Kathie is a happiness expert and author of a terrific new book, “You Look Great For Your Age - And Other Things We Should Never Say Again.”

This week on Body and Soul, Kathie gives us a 60 second reminder on the value of staying in the present moment. Enjoy!

“Aging in place” is a phrase we hear a lot.

“Aging in space” we don’t hear at all.

What is aging in space? According to health and housing developer, Andrea Leja, aging in space refers not just to the space inside the walls of a home but the space outside that home.

As countless studies have shown, a critical component of aging well is access to a community. And for older adults, that means a community that is highly walkable, provides all the services – medical, dental, fitness opportunities – and is a space that is pleasing to live in.

Andrea Leja is working on developing just such a community and she joins us this week on The Art 2 Aging.

Sometimes, a tilt of the head can reveal a new look.

Put another way, there are many different ways to see an idea.

Take aging, for instance. Aging is far more than a simple if-then proposition:

· If you’re over 65, then you’re likely old and useless

· If you have grey hair, then you’re probably heading towards senility

You get the picture.

Because we can look at something like aging from various angles, we can see far more than mere black and white.

That’s why author and social gerontologist, Jeanette Leardi, wrote Aging Sideways. She wants to show how aging can be – and should be – seen for the natural stage in life that it is.

Aging Sideways is a battle cry against ageism and Jeanette Leardi joins The Art 2 Aging this week to demonstrate how older adults can “take up the sword.”

Life has been described in terms akin to a play. Shakespeare wrote:

“All the world’s a stage and all the men and women merely players. They have their exits and their entrances…”

We also refer to periods in life as acts or chapters.

For example, many of us have reached the Third Act, as writer Wayne Lehrer calls it – that time in life when we falsely believe the best has come and gone.

It’s also a time that behooves all of us who are older to really consider carefully how we want to spend what could be another 30 years on earth. Because, remember, statistically if you are 65, you will likely live into your 90s.

This period in life could also be called the Second Act - as in another chance, a kind of do-over, an opportunity to take a fork in the road toward adventures unknown.

Author Jay Samit has very strong suggestions for how you can profitably spend those three decades and achieve a legacy at the same time.

You ought to read Jay’s biography here.

His professional life is pretty astonishing.

As one of the original Tech Bros before there was such a thing, let alone such a phrase, Jay pioneered remarkable change in the world through technology.

He is now an author of several books, the most recent titled The Second Act Advantage: Monetize Your Wisdom, Master Longevity and Build an Unforgettable Legacy.

How? Several ways but they all revolve around making strong use of that elephant in the room: AI.

Fear not; Jay’s recipe for success offers a new way to look at AI that is empowering. And very exciting.

He talks about his book this week on The Art 2 Aging.

What does it mean to age consciously?

A good question since most of us age unconsciously.

We enter into those later years filled with misunderstanding, half truths, flat out lies, and old wives’ tales about what it means to grow old. And we end up living out our lives just so.

That’s why Wayne Lehrer wrote The Art of Conscious Aging.

Wayne also speaks to older adults living in retirement communities. Together, they explore conscious aging and Wayne tries to help them shatter the illusions about becoming old.

This week on The Art 2 Aging, Wayne talks about the attitudes he’s encountered during these discussions.

Some of them are going to surprise you.

Recently, the Global Wellness Institute commissioned three studies to determine what aging well means in different countries.

More than 20 experts working in the aging field on retirement, health, and market research were asked for their views (that study can be found here).

Over 25 creative directors from ad and marketing agencies were surveyed to determine what makes good advertising for an aging well message and why agencies continue to miss the advertising mark.

A thousand people in each of five countries were asked a series of questions about how they view getting older, what they want out of older age and what they fear the most. When that study is released in August, The Art 2 Aging will update you.

With five countries and nearly 50 experts surveyed, you wouldn’t be wrong in assuming a wide variety of views was expressed. Or would you?

Veteran marketing and advertising executive, Dave McCaughan, headed several of the studies for the Institute.

He joins The Art 2 Aging this week to discuss what he and his teams discovered.

Who are the rich and powerful? The tech bros? Nope.

According to a 54 year old Yale professor whose income is north of $250 thousand a year, it’s older adults like you and me!

You didn’t know how influential and affluent you are, did you (in Canada, one of the major banks has an ad slogan that goes, “You’re richer than you think”)?

Back in April, the New York Times ran an opinion piece by Professor Samuel Moyn entitled, “Older Americans Are Hoarding America’s Potential” in which he argues for things like restricted voting for older adults, mandatory retirement, taxes on the homes of older people and other “creative” solutions to counter what he refers to as “gerontocracy” in the United States today.

Needless to say, the op ed has stirred things up. Janine Vanderburg, founder of Encore Roadmap, and a fearless opponent of ageism, has angrily opposed Moyn’s arguments in her writings.

She is our esteemed guest this week on The Art 2 Aging.

Kathie Donovan is a frequent contributor and guest on The Art 2 Aging and for good reason.

She walks her talk.

What we love about Kathie is that we learn from her every time we listen to her. You just can’t help but be inspired.

Now, Kathie has written a book called, You Look Great For Your Age (And Other Things We Should Never Say Again), about how we have bought into ageism, how we’ve internalized it and how we can rid ourselves of it. It’s worth the read!

In today’s video message on Body and Soul, Kathie offers a way to release old, self-limiting stories we have carried inside for years…

What’s the difference between an elder and someone who is just older?

Well, if you think about the word, ‘elder,’ you’ll likely have an image of an indigenous person in your mind. Or, perhaps, a medicine man, a swami, or maybe a shaman.

Fair enough. But the truth is that, according to Dr. Marc Cooper, an elder is simply someone who is older AND enlightened.

At the age of 81, Marc puts himself squarely into that category. While turning 81 was automatic, becoming enlightened certainly was not.

However, the former dentist believes it is possible for anyone to reach an enlightened state of mind, so much so that he has established the Contemporary Elder Institute to provide the guidance needed to discover the path to happiness and satisfaction.

Dr. Marc Cooper is our guest this week.