This blog is written by Lee Gale Gruen to help Baby Boomers, seniors, retirees, and those soon to retire find joy, excitement, and satisfaction in life after retirement. Her public lecture on this subject is titled: “Reinventing Yourself in Your Retirement.” Her memoir, Adventures with Dad: A Father and Daughter’s Journey Through a Senior Acting Class, is available by clicking here Amazon.com. Click here for her website: http://AdventuresWithDadTheBook.com
Now, on to my blog:
We are all impatient, some more than others. We are concerned about how future events will unfold. We want our agendas to be realized immediately. However, living in a world of billions, that’s usually impossible. We must wait our turn in the queue. We must rein in our impatience. We must plan our activities in advance to allow plenty of time to reach the goal or outcome we seek.
Trying to be patient can create anxiety, sleep problems, distraction, and all types of other behaviors which interfere with our everyday lives. However, we have no choice; we must learn to grapple with delayed gratification.
How can you do so if you are a personality type with substantial difficulty in that arena? It’s hard, but it can and must be done for your well-being. Here are some ideas:
- You can participate in a soothing activity that redirects your mind and thoughts. I know someone who takes to her piano whenever she feels anxious.
- You can schedule activities that divert your attention such as watching a movie, playing cards, attending an interesting function, etc.
- You can engage in physical exercise such as sports or attendance at your local gym to help channel your nervous energy.
- You can discuss your feelings with a friend as a sounding board to get a better perspective on the particular situation.
- Or, you can make the decision to change your modus operandi.
Your modus operandi is simply your normal way of behaving. Changing your M.O. is the hardest choice of all. It takes constant attention and self- assessment to be aware of how you are acting, to settle your mind, and to choose to move on to something else.
Unlike the aforementioned, short-term fixes, a significant change of behavior may take years to accomplish and possibly therapeutic intervention. Success at that endeavor depends heavily on the depth of your desire to discard old habits for new. If you are able to accomplish such a feat, however, it will be the most rewarding and helpful to you.
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Photo credit: Dave_S. on Visualhunt / CC BY
I was trying to download the Uber app onto my cell phone. It was a new learning curve for me, but I wanted to be hip like everyone else and try out the popular ride sharing concept.
Sometimes we find ourselves in situations where we feel out of place; you know, that awkward, uncomfortable sensation because we don’t quite fit in. We try to adapt, but all we can think of is, how do I get out of here? It’s particularly hard in a situation where everyone else seems to know each other, to interact comfortably, and we are the odd man out.
Ah, Monet. We hung out together recently. That is, Monet did the hanging–on a wall at the de Young Museum in San Francisco, California, with me in attendance and in awe. As you can see in this photo, I failed to dress for the occasion–a faux pas as Monet would say in the French of his origin. Yes, I stressed primary colors that day forgetting that my pal Monet is definitely a secondary colors kind of guy.
I spotted this guy on a subway train with this huge drum. I guess he subscribes to the old adage: you never know when you might need a drum.
How important is it to stick to your word? I mean, what’s the big deal if you back out of a promise or commitment? I’ve addressed this subject before (see blog of May 14, 2018: “Keep Your Promises”), but this is a different slant.
I have written often on this subject, yet it keeps calling me back. I hear chatter, see ads, discover new offerings in this field. Yes, we humans fixate on our bodies. We find the parts that are not considered attractive in the time, age, and location in which we live, and we obsess about them. I’m too tall/short/scrawny/corpulent, my nose is too big, my hair is too limp, my eyelids are slanted, my ears stick out, my biceps aren’t muscular, my breasts are too small/large, and on and on.
