Last week I had lunch with a friend and the topic of how to live a colorful life came up. He made an insightful point that I would like to share with my dear readers. He said there are at least 3 avenues that one can live a colorful life.
1) Personal experience: We have our own life experience first hand.
2) Friends and family: Through our interaction with them, in particular when they share their experience with us, our lives are enriched.
3) Books, films, music and other art forms: Through our imagination and senses, we can experience different dimensions and aspects of life.

I came across an article on the topic of better sleep in the magazine coachingmag.co.uk this week and would like to share with my readers.
Five-Step Guide to Better Sleep by Dr. Michael Breus
1) Stick to the same schedule – get up at the same time and go to bed at the same time every day, including the weekend.
2) Stop drinking caffeine by 2pm every day – a lot of people say they can drink caffeine right before bed with no effect, but it has an effect on everybody
3) Stop drinking alcohol three hours before putting the lights out. It keeps you away from the deeper stages of sleep.
4) Exercise every day, but stop exercising approximately four hours before bed, otherwise you get a little too revved up.
5) Get 15 minutes of sunlight every day – this helps to reset your circadian clock each morning.
Good night to all :>

At the other end of emotional spectrum from frustration and disappointment, joy of success should also be handled appropriately with a healthy dose of maturity. That may sound a bit strange, but actually it makes good sense. As much as we are happy and should celebrate our success, we should also be mindful of the feelings of others. Avoid the unintended effect of “rubbing it in” for those that failed in the same/similar endeavor as us. In addition, don’t let success “go to our heads”. Put our two feet firmly on the ground and carry on.

Maturity is a big word which in general (there are always exceptions) comes with age. I believe there are some key aspects of the emotional and psychological maturity that are in particular crucial.

The first came to my mind (not a reflection of my personal situation) is handling of frustration and disappointment in life.
As one grows older (I wonder why I say that), one will inevitably face frustration and disappointment at some point of his/her life. The ability to bounce back and move on from those moments is of utmost important. Yes, don’t dwell on it too much. Learn from the experience and next. Chop-chop.

“Patience is bitter, but its fruit is sweet.” — Jean-Jacques Rousseau
I reckon some clarification is needed what I meant by patience. It is not passivity for one to sit around doing nothing yet expect something great to happen. I have another name for such mentality. That is called day dreaming or wishful thinking. Patience is day-in-day-out continuing to work towards your outmost goal.

Patience is another element that more mature people may have a better handle on than the younger generation.
Well, there are always the “grumpy old men” but let us not get there for “illustration purpose”.
From our own experience, we have learned that sometimes rushing things through and not willing to wait may have caused some lost opportunities in our lives. That can serve as a reminder in the future when similar situations arise. As they say in the UK, “Keep calm and carry on!”

Stamina is one element that I believe more mature people may have a better handle on and thus may be leveraged on.
For example, parents or grandparents for that matter (I am not neither of them) can tell you what sort of endurance and patience that they need to have to take care of their children. Such emotional and psychological stamina can be applied in other circumstances including work place. Use it wisely and don’t throw away something valuable that you already have.

I would like to devote the next few blogs on some elements that more mature people may focus on in order to stay competitive.
The first and most obvious one is experience. By “definition”, we, more mature people, do have more experience “under our belts”. Don’t let anyone tell us that our experience is obsolete. Even if it is, we can learn from it and become better and stronger. Our intuition and insight that require years of experience to develop should not be brushed aside. Be proud of our experience :>

Today I observed an intriguing incident at a restaurant over lunch.
A grandmother entered the restaurant with her daughter’s family including 2 young children. She sat down at the table next to me first and ordered a slice of apple pie with extra vanilla ice cream on it. She told the waitress that it was her very favorite. She then proceeded to eat it with a childlike eagerness when her food arrived before other family members ordered their food.
I recalled some people told me that when people get older (probably into their retirement), they sometimes behave like children. I have no intention of picking on more mature people (we are all heading in that direction). I wonder if we let go our inhibition and be more carefree, we may be able to learn faster like children do.

There are multiple occasions in my life that I wish I did not open my not-so-small mouth and say something that I regretted later. In retrospect, sometimes it is better to “take the fifth” and make no comments on the spot. Alternatively, saying “let me get back to you” or requesting for more time to reply may be considered as well. Just remember sometimes (not always) that silence is the best answer at that moment.