Older people have (obviously) lived a long time, and have usually encountered – and overcome – most situations in life. As such, they tend to have some deep insights into human nature and the way the world works – insights that we can all learn from.
Recently, we’ve been asking our residents for their best life advice to publish in our newsletter, and everyone has been pleased to provide their own unique insight into life. Here’s some of the advice given by our residents over the past year – and why we think it’s a great idea.
“Always be honest” – Jim Maxwell
“Honesty is the best policy” – Georgie Stubbs
Your willingness to be honest shows a lot about your character and morals, and it certainly makes your life easier! Being honest proves you can be trusted, and allows you to build trustworthy and reliable relationships with others. Honesty is one of the most important foundations of any relationship – and really, no one wants dishonest people in their life. Honesty really is the best policy – as the late and much loved Jim knew, and we appreciate his insight. And Georgie certainly agrees!
“Enjoy other people’s company, and also your own” – Joy Maslen
It’s vitally important to enjoy spending time with others, particularly as you age. Loneliness can be devastating for the mental and physical health and wellbeing of older people. You need to stay connected and engaged with the people around you – in fact, making and keeping friendships needs to be a priority as you age, as well as keeping in touch with family. But it’s also important to enjoy your own company, and to be comfortable spending time on your own. Everyone can benefit from some quiet time, and making some time for yourself to reflect, plan, create, get to know yourself better or just enjoy the peace and quiet is always a good idea, and can help you become more in tune with yourself and more relaxed. Great advice – thanks, Joy!
“Always have faith and trust in God” – Claire Brown
Faith is sometimes easy to overlook, but it should be an important part of our lives. Faith in God allows us to view the storms of life through a different lens – we learn to trust a power higher than ourselves, giving us confidence to embrace whatever comes our way. Faith can strengthen us during trials, as well as give us hope for the future, and studies have repeatedly shown that people with a strong faith feel better and are both physically and mentally healthier than those without one. Sounds like something we should be looking at including in our lives – thanks, Claire!
“Have positivity in life and live a good life” – Bev Fyffe
It’s hard to overestimate the importance of a positive attitude, as a positive outlook is linked with feelings of happiness and confidence, a stronger immune system, more energy, lowered stress and improved overall wellbeing. In fact, a positive attitude has actually been associated with a longer lifespan! Think of it like food – what a good or bad diet does to your body, positive or negative thoughts will do to your mind. If you feed your mind with positive thoughts and live a good life, it will do wonders for your physical and mental health and wellbeing. Sounds like a very good way to be, and something we can all work on incorporating more – thanks, Bev!
“Do the best you can, as often as you can” – James Lomax
Doing the best you can at everything you do is a great way to live your life. Not only are you more likely to succeed at whatever you do, you’re also more likely to feel satisfied with your efforts and your life. Successful people strive to do their best, not to be mediocre. You never know what the future will bring, so it’s wise to always make the best use of the present time you have. It demonstrates great strength of character to always try your best – and people will notice that.
Always striving to do your best is a great way to live your life, and something we can all use a reminder on now and again – thanks, James!
“Be prepared! And always have a back-up plan” – Marlon Rea
When you come from a scouting background (as Marlon does), you quickly learn to be prepared in all things! It’s advice that has stoon Marlon in good stead throughout his long life and something that we can all apply, too. Proper preparation allows you to relax, thrive and be confident, and is an important factor in almost any type of success. Being prepared for something ahead of time allows you to be proactive, rather than reactive, if you just wait until something happens. When you’re prepared for what’s to come, you already know what you need to do, you can deal with problems faster and easier, and you can make all the necessary preparations to ensure the things that need to happen, do happen. Plus, preparation helps you avoid a build-up of stress and anxiety. Being prepared and having a back-up plan for when things don’t go as expected saves time, money and stress, and is the key to success (and being on time!).
And don’t worry if you’re not naturally organised or prepared – it’s a skill that can be learnt. Preparation is an ongoing commitment to excellence, so invest a bit of time and effort into proper preparation, and set yourself up on the road to success. Thanks, Marlon!
“Make use of what you have today” – Margaret Bramley
Life doesn’t always go to plan, but when things don’t work out as you want them to, the best thing you can do is make use of whatever you have today. There’s no point wishing for things to be different – just go with what you’ve got and make the best of it, because that’s far better than wishing for things you don’t have. And chances are, what you have today will work out to be enough.
It’s a great way to approach life – thanks, Margaret!
Thanks to our wonderful residents for their insightful and very helpful advice – there really is something there for everyone!
To read more about how to thrive in old age, click here.
