Rethink Again

About a year ago, author James Clear sent an email newsletter that described aging as a “slow death of becoming overly protective, scared, and worried about losing what you have.” Clear was presumably 39 when he wrote that—and one hopes he didn’t draw this sad and dreary picture from experience. One suspects, in fact, that his own passing days are not defined by a creeping sense of paranoia and he simply pulled those thoughts from the stereotypes and assumptions that surround him.

Fast forward to a couple of weeks ago, and unfortunately, Clear’s readers were exposed to another bundle of ageist stereotypes. This time he suggested that, when it comes to an aging mindset, “The general trend seems to become less open minded, less resilient, less capable of handling change with ease and flexibility as the years roll by.”

To those who’ve studied ageism, it’s not difficult to recognize those words—misguided as they may be—as reflections of common thought. We hear stuff like this every day. But to those who love accuracy (and who like to play with words) it’s also not difficult to suggest some more honest ways that Clear could have queued up his claims.

For example, he could have started with, “We’re constantly being told …,” before laying out his slow-deaths and less-capables. Or he might have said, “The stereotypes that abound in our age-fearing culture suggest …,” before following up with the standard tropes. Heck, he could even have told his subscribers, “People who write to an audience of millions and thrive on making strong statements sometimes neglect to do their research before saying things like …,” and hit the issue straight on. 

To his (almost) credit, Clear did use each of his negative interpretations of growing older as launching pads to suggest a more positive approach. Most recently, he pointed out that he, personally, hopes to “age into a better mindset” and “grow in the opposite direction.”

Well, Mr. Clear, you’ve given yourself a great place to start: By looking more thoroughly into the things you’ve been told about aging and questioning why you believe they’re true. By catching up on the research that shows our brains are not one-way contraptions that harden and dwindle as time goes by, but malleable wonders that respond to input and exploration for decades beyond what we’ve been told. And by recognizing it’s not age that stops our minds from flourishing over time; it’s internalizing the negative ideas we’re constantly fed.

If you want to improve your mindset for tomorrow, start recognizing how the ageist culture around you is shaping it today.

(photo by Tora Wa on Unsplash)