Nothing can stop you - no matter how old you are
How many times have you awakened in the morning and wondered what happened with the past three, four, five, six, or seven decades? Or have you looked into the mirror and felt it was unfair that life passed you by without giving you a chance to pursue the career you always wanted?
As much as some people look forward to retirement, what if you don’t have the income to maintain the lifestyle you have grown accustomed to? Then there is the backdoor threat of Alzheimer’s. You may wonder how you are going to stay alert and focused when your days may only be filled with volunteer community work or gardening.
I would rather work than play. If I don’t have any pressing jobs to accomplish, I create one. The few times I have focused on leisure instead of work, I got bored quickly. As the years were fleeting by and I remained in great health, I could not imagine living without an ongoing purpose or fulfilling a dream during my ‘golden’ years.
Choosing to be a victor instead of a victim
My life was not an easy one. I endured more problems than most people would be able to handle. The more negatives life threw at me, the stronger and hopefully, wiser, I became. But what good is that wisdom if I couldn’t put it to valuable use?
When my daughter was a teenager she started a crusade to encourage me to write my memoir. It started as a campaign and for ten years, she made it a threat. She had heard all my excuses and was not going to tolerate them any longer. “Write your story or else!” Finally, I began the journey of writing my story.
I never would have believed it could be so difficult but it was also a driving force as the more I wrote the more I realized I had a message the world needed to hear. It was a message of never, ever giving up – no matter what happens.
Stepping WAY out of a comfort zone
My husband and I were in our sixties when we opened three high-end jewelry stores and shortly after he was in a serious car accident which left him disabled. We found ourselves thrown into a situation that did not allow us to quit our jobs, or sell our businesses. We had to keep going. We weren’t given a choice.
When I was in my twenties, I became a certified health coach after I was told I only had two years to live due to cancer. I refused the normal invasive treatments and opted to cure myself with nutrition and food supplements. After restoration, I promised to help people with their health issues until the day I die.
Where was I going to find the time to write a book? I had no idea my life was about to start over with a new career. I wrote late in the evenings; and after ten years triggered by painful memories, I was ready to launch my book.
I started a podcast to interview ordinary people who overcame extraordinary circumstances and became successful as a result. In the first hour after posting my idea on the internet, I had over 100 requests to be on my show. What show? I swiftly trained myself how to podcast, edit, and promote my show. That was eight years ago and Never Ever Give Up Hope is now heard in over 140 countries with unending weekly requests to be part of the show.
I wanted to fulfill the dream of being an author, an international speaker, and a talk show host. At 67 these seemed like pipe dreams but I am now living them and looking forward to the next challenge. As owner and operator of two jewelry stores, my health coaching business, traveling as a speaker, hosting and managing my talk show, writing for numerous magazines and anthologies, having my own monthly column in two magazines, being the bookkeeper for all the businesses, taking care of a disabled husband and rescuing dogs (over 30 to date)..... I launched a new YouTube channel and website two months ago that is growing faster than my greatest expectations.
Nothing is stopping you
We all have the ability and the right to choose what we do with our retirement years. My choice was to start over – doing what I wanted to do and helping many others be encouraged and challenged to NEVER EVER GIVE UP HOPE.
Never limit yourself by making excuses why you cannot do what you always wanted to do. Find a way. Set your goals. You will never regret it. It will sustain your youth. You have much to offer – start giving it away.
