02 Apr I WAS MUCH OLDER THEN, I’M MUCH YOUNGER NOW

This is paraphrased from a famous line in a song written by Bob Dylan. The song suggests youthful idealism often gives way to realism with age. Many think they’re brilliant when young but learn more as they grow older. I found this true in my career—from thinking I was brilliant in my 20s to becoming wiser in my 30s, 40s, and 50s. Life’s complexities often show fewer black and white absolutes and more nuances.

Adapting to technological changes means embracing new ideas and continually retraining. Rapid advancements require us to understand new technology’s benefits and drawbacks. Success comes from being adaptive, not resisting change. Recent innovations include smarter devices, 5-G networks, electric and autonomous cars, blockchain, 3-D printing, quantum computing, IoT, augmented reality, and AI.

AI draws suspicion due to fears of job replacement that have been stocked by mass media. While AI may alter jobs, it mainly enhances efficiency and makes work more valuable. It offers better customer understanding and predictability by analyzing vast data quickly, aiding decision-making for improved outcomes.

Learning daily keeps life interesting and less routine. Sometimes learning can be combined with recreation.  For example, visiting our 63 National Parks or many Civil War battle sites, such as Gettysburg, PA. I have enjoyed visiting the 19 Smithsonian Museums and Galleries, plus the monuments, and the U.S. Holocaust Museum in Washington, DC. The Smithsonian Museums cover a wide range of topics, offer guided tours, and hands-on activities.  This includes the recently opened National Museum of African American History and Culture.

Watching NBC’s “The Americas” taught me new facts through incredible photography and Tom Hanks’ narration. I enjoyed the series very much.

Learning enhances self-awareness, improves self-image, and helps us understand our environment, leading to happiness or awareness of challenges. It will increase your confidence, boost your mood, and improve your mental health. It can also result in additional social relationships.

I encourage you to become subject matter experts in your chosen field, gain certifications, attend industry conferences, and network with other like-minded individuals. In addition to enriching your life, the certifications might result in career advancement and an increase in your remuneration, as well as placing you amongst the top people in your profession. This has worked well for me.

Attend evening or weekend adult education and retraining classes at local community colleges. Take art, history, auto mechanics, woodworking, or gardening classes. The courses are usually very affordable and convenient. I guarantee it will increase your enjoyment of your hobby or special interest. Unlike undergraduate university students, adult learners have the autonomy to select and enroll in courses of their choice. And, as Bob Dylan noted, adult learning helps keep you young.

Take, for instance, my father’s good friend Bernie Bluestein. He went to art school in the 1940s and left to join the US Army during World War II, serving in the once-secret Ghost Army tactical deception unit. Now 102 years old, Bernie still takes art classes at Harper College in Palatine, IL, as he has done for over 40 years. His apartment is decorated with various pieces of art he created, and he looks forward to his weekly classes.  His art instructor was born after Bernie retired!

Learning also includes attending Bible or religious classes at your church, synagogue, or mosque. You will learn more about your religion (and others if you attend a different church) and increase your spirituality, which will increase your happiness. Another benefit is that single people can also make new friends by attending these classes.

I do not think you will regret taking up my suggestions.

I would like to hear from readers who take up my idea to continue with their education and certifications.