47: This is the age when life gets better. Of course, we know this based on all the U-curve of happiness research. To be more precise, it’s 47.2 years old. Your mileage may vary. I hit my depressing low point at 47.8, which is when I had an unexpected flatline experience, or what I’ve called “my divine intervention.” Fortunately, my 50s were so much better than my 40s and, if the research is correct, it will just keep getting better. I choose to listen to the research. Either way, know that your mid to late-40s can be a “slippery when wet” time of your life.
7.4: Yale’s Becca Levy has shown that when we shift from a negative or neutral mindset on aging to a positive perspective, we add 7.4 years to our lives (good years). In terms of increased longevity, this has a more significant health benefit than stopping smoking or starting exercising in midlife. So, think of your morning dose of Wisdom Well as a means of both lengthening and deepening your life.
74: You’ve heard me say it before, but just as we get comfortable in our own skin, it starts to sag. No doubt, for most of us, our best body might have been in our teens or twenties. Still, our contentment with our body doesn’t hit its crescendo until age 74, when we seem to have settled into our earthly costume with the comfort usually reserved for our favorite pair of shoes.
Numbers do matter, and some numbers get better with age.