Hey hey! How’s it going? If it’s Friday, it must be time for Daniel to spark up a random conversation about life. It’s a celebratory week in our world – I hit my 40th birthday 3 days ago, and today is Steve’s 41st birthday! That’s right, Vortex’s two Sagittarians just got one year older and wiser.

So far I’m opting out of a midlife crisis, because I’ve recognized that age really is just a number. 40 used to be branded as “over the hill” but I actually feel like my life is just beginning!

Life on earth, though challenging and chock full of ‘what the f!@#s’, gets better and better the more time you spend becoming who you really are. And the only way to get better at that is to age!

As we grow up, we have the option of going into a spiral of ‘what if’s’ and ‘why not’s’ about where we want to be in life… but we can also just shut up for a second and be grateful that we’re alive to complain about living.

There’s this mythical idea that when you’re a grown-up, you have life all figured out. As a “grown-up” who is progressing through existence (albeit with a few more wrinkles and grey hairs), I can confirm this is nonsense.

I have, however, learned a few good pointers for making growing up more enjoyable and less intimidating. Let’s dive in…

celebrate your skin suit

This past year I set a very soft goal that I would be in the best shape of my life by my 40th birthday – and, while I don’t feel like I necessarily worked harder, I simply showed up for my body almost every day and sure enough hit 40 in the best shape of my life… so far.

I didn’t want to approach this goal from a superficial perspective (though seeing your ab muscles despite eating a $#!% ton of pizza and french fries is amazing), I just wanted to feel strong enough to move into the next phase of my life with as few limitations as possible.

The goal for me is to feel fit and mobile so that nothing can hold me back from fully participating in life as it comes my way. I’ve struggled for so long with holding myself back, keeping myself small, dimming my light, etc — and all of that is a mental, emotional and spiritual game. I figured the least I can do is have my $#!% together on a physical level so I’m always ready for what’s next.

I understand that I’m blessed to be able-bodied with very few aches and pains (thanks to sessions at Vortex!), but it’s all relative to where you’re at. The point is, we only get this one body and it’s our vessel to experience everything the world has to offer.

Why not keep our vehicle in the best condition possible so we can cruise through the Universe ready for whatever comes across our path?

stay young at heart

Getting older is cool, but it’s also super weird. We’re still that same soul staring out the eyes of our human suit, but the suit is constantly changing. I don’t know about you, but I’m fine with my age getting higher – I just don’t want my expectations for myself to get lower.

I believe we’re all here to constantly shift and grow into more of who we are, and that takes a lot of grit and persistence; it’s way too easy to rest on an attitude of “this is just how it is” or “this is just who I am”. What’s more exciting, is approaching every day, week and year with an attitude of growth and personal development.

What I’m learning is that nothing really gets easier or harder, it’s all relative to where you’re at – your wins and losses, your challenges and triumphs, your stresses and superpowers, they all grow with you – and our capacity to handle the ups and downs expands as we grow up!

Moreover, as we get older, we also have more choices about how we want to show up in the world.

Ironically, I think it’s super important that we tap into our inner child in order to grow up fully and expand into the being we’re meant to be. When we tap into the energy of youth that’s inside us all, we have access to innate positivity, boundless energy, uninhibited creativity and a wild imagination where anything is possible.

I’m not convinced that we need to know what we want to be when we grow up, but I do think it’s helpful to know who we want to be and how we want to feel.

You can wait for a milestone birthday if necessary, but every time we wake up we have the opportunity to decide how we want our life to look. We have a finite amount of time on this spinning rock, and until we know for certain what happens on the other side of all this, I think it makes perfect sense to be ambitious, stay young at heart and squeeze as much juice out of this human experience as we can.

make good choices

My instagram algorithm brought me a profound quote the other day that I can’t stop thinking about:

“That which you are not changing, you are choosing.”

If that ain’t a mic drop moment, I don’t know what is! I mean, if you are thrilled with how things are going in your life, good for you – don’t change a thing! But if you’re aware of something that you wish was different, and you’re not taking steps to change it, that means you’ve decided things should stay the same. Now, depending on the things you wish were different in your life, this statement could be a gentle reminder or a very harsh wakeup call.

With that said, honestly, I think decision making is one of the hardest parts about growing up. Despite the fact that we’re all experts in uncertainty, there’s the constant lingering fear that we might make the “wrong” choice. Funny enough, even though I struggle with this sometimes, I don’t really believe that we can make a wrong choice – we just have to choose instead of living in a state of analysis paralysis. Why? Because life has this magical way of course-correcting our path if we’re willing to pay attention to the signs and signals and use them as guideposts on our individual journeys.

It’s a great idea to make our next moves from a place of peace and appreciation – not from scarcity or fear. The odds are in our favour when we settle into the moment, go inward, tap into the fullness of who we are, and feel into the options that lay before us. That way we can take a confident first step into the next part of our story.

As we continue to grow up, the best thing we can do for ourselves is be honest. Be honest about where you’re at and where you want to be. Don’t beat yourself up for what could have been, because if you woke up today there’s still time to head in a new direction.

If you don’t think you’ve got what it takes to live your best life… grow up!