Every time I interview a 40-something woman for 40:20 Vision I ask them what 3 “gifts” would they give a 20-something if they were a “Forty-Godmother”. Here are one woman’s gifts:
Self esteem, a positive body-image and flexibility.
1.
Self esteem. I’m not sure how you get that. I hope your mother didn’t do everything for you. The only way that you build self-esteem is by just having to do it yourself.
2.
A good body image. By the time you’re forty you don’t look in the mirror that often. It just doesn’t matter as much. Don’t be so hard on yourself because pictures get better with age. I think that’s really good advice. If you take a picture of you in your twenties and you don’t like it, put it away and look at it 10 years, you won’t be believe how great you looked. Same goes for now. You always look better than you think.
3.
Flexibility. Most people don’t say, “I’m going to have three kids and I’m going to get divorce. That is my goal. Then I’m going to shuffle the kids back and forth from house to house and I’m going to share custody”. Nobody ever, ever says that in their life. But if you can have an ability to find happiness in a readjusted picture, if you could be flexible, then your life will be filled with joy. Otherwise you are judging yourself all day long and berating yourself and there’s just no point…and nobody wins in that situation.