Gulp. Middle age. You know, that term you once thought was so far away. How did your 40s creep up on you so quickly? It’s a scary yet freeing feeling to be in this age bracket. Why? We’ll tell you, in more than 7 points and less than 9. Here are 8 things you should know by your 40s (or will start to learn after you read this post below).
1. You Know What You Like (and Dislike)
Remember in your 30s when you said yes to every opportunity that came your way because you weren’t sure if you would like it or not?
Well, now you know you don’t like hot yoga (that was awkward), and you do like dipping just about any food, from a slice of pizza to fried chicken.
Now that you’re in your 40s, you pick and choose what to do, say no to the yucky stuff, and are doing what appeals to you.
2. Life Isn’t Over Yet…
When you were a kid, you thought that when someone turned 40 that their life was over. Now that you’ve reached that decade, you realize, hey, life isn’t even close to being over. You are still fit, charming and mentally with it (okay, most of the time…).
3…But You Will Die at Some Point
The only thing is, you turn 40 and realize you’re on the downward slope now in terms of the number of years left. You will die one day. While it’s a morbid thought, and we all have issues when it comes to mortality, you need to come to terms with it so that you make the most of your days left.
4. No More Hangovers
Yup. You’re done with drinking terrible booze and staying out until 2 am. It’s lights out by 11 nowadays. There’s none of this nasty hangover business to content with anymore. Rumor has it that hangovers are worse in your 40s, but you don’t know and don’t care to find out.
5. Less Sex
Ouch. But wait it’s not as bad as it sounds. Make the fewer times count more than they did in your 20s and 30s.
It’s not the number of notches on the belt but the quality of the belt itself (or something like that, you get the analogy of quality over quantity). Once you come to terms with getting less, it’s not so bad who are we kidding, it still sucks.
6. More Sleep
Maybe it’s a bit of a tradeoff for having less sex. Does more sleep make up for it? Do you recall getting 2 hours of sleep after a night of partying and going into work no problem?
That gameplan would be tough for your tired body and mind in your 40s. Guess that’s why we’re saying no to late nights more and yes to extra snooze time instead.
7. Losing It (Your Vision, That Is)
The phrase “blind as a bat” is finally starting to make sense. You’re pretty sure your eyes started to slack off without getting the A-Okay from you. Heading out for dinner? Better bring along the reading glasses so you can actually read the menu this time.
8. Overnight Success Means This
By the time you reach your 40s, the term “overnight success” finally makes sense. Aha, it’s not really over the course of an evening but more like 6 or 10 years. The good stuff takes a bit of time to reveal itself. Be patient. You’ve had to learn to work smarter, and that’s taken many years to get that message loud and clear.
You feel more experienced and smarter in your 40s, don’t you? You know what you like, are coming to terms with your mortality, crave sleep over hangovers, and understand what it takes to be more successful.
Now that you’re more comfortable in your own skin, we better not even bring up the fact that you could soon become a grandparent (shudder). Nah, we’ll just head back to bed for some more zzz’s and less sex instead.