Arda Aghazarian, 30, Palestine

It’s not easy for me to say, but I’m 30 today.  I think I’ve said to you before that I’ve always thought that 40 is a good age, but 30 is not.  It’s like a transition.  What are you?  It’s difficult.  I’ve been battling with this for the past six months.  The difficulty for me is that I have a lot of dreams; I want to do a lot of things.  I think that the 20s are different.  It’s different when you say you are 20 something and then suddenly you are 30!

When I hear Age Esteem I think that this is the word that is always connected to the word self esteem.  It has to do with confidence and I’ve read your book, AgeEsteem, and taken in what you say, but to deal with it is something else.  I need to read the book often.   No matter how much reading I do, the fact is that today I’m a 30 year old and that’s a new reality for me.  It’s as if I need to remind myself every now what age esteem is all about and again that it is ok to be my age.  Your talk today was like a gift to me.  It was the reminder that I needed it on a day like this.

What are my concerns about aging?  First of all there are the social things I try not to be too concerned with, like you know, by this age you’re supposed to have done certain things.  You’re not married yet.  You don’t have kids yet.  If you have kids soon, should you hurry?  These are aspects I try not to think about too much.  I should try to evaluate my life based on my own thoughts, but it does affect me sometimes.  The other part is the personal, which is the body, and how much can you do now?  Like I still want to be a good runner now.  Should I be concerned that I will not be as good a runner as I was back then?  Things like that.  There’s also the loneliness factor and other issues I wouldn’t have thought of before.   Before I was a free soul I was travelling and suddenly I’m think I should have more people around me because I am getting closer to the future when I will need more people around me.  So it’s a different way of developing the future.

Arda’s tips:  I think one of the best techniques is to have good people around you who give you good energy.  This is very important because it is a waste of time to have people around you who make you feel bad about yourself.  I don’t want to say that you should put people in categories.  All people are good in general, but some people make you feel worse.  Earlier I would have said that you should accept all people and everyone should be your friend, but now that I’m getting older I see that some people are better off at a distance.  Suddenly I’m okay with that.  Just let me surround myself with people who are positive, who give me good energy.  That’s one of the good techniques.  Being among people who make me feel good about myself.  – And not just people, also things in general.   Books that inspire me, movies that educate me…

You know, anticipating turning 30 those past 6 months has been very difficult, but now that it’s happened, it’s happened and I’m looking forward.

Bonnie A Major Birthday, Secrets to AgeEsteem 20's, 30, 30 years old, 40 is a good age, age-esteem, AgeEsteem, Arda Aghazarian, confidence, developing the future, evaluate life, getting older, loneliness factor, looking forward, new reality, not married yet, Palestine, people who are positive, self esteem

Some people may say that the new 65 is the new 45.  It isn’t.  The new 65 is the NEW 65! – And this is just one glimpse of what it looks like.

Today’s 65ers are visiting new places, testing new limits, and living exciting adventures like my friend Evie shown here sliding in a Costan Rica rain forest.  Evie is also among those who are constantly seeking unique ways to contribute their talents to society and she volunteers her time in a local shelter.  – A 65er full of Age Esteem!

Bonnie Fatio

Bonnie A Major Birthday, AgeEsteemers age-esteem, Bonnie Fatio, contribute to society, Costa Rican rain forest, living adventures, new 45, new 65, testing limits, volunteers

A 100 year old doctor is still delivering babies in Georgia, USA.  He has delivered over 16,000 babies since 1947 when he began his practice.  It seems that everywhere he goes he is greeted by someone who he helped bring into the world.

What is his secret?  Being passionate about what you do!

Other people who have celebrated 100 years of living have shared the same important age-esteem traits.

• Purpose, meaningful activities
• Contact with others of diverse ages
• Keep moving
• Continue to learn and to exercise their mind
• Positive attitude

Bonnie A Major Birthday, In The News 100 year old, age-esteem, diverse ages, positive attitude

Each birthday is a new beginning. Enjoy and celebrate! Flaunt your age-esteem. Life is as wonderful as you make it. Begin now to create the best of your life.

Create the best of your life:

• Make a collage to represent your life today. Use photos, clippings from magazines, anything that is symbolic of your life as you see it today.
• Now make a second collage to represent your life as you would like it to be for the best of your life in the future. There may or not be similarities between the two.

Keep this collage where you can see it. Add to it as new dreams come to mind. It is the vision of what you would like your future to be.

…and of course after you make yoru collage send us some photos. I’ll select my favorites and send you a free copy of my book!

Bonnie A Major Birthday birthday, collage, turning 40

Realize a dream: Is there something you’ve always wanted to do but thought you couldn’t or the time didn’t seem right? A major birthday is a great occasion to act on that dream!

• Write a wish list. On a sheet of paper write “AgeEsteem Wish List” and write down every wish that comes to mind. Nothing is too wild. Let ideas flow without censor. Keep going until you’ve written at least 50 wishes.
• Choose three of these wishes to act on during this birthday year. Have you always wanted to learn to tango? Sign up for lessons. Age is no obstacle.

Refer back to your list every three months to put a new dream into action.

Bonnie A Major Birthday birthday, dream, tango, turning 50

Flaunt your age-esteem. Celebrate your birthday and create happy memories with friends.

Celebrate: Celebrate your birthday! There are many places in the world where reaching age 30 is still considered almost a miracle.

• Throw a party for yourself. It doesn’t have to be costly. Invite each friend to bring part of the meal, or make pancakes or spaghetti. Ask people to wear their favorite hat or shoes.
• Focus the party on your guests. Prepare something for them: a limerick, song, dance or story album with their photos. Ask each person to share their favorite birthday memory.

Bonnie A Major Birthday birthday, celebrate, turning 30

You’ve come a long ways since birth, and even just in the past months.

Take inventory: Birthdays are opportunities to evaluate where you are and where you wish to go.

• Make a list of the knowledge and skills you’ve acquired since your last birthday. Take the time necessary to enlarge this list.
• Add your accomplishments of the past year. Some may seem minor, but all are important building blocks.
• Now that you’ve identified them, how can you capitalize on this knowledge and the skills and accomplishments and put them to use

Bonnie A Major Birthday accomplishments, birthday, knowledge, opportunities, skills

It’s silly to waste precious time crying over a new year or decade. Live your age!
Unlock your age-esteem!

Live today: It’s your youth of tomorrow. You’ll never be this young again, so why waste it worrying about age? Live in the present.

• Acknowledge your age. Look yourself in the eyes in the mirror and tell yourself, “I love being 30!” or whatever age you are.
• Make a pact with yourself to focus on the present. Regretting the past or worrying about the future creates negative energy. Plan for the future, yes, but live this moment!

Bonnie A Major Birthday age, birthday, turning 30, youth

So what’s the big deal? You’re now 40 instead of 39!

A split second moved your age from one year into the next, yet nothing changed
except your self-image.

When our nephew was living with us he went to bed one night as a 5 year old. The next morning he woke up as a 6 year old and ran to the scales to weigh himself, then to the mirror to see if he’d grown. He burst into tears because nothing had changed!

Your body isn’t any older today in relation to yesterday than it was yesterday as opposed to the day before. So work on building your age-esteem! – Only your self-image has changed.

Bonnie A Major Birthday birthday, self-image, turning 40

Turning 30 can be daunting. I know. – I once turned 30 myself. It seems like overnight you begin to discover little lines on your face. “Could they be wrinkles?! How can that be? I’m only going to be 30!”. You begin thinking about Botox and babies. Life seems to be picking up speed.

There are different concerns when you turn 40, 50, 60, but those concerns are real, too! Any anniversary with a zero or five seems to be a major obstacle.

Well wake up, shake up and grow some age-esteem into your life!

Bonnie A Major Birthday anniversary, birthday, botox, turning 30, wrinkles