What I Learned from a Year of Interviewing Sages

This post is a summary of what I learned from a year of interviewing Sages about leading, living, and sage-ing or positive aging.  My podcast this month (Friday, April 13th) will include more details.  I hope you can find 20 minutes to listen to my next podcast.  Since I learned a lot, I think you will too.

In 2017, I launched my podcast series titled Becoming a Sage.  Starting last February, on the second Friday of each month, I post one of my interviews with a Sage.  These are people I have been fortunate to meet either during my research for my book Leading with Wisdom:  Sage Advice from 100 Experts or from attending the Sage-ing International Conference held every two years.  It is an excellent conference and will be held in Minneapolis this October.  If you want to age gracefully by becoming an elder rather than just getting older, I encourage you to attend.  Other Sages, are authors and I reached out to them using LinkedIn and/or Twitter and they agreed to be interviewed.  Regardless of how I met them, I have been fortunate to interview some of the top thought leaders in the field and from whom I have learned a lot.

For this blog post and podcast (on the 13th), I listened to all of the interviews again and made notes of books, poems, and other resources that I want to find and explore.  As a quick summary, here are some of the themes that emerged from the interviews:

• The second half of life is a time for choices and freedom.  We should be intentional about the choices we make.
• Our mindset and attitude is key.  If we are in denial about aging, we resist and fight it.  If we embrace it, this can be a time of further growth, exploration, and discovery.  We learn about ourselves and how we can share our gifts with others.
• Are we filling our time or is our time being fulfilled?  There is a difference.  Living life on purpose and with meaning was one of the strongest themes.  
• It is critically important to stay connected and engaged with others in some way.  Don’t go alone.  Go in community with others and work on causes/projects that interest you.
• Are we living longer or taking longer to die?  Keep on living.
• Be a seeker and ask questions.  Staying curious is key.  Being interested is interesting.
• Don’t let the ego win.  Start doing the inner work so that you are living the legacy you want to leave.  

Watch for my podcast Friday, April 13th.  Please let me know what you think and what you learn.  I am interested.