The oldest person in the room

I joined an online call with participants in Colive Fukuoka.

I was, by far, the oldest person in the room. Everyone was there thinking about what they hoped to do in the years ahead.

The conventional perception would be that they had most of life ahead of them while, at 66, my best years were probably behind me.

But age is visible. The future is not.

None of us know how much time we have left. Even if I statistically have fewer years ahead than most, that does not necessarily give me the smallest future.

We confuse a longer future with a larger one.

The future is not only the quantity of time remaining. It is also the possibilities we are still willing to pursue within that time.

At 66, my future contains a language I cannot yet speak, a culture I do not yet understand and 3,000 kilometres across Japan that I have not yet walked.

It contains people I have not met, assumptions I have not confronted and possibilities I cannot currently see.

The relevant question is whether any of us might waste the time we have by postponing what matters, or by deciding prematurely that our possibilities have become smaller.

That is the question behind WTFT and my walk across Japan next year.

The Perspective Shift

I may be the oldest person in the room. I do not have to be the person with the smallest future.

A sense of abundant time makes postponement easy. Awareness that time is limited can make us bolder and enlarge the future we are still willing to pursue.

Walk your talk,
Franck

P.S.:

• Were you ever so self-conscious about your age that it stopped you from doing something? Reply and tell me. I read every response.
• If you know someone who might find this perspective useful, forward the post to them. They can subscribe here.
• WTFT is free for everyone. If something I share gives you a useful perspective, a coffee helps me keep WTFT moving.