Does Happy Start At Forty?

Does happy start at forty?  Those of us who are middle aged have all heard, "Life begins at forty".The theory is, by forty, you have established a career, married the love of your life, you are financially stable, and have developed sincere friendships.  Speaking from experience, at 49, I may have been a late bloomer.

My advice to those under forty would be, why wait?  Why wait to have these securities?  Who's to say a person can't be secure in their 20's or 30's?  Society would have you believe it takes forty years to discover life...nonsense!

The key is for you to embrace the things that matter early on.  Decide what type of job would excite you for the rest of your life.  So many young people these days don't have a clue about this one.  I hear about college students changing majors multiple times in an effort to figure out what they want to be.  My own children have battled this issue.  Humans have to work, and usually for a long time, loving what you do is imperative.

Build lasting friendships from the get go.  High school is a great place to start.  By the time you get to high school their is a higher sense of maturity allowing for stronger bonds.

Finding the perfect partner is not as difficult as it seems.  And you certainly don't have to marry early on.  Many people have married their high school crush.  Being divorced myself, I'm certainly open to knowing someone a while before tying the knot.  Men especially benefit from having a significant other in their lives.  Decide who it's going to be early on, the longer you know your partner the better.  Just might keep you from making a big mistake down the line.

I hear older people, including myself, say, "If I only knew then what I know now" but I believe that statement needs a makeover.  If you start making the right decisions early on in life, by forty you may change that statement to..."I wouldn't change a thing".