Old Dogs Learn New Tricks

We don't stop playing because we grow old; we grow old because we stop playing.

George Bernard Shaw

Take a moment and think about last year at this same date. Does it feel like a lifetime ago or does it feel like if it was yesterday? Have you changed much or not at all? Has your life? How about 2 years ago? How about 4? If you have kids, do you remember how big they were two years ago and feel like they are so much bigger now than they should be?

Time will pass, no matter what you do. How much do you have to show for it?

I ask these questions because every time I tell someone they should pick up a new hobby, learn a new skill, going back to school, or making a lifestyle change; their immediate reaction is usually “I’m too old to start now” as if we only have a limited amount of years for self-betterment.

I know that as we grow older, we are less likely to deal with becoming a novice again, the notion of realizing just how little we know, how much work we need, and just how much help we require. But that’s the beauty of time, it passes whether you want it to pass or not. How long does it take to learn a new skill? A week? A month? A year? If that time will pass anyway, are you willing to put up with being a beginner for a short period of your life, one that will pass anyway, to become more?

The other typical excuse is just how hectic our lives are. Let’s assume that you would take up a hobby, is your schedule so packed and complicated that you can’t take a couple of hours off a week to go to class? How long is your commute? Instead of listening to random babble on the radio, you could take that time to put on a conversational language lessons. Instead of dozing off in the metro, you could read a book on the topic of your interest. Your day’s full, wake up an hour earlier and practice before your usual chaotic life starts. Instead of cooking any old thing, add in half an hour to the prep time and try out a new recipe. Get on that treadmill or work out while watching TV, or simply turn off the TV for a bit. The reality is that forcing yourself to take a break for a couple of hours a week from your usual rat-race will actually help you perform better in your daily routine.

Instead of thinking about the time it will take, which often seems daunting, consider how long it took. Waiting a week often seems like a long wait, yet last week doesn’t seem that far off. Start considering time in the past sense instead of the future sense. Just think how far into that exercise regimen you would be if you started last Monday instead of waiting till next Monday. Consider how skilled you would already be if you registered for that class last semester instead of putting it off till the next one.

The reality is that you are never too old to learn or too busy to take time for yourself. It’s all about priorities. If your priority is to feel old, then yes, you are too old to learn. If your priority is to feel busy, then yes, you are too busy. But if your priority is to grow as a man, then neither age nor time will never be a barrier.

The Curse of Experience

In the beginner’s mind there are many possibilities, in the expert’s mind there are few.

Suzuki

With age comes wisdom, right? Not necessarily. With age, the only thing that really comes is the fact that you have been on this earth longer than those younger than you. With that extra time you might have had more experiences than younger people. But unless you are able to learn from your experiences, and apply those lessons learned properly, the only thing you get is stubbornness and arrogance. 

Wisdom is the ability to learn from experience, nothing more. It’s not a magical knowledge that shines on you as you speak. It’s not some level up where you can now select from a new skill set, as if life worked like a video game. It’s the ability to relate and compare a situation you currently face with a previous situation, and your ability to apply what you previously experienced.

Well, that’s simple enough. Live and learn, right? Not really. Just because you learned something didn’t work once, it doesn’t mean it won’t work always. Just because it worked once, it doesn’t mean it will work every time. And that is where true wisdom comes in, the ability to look at everything with the enthusiasm of a novice.

The more you know, and the more you experience, the more you will assume your experience will give you the right answer. You will tend to dismiss new ideas, thinking that your way is the only way. You will dismiss the beginner, assuming that your experience and seniority gives you enough knowledge to know better than others. But the reality is this experience will hinder you more times than it will help you, if you leave it unchecked.

There is a power that comes from the endless possibilities of not knowing “better.” Beginners never stop to consider their limitations, as they are willing to take the risks of failing in attempts to fly. Zen Buddhism calls this Shoshin, or the “beginner's mind.” It means to having an attitude of openness, eagerness, and lack of preconceptions when studying a any subject, even when dealing at an advanced level, just as a beginner would. And here is where age and experience hinders us.

We tend to let past failures hold us back. We tend to let past victories give us an attitude of arrogance and contempt over younger generations. True wisdom is not about knowing better, but about knowing enough to realize how much more you have to learn.