[August 15, 2023-Blog] Several years ago, a worldwide survey was conducted asking people who had lived to 100 years of age what they attributed their longevity to. To the surprise of the data collectors, it was not a healthy diet, exercise, a particular climate or “good genes.”
The one common denominator with each centenarian was that they were still looking forward to something in the future. For some, it was anticipating a great-grandchild’s wedding ceremony. For others, it was as simple as planning their fall garden or participating in a local festival.
These findings held true with one of my relatives who lived to be 100-plus. When a local newspaper reporter interviewed her in celebration of this milestone, they found her anxiously awaiting to be announced as 100 years old on The Today Show. She told the reporter that she had lived a full and happy life, and planned to continue her daily routine and interestingly, finished with the sentiment, “I want to see what is coming up next.”
This simple response aligns with the survey results, which begs the question: Are you looking forward to something? Are you thinking about plans for months and years to come? Perhaps harboring that sort of hope for tomorrow is a reason to keep going well beyond our expected years.
Of course, it doesn’t hurt to try to take better care of ourselves too. We can all start today by shoring up our wellness strategies. Yesterday, a good friend reminded me that changes to improve our health need to be sustainable and not just something we ‘grit our teeth’ through and hope to incorporate into our lives.
I was also given a book, “Outlive” by Peter Attia, that I enjoyed on a recent vacation with my daughter. Relaxing on the beach was delightful (as you can see pictured above), but just as the centenarians predicted, the planning and anticipation was just as wonderful as the trip itself.
As in business and life, it is always productive to think of ‘what’s next.’ We spend a lot of time thinking about that at Gay Gaddis LLC and of course, it is what kept T3 highly competitive. Stopping to imagine the future and our role in it fuels innovation and allows us to dream big.
Looking forward to football season!
Gay Gaddis
Founder. Author. Artist. Trailblazer.
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