- 2 days ago
This video shares the most important advice I wish I gave my younger self. After 70 years of life, I've learned some painful lessons—and now I’m sharing them with you. Whether you're young or older, this message might change how you see your own journey.
#VoiceOfAge #LifeAdvice #ElderWisdom #LifeAfter70 #RegretAndGrowth
#VoiceOfAge #LifeAdvice #ElderWisdom #LifeAfter70 #RegretAndGrowth
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LifestyleTranscript
00:00They say youth is wasted on the young. I didn't believe it when I first heard it. But now, with
00:06eight decades behind me, I understand exactly what they meant. If I could sit across from my younger
00:12self, twenty years old, full of fire, stubborn, impatient, hopeful, I wouldn't scold him. I
00:19wouldn't shame him for the things he didn't know. I'd just take his hand and say, listen, I've seen
00:26where this road leads. Let me tell you what I wish I had known before I took the first step.
00:32This is the advice I wish I gave my younger self. If I could sit across from my younger self,
00:39I'd begin with a simple but powerful truth. Slow down. You're moving through life like it's a
00:44checklist. Graduate. Get the job. Find someone. Buy the house. Move up. Achieve. Prove. Repeat.
00:52But let me ask you, what's the rush? Who are you racing? You think there's some invisible scoreboard
01:00out there that's tracking your milestones, some hidden judge deciding whether you're ahead or
01:06behind. But there isn't. Life isn't linear, and it certainly isn't a sprint. It's a winding,
01:13messy, unpredictable journey that no one walks the same way. And when you're rushing to the next thing,
01:19you miss the beauty in the now. You'll look back and realize that some of your happiest
01:24moments weren't when you arrived somewhere. They were when you paused long enough to enjoy
01:29where you were. The coffee with a friend that lasted too long. The quiet morning before the
01:35world woke up. The late night laughter that came out of nowhere. I wish I had known that
01:41doing nothing wasn't a waste of time. It was presence. I wish I had breathed more, sat still
01:49more, watched the sunset without checking my phone. Slowing down isn't laziness. It's wisdom. It's
01:56knowing that your life isn't measured by how fast you move, but by how deeply you live.
02:02If there's one lesson I wish I had truly understood earlier in life, it's this.
02:07Love isn't what you think it is when you're young. Back then I thought love was the intensity,
02:14the butterflies, the obsession, the drama, the kind that sweeps you off your feet and leaves
02:20you breathless. I chased the highs, confused chaos with passion, and mistook jealousy for
02:27care. But real love, real love, is quieter. It doesn't always make your heart race. It makes
02:35it feel safe. It's not the fire that burns bright and fast, but the steady warmth that never goes
02:42out. It's in the little things. Showing up when you say you will. Listening without fixing. Holding
02:49space for someone's pain without turning it into your own. It's making someone a cup of tea when
02:55they're tired. Remembering the details that matter to them. Laughing on the couch over something only the
03:01two of you understand. I wish I had known that love is more about showing up every day, not just the
03:08grand gestures. That compatibility isn't about perfect harmony, but shared values, deep respect,
03:15and patience through the messiness. And I wish I'd told my younger self not to run from the people who
03:21felt too safe. Because that's the kind of love that lasts. Love isn't a movie scene. It's a life you build
03:28together in the quiet, ordinary days. The best kind of love doesn't take your breath away. It gives it
03:34back to you. There's something we all seem to learn too late. Your parents won't live forever. When
03:44you're young, you believe they're invincible. That they'll always be there, waiting at the kitchen
03:49table, answering your late-night calls, nagging you about little things that secretly mean they care.
03:56You postpone the visit. You don't return the call right away. You assume there's always time,
04:03until there isn't. One day the phone won't ring anymore. One day the chair at the dinner table will
04:09be empty. And when that day comes, it won't be the big moments you miss the most. It'll be the small,
04:17ordinary ones. The way your mother hummed while cooking. The way your father quietly fixed things
04:23without saying a word. You don't realize how much someone means to you until you imagine life
04:32without them. And one day the chair at the table will be empty. The phone won't ring. The memories
04:37will be all that's left. So if you take anything from this old man's story, let it be this. Don't let
04:45the people you love wonder how you feel. Don't assume they know. Show them. Tell them. Today.
04:55I'm 80 years old. I've made peace with most of my life. But this? This regret? It lingers.
05:03I hope you never feel it. I hope you choose presence over productivity. Connection over
05:11convenience. Love over later. Because later doesn't always come.
05:33Bye-bye.
05:34Verse-night.
09:34You'll change careers.
09:36You'll lose yourself.
09:37You'll rediscover parts you thought were gone.
09:40And that's not a mistake.
09:42That's life.
09:43The truth is, the pressure to figure it all out steals the joy of figuring yourself out, exploring, wandering, failing and pivoting.
09:55You're allowed to grow into your purpose.
09:56You're allowed to grow into your purpose.
09:58You're allowed to change your mind.
10:00You're allowed to not know.
10:02I wish I had trusted that uncertainty wasn't something to be ashamed of.
10:06It was something to be curious about.
10:08Not knowing isn't a weakness.
10:10It's an invitation.
10:11And often the most beautiful parts of life begin right after you admit you're lost.
10:16But I wish someone had told me sooner.
10:20Failure is a part of the process.
10:23It's not a reflection of who you are.
10:26It's just a moment, a lesson, an inevitable part of growth.
10:31Every setback you experience, every rejection letter, every mistake is shaping you.
10:36You will learn more from those moments than you will from any success.
10:41It's in the struggle, in the messiness of trying and failing, where you'll find your resilience.
10:47It's where you'll discover your strength, your resourcefulness, your depth.
10:52Success can be fleeting.
10:54It can feel hollow if you don't have the wisdom to carry it.
10:57But failure, if you let it, will teach you lessons that will stay with you for a lifetime.
11:02It will show you what you're made of, what's worth fighting for, and what isn't.
11:08So I would tell my younger self, don't fear failure.
11:12Embrace it.
11:14Learn from it.
11:15Let it shape you into something stronger and more prepared for the next challenge.
11:20Because the truth is, failure isn't an end.
11:23It's a necessary part of every new beginning.
11:27One of the hardest lessons I've learned, and one I wish I could share with my younger self,
11:32is the importance of sitting with yourself.
11:36It's easy to distract yourself when you're young.
11:38There's always something to do, someone to talk to, somewhere to go.
11:43The noise of the world is loud, and it's easy to get lost in it,
11:48to fill every moment with activity and noise.
11:51But here's the truth I've learned.
11:53Solitude isn't loneliness.
11:56Being alone with your thoughts isn't a punishment.
11:58It's an opportunity to discover who you really are.
12:02When you don't have the distractions of people or responsibilities,
12:05you're left with yourself.
12:07And that can be uncomfortable, at first.
12:10You might not always like what you find.
12:13But in that stillness, you will uncover things about yourself you never knew existed.
12:18You'll learn your passions, your fears, your dreams, your regrets.
12:23And once you know yourself, no one can take that away.
12:28There's a peace that comes from being okay with your own company,
12:32from not needing to seek validation from the outside world constantly.
12:36I spent so many years afraid of silence, afraid of being alone,
12:41thinking I needed someone or something to fill that space.
12:44But the truth is, the more comfortable you get sitting with yourself,
12:49the more you'll be able to sit with others, in a deeper, more meaningful way.
12:54Learn to sit with yourself, because when you do,
12:57you'll finally have the chance to become the person you were always meant to be.
13:00If I could go back and speak to my younger self, I would tell him,
13:06take better care of your body.
13:09When you're young, you feel invincible.
13:12You push your limits, burn the candle at both ends,
13:15eat what's convenient, skip the exercise, ignore the warning signs.
13:20You think your body will always be there for you,
13:23always bounce back, always be strong.
13:26But the truth is, your body is not invincible.
13:28It's resilient, yes, but it needs care.
13:33And the older you get, the more you'll wish you had listened to it.
13:37You'll feel the aches that didn't exist before.
13:40You'll regret the days you spent hunched over a desk,
13:43the nights you stayed up too late, the meals you skipped for convenience.
13:47I wish I had been kinder to my body,
13:50had exercised more, eaten healthier, gotten enough rest.
13:54It's not about having the perfect body or looking like the images you see online.
13:59It's about listening to the one thing that carries you through life.
14:03Your body is your first home.
14:05It's the only one you'll have for the rest of your life.
14:09Take care of it, because it will take care of you.
14:13Small habits, drinking water, stretching, eating whole foods, getting rest,
14:18build up over time.
14:19And those small choices can make all the difference in how you feel years from now.
14:24You'll thank yourself for every step you took to honor your health.
14:28So listen to your body.
14:30Respect it.
14:32It's not just a vessel.
14:33It's the only one you've got.
14:35And it deserves your care, your love, and your attention.
14:39If there's one thing I wish I had known earlier in life, it's this.
14:44Forgive yourself.
14:44When you're young, you carry so much weight.
14:48You make mistakes, and those mistakes can feel like chains, holding you back from the
14:53person you want to be.
14:55You carry guilt, regret, shame.
14:59Sometimes, these feelings follow you for years.
15:02But here's the truth.
15:04Holding on to those feelings doesn't change the past.
15:07It doesn't undo the hurt or the wrong choices.
15:11All it does is poison your present and rob you of your future.
15:15I spent so much time replaying my mistakes in my head, wishing I could go back, wishing
15:20I could make it right.
15:22But the truth is, the past is over.
15:24The only thing you control is what you do right now.
15:28Forgiving yourself doesn't mean you condone the mistakes.
15:31It means you let go of the pain and the self-blame so that you can move forward.
15:35You are allowed to make mistakes.
15:39You are allowed to learn from them.
15:41And you are allowed to forgive yourself.
15:44I wish I had known that sooner, that I didn't need to be perfect, that it's okay to stumble,
15:50to fall, to get things wrong.
15:52Life is about how you rise after those moments.
15:56The beauty is in how you grow, how you pick yourself back up, and how you choose to move
16:01forward.
16:03Forgiving yourself is the greatest gift you can give.
16:06Not just to yourself, but to those around you.
16:10Because when you let go of the weight of regret, you free up space to love yourself fully, to
16:15embrace the person you've become.
16:18And trust me, you deserve that freedom.
16:21As I reflect on the life I've lived, the lessons I've learned, and the things I wish I could
16:27have known sooner, I realize one thing above all.
16:31Life is about embracing the journey, not chasing perfection.
16:34Every mistake, every moment of regret, every high and low, it all matters.
16:41It all shapes who we become.
16:43The things you think are setbacks, the things you think you can't live through.
16:48Those moments are the ones that teach you how to truly live.
16:52So if you're younger, or if you feel like you're still figuring things out, remember
16:57this.
16:58You don't need to have it all figured out.
17:00You're allowed to make mistakes, to take your time, to not know what's next.
17:05And when you feel lost, remember that you don't need a map.
17:09You need to trust yourself and your ability to find your way.
17:12Learn to forgive yourself.
17:14Learn to slow down.
17:15Appreciate the people around you while they're still here.
17:21And most importantly, remember that it's never too late to start over, to grow, to change.
17:28So wherever you are on your journey, be gentle with yourself.
17:33Don't rush.
17:34Love deeply.
17:36And remember that every day is a new opportunity to be the person you've always wanted to become.
17:41The path you're on is yours, and it's beautiful in its own way.
17:45You don't need anyone else's approval or timeline.
17:49Just keep moving forward, keep learning, and keep living.
17:53Because the most important thing is to be fully present in your own story.
17:58Thank you for walking this journey with me today.
18:01I hope these words reach you at the right time.
18:04I hope they serve as a reminder that life is a process, not a race.
18:08You're exactly where you need to be.
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