The path to living your dream lifestyle after 60 can get a little bumpy.
There will come moments when trying to create the lifestyle that best suits you will be difficult. Nowhere are there more obstacles to face than when it comes to removing things out of your life that no longer serve the lifestyle you want to now live.
In other words, if you want a new and better lifestyle, you must be willing to make room for it.
Where do you begin making room for the lifestyle you desire?
Your mindset.
This article, and accompanying video, are the first of a two-part journey into creating a mindset for your dream lifestyle. They will set the foundation for a new, 10-part exclusive series for Sixty and Me readers titled “Visualize a Vibrant New Lifestyle After 60” that will run from August to December.
Your Mindset Is a Melting Pot
What exactly is your mindset?
There are many iterations and different perceptions of what constitutes a mindset. To simplify it for this article, we will take the position that your mindset is the lens for how you see and interact with your reality.
Your mindset is the melting pot for where all of your conscious and unconscious beliefs, emotions, personality traits, perceptions, and overall assumptions about your life reside.
Let’s say, for example, you have encountered challenges earlier in life turning your desires into a fulfilling set of experiences. Over time, a limiting belief that life is difficult and you don’t get what you want begins to form. This fixed belief and any like it are part of your mindsetand could make it difficult to create the lifestyle of your dreams today.
The opposite holds true. If you have enjoyed success making adjustments in life to make room for what you desire to materialize, your mindset today would likely support the necessary changes to create space in your life to live your ideal lifestyle.
Two Primary Mindsets
Your mindset directly impacts your well-being and happiness.
A negative mindset packed full of limiting beliefs can lead to feelings of isolation, unworthiness, and perpetual sadness. This is often described as a Fixed Mindset.
A more positive mindset, which is often referred to as a Growth Mindset, is akin to a fertile garden. In this example, your empowering beliefs are the seeds to your success. They are planted, nurtured and supported to blossom even in the face of obstacles and adversities.
The term and description for a Growth Mindset is widely credited to Dr. Carol Dweck, a prominent psychologist at Stanford University. Her research into people’s beliefs and what makes up a mindset, has helped people of all generations to rethink and reprogram their beliefs and behaviors that have positively benefited their lifestyles.
Do you believe your mindset is malleable? Do you believe that you can change your mindset to create new beliefs and behaviors that help you learn new traits and skills? And do you believe you can create the lifestyle of your dreams?
Your answers will help you determine if you are creating your lifestyle from a Fixed Mindset or a Growth Mindset.
What Does a Growth Mindset Do?
A Growth Mindset is open to exploring new ways of being, doing, and experiencing life. This includes learning new ways to think and learning new ways to put your beliefs and behaviors into aligned action to work for you to achieve new, desired outcomes.
A Growth Mindset is not fixated on previous ways of being. This mindset also does not define what you can accomplish today or in the future compared to the past.
A Growth Mindset is curious and excited to explore new beliefs, behaviors, and opportunities. If there are setbacks or things do not go as expected, a person with a Growth Mindset does not give up, they passionately want to know how to improve.
Tap into the Voice of Love
How do you differentiate between a Fixed Mindset and a Growth Mindset?
The simple answer is the voice that is speaking to you through the two mindsets.
The voice of a Fixed Mindset is often associated with your inner critic, who will criticize and find fault with any new ideas, beliefs, or opportunities for true growth.
You can express a Growth Mindset through the voice of love. Your true authentic self speaks it to you. This voice lovingly encourages you to be curious and learn new things that will support your dream lifestyle.
If you want to create a new lifestyle that fits you, the first thing to do is determine what mindset you are seeking to create this lifestyle through. Above all else, speak to yourself with love and compassion, and be excited for the changes you can create in your life.
Next Steps
View the path to your dream lifestyle through an open mind and an open heart.
In our next article and video, I will introduce you to 10 steps for resetting your mindset after 60.
I invite you to join me in the video, where I will share with you 12 of the most common challenges you might face with your mindset when it comes to creating your ideal lifestyle. I will also guide you through three journal prompts to help you integrate what you are learning.
Let’s Have a Conversation:
What does you dream lifestyle after 60 look like and are you working toward achieving it? Does your mindset fit the “Growth” or “Fixed” idea?
