Does time seem to move faster as we age?
Ideothetic Flow
Hi everyone!
Recently, I was reading a book called Moonwalking with Einstein, about a journalist's experience becoming a top memory athlete in the USA, and explores the culture of memory athletes across the world. One memory athlete remarks that he strengthens his memory he can feel that life is longer as he remembers more life experiences in greater detail.
This got me thinking about the perceived length of my life. I realise that, especially since starting work, periods of time start to meld together and my memory of many parts of each day are lost. It is becoming increasingly hard to recall what I had done each week, or even in the same day. I sometimes forget what I had for lunch just a day ago, or who I met and talked about. Despite people telling me I pack my schedule with too many activities, I realise that my recollections of these activities tend to be hazy.
In How to Slow Down Time (David Cain - Raptitude) reflects on a similar issue. He discusses possible reasons why, as we grow older, our life seems to fly by faster than before. He takes a view that, as we age, we are less focused on the moment and more focused on what is coming up next. Also, a lack of new experiences and reverting to an autopilot state in our daily life prevents us from creating strong memories of our daily lives. Some suggestions are provided on how we can adjust our lifestyle to prevent this speeding up of time.
As I enter my young adult life, settle into routines, and have most of my time spent in the office, I personally am afraid that I will look back on my life 10 years later and feel like it has flashed past me. I know I have much to be thankful for, and many things that fill my life with memorable moments (time spent with my wife or friends, days spent practicing my hobby, playing various games or even the various challenges and problems at work). I want to be able to look back on each of these memories and not let them become a simple blur of my "30s" when I am older.
As it seems to get naturally harder to prevent this the older we get, I would like to take active steps to combat this. I want to pay more attention to each moment of my life, rather than to revert to an "autopilot" state, even those moments that appear to be mundane. Besides making my life feel longer, I think this will also help me make each moment and activity more productive.
Inspired by another article I read (Life is in the little things: Finding the Extra in the Ordinary - Shona Keachie) I plan to try and build this habit of paying attention by keeping a journal about the remarkable things of each day. I will also try to come out of my comfort zones to try new experiences, so if anyone has some new activity or idea they would like to share with me, please feel free to drag me along!
For those with a similar problem, I hope this has been helpful in your own reflections. Do reach out to share your own experiences or ways you are dealing with this concept of time.
Hope you have a great week ahead!
James
ABOUT
Ideothetic Flow is a fortnightly newsletter where I reflect on insights that I have found useful in rethinking life in a more realistic way.
Modern culture, media, and technology, for all their benefits, have distorted the view of a complete and happy life. The ideas I share are those which have helped me gain a deeper understanding of my own identity and circumstances, and inspire change towards a happier life, and I hope they will do the same for anyone else who reads this.
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