Spoiler Alert:
We’re All Gonna Die
Aging is a universal phenomenon that affects us all. But even if it primarily follows a natural logic, it is an extremely complex process. Full of surprises and twists and turns at every stage of life. Some you see coming, others knock you off your feet. This exciting expedition want to identify the explosive challenges — the Age Bombs — and look for ways to defuse them in time.
By Robert Eysoldt, March 2024 — How young or old you feel and how old you ultimately become depends on many factors. There are your genes, which are anchored in you like a life script, as well as your lifestyle and the environmental influences to which you are exposed. Then there are the unpredictable diseases and the many cultural and social influences that we encounter in the form of stereotypes and prejudices.
Have I always made the right decisions? After all, they are not easy to make when you are moving in uncertain or unfamiliar territory. You can quickly find yourself in situations that have irreversible consequences.
Would I have made “better” decisions with more foresight? And what does it actually mean to age well? How can this be defined? Is it a feeling? Can it be analyzed? Is there perhaps a specific formula?
A cross-generational expedition
To find answers to these questions, I have launched “Age Bombs”, a cross-generational expedition into the complex world of aging. The aim is to identify both the obvious and the hidden challenges of life and to look for methods to defuse them.
To achieve this, I dive deep into my own life and open up a dialog space for a colorful mix of voices and perspectives. With the aim of engaging in conversation with people from different generations and gaining well-founded insights from experts.
I am not only interested in biological and psychological factors as well as cultural and social influences, but I also want to consider the everyday challenges that confront us with decisions. At first glance, these may seem harmless, but they often have an unexpected explosive power.
Does this expedition have a destination?
I would therefore like to process the results that I will collect in the coming months in order to create a cross-generational roadmap that shows all these “Age Bombs” in the different phases of life.
Why I’m doing this?
The trigger was the confrontation with my 60th birthday this year. And even though age has never been a big deal for me, the realization that, statistically speaking, three quarters of his life are already behind me really blew my mind. With this feeling, however, came the need to find out what age actually means and what different factors influence our aging.
Share your experiences
If you find this project just as exciting and would like to enrich it with experiences and ideas, or would like to suggest experts who could make a valuable contribution, please get in touch with me:
Excerpts from the expedition are documented on LinkedIn and Instagram. You are welcome to follow and comment.
