You Can Catch Up... and then some!
One of my study's most striking findings, a pattern that I saw time and time again, was that a young adulthood marked by uncertainty and doubt did not necessarily predict a middle age of failure and unhappiness. Now matter how you started out or where you are now, it is possible for you to get back on track with your original goals and dreams, or to find and define new ones. Don't feel that the steps you take into the future need to follow on a direct path from the ones you took in the past.
You may think that your life is too short to take these corrective actions. Try not to fall into this trap! None of us know how long our lives will be, and if we based our actions on predictions about the time we have left, we would limit ourselves unnecessarily. The people in my study who scored highest on crucial personality scales reflecting ego integrity and generativity were the ones who allowed themselves to take an unlimited view of their future. So you won't live forever, but you might as well take the life you have now by the horns and make those changes you thought were impossible.
If you allow yourself to think of your life in terms of the big picture, you can do more than "catch up." You can propel yourself to new heights of joy and fulfillment. Your life's script is one that you can write any way you want to, starting right now.
