Question for those above 30: Does it become harder to learn new skills?

[NoSelfSelf]

3 minutes ago, Natasha Tori Maru said:

Thank you for your thoughts here.

I counter this with: it is not possible to know what @Davino bases his decisions and actions on.

This thread is simply a request for anecdotal data.

We do know, or comprehend, what actions he may take from now.

He could be disregarding all data given here.

We will never know.

I respect the question he has asked. Through it he has acknowledged there are beings who have more lived experience due to age. This implies no authority from anyone older, just an acknowledgement there is some useful information others may have due to age.

I digress...

 

Well its not 100% accurate nothing is but 9/10 the way someone speaks exposes their mindset and based on that mindset i can see where they are mentally, where they are mentally that's how their decisions gonna be and that's the life they live.

So from their perceptions,how one forms the queastions,sometimes the information they valauntereed exposes it.

 

 

[Jacob Morres]

11 hours ago, Davino said:

Thanks for your perspectives. I'm really taking each one of them into account. I feel like the more I age the more mature and stable I'll become but some mind flexibility may be at risk too. There are obvious physical performance declines, as seen in elite athletes, so I wonder how it works with the mind. Most groundbreaking discoveries in science are made by individuals before 30, although each field is a world and some favour experience over creativity and mental gimnastics.

Another thing I thought of was that there many factors that contribute, outside of just your age. Things like age, prior foundation, self esteem, mindset, strategy, mental and physical health foundations, # of responsibilities etc.

So while I do think age is a factor, if you optimize other areas you can still make extremely significant progress in building skills. I don't think it's as big of an issue if the rest is optimized well 

Also consider that while elite performers do experience declines, consider that when they decline their skill efficacy may be moving from maybe the top .00001% -> .001% over 10 years 

 

Edited December 7 by Jacob Morres

[woohoo123]

The ability and speed at which you learn… I’m not sure if it’s so different. If anything it might be easier now with technology and chatgpt. Before you had to go to the library and crack open books, now you get it all assimilated for you. 

but I would say my motivation has changed. When I was in my early 20’s it was almost expected for me to dip my toes into various things. I had a lot of time to try stuff. Also I was more in the mindset of ‘building’ for survival so I didn’t mind grinding and pushing myself as much.

Now I’m 30 I have less time to learn new things, particularly because I’ve got a full time job and other responsibilities that come first and I have to fit any new learning around that - which means I have less time.

This also means I’m way more picky what I spend my time doing. I am unable to ‘force’ myself to do things as well, because I have a stable income now whereas before I had nothing. 

For example I look at the math and coding excercises I used to grind in my 20’s. Back then it was exciting as I could tell myself I’m getting better and can compete better. Now my survival needs haven’t gone away, but I really struggle to force myself to do that again - I’m like why am I forcing myself to do this? I don’t even like it. It’s really hard for me to even do 10 minutes, whereas before I would do it for hours. I look at new qualifications I could get, in my 20’s I would’ve gobbled those up just to get an advantage, now I’m like…. Why force myself to do this? 

so in that sense I learn ‘less’ and am less willing to try out new things unless they really capture my attention. Less breadth and more depth I guess.

[BlueOak]

I am 44. I agree you can slowly make the workspace, those you interact with, and your mind more stable. There are a lot of pros to getting older, you are more used to and comfortable with how you work, and your mind has expanded if you've taken the time to do so and kept it open. I notice a lot of anxiety in those younger than me or at least more uncertainty within themselves, if you've worked through that it no longer plagues you nearly as much. You can learn things like failure is just a teacher, etc rather than a jailor.

For me, it's the other variables we pick up along the way.

Injuries that harm exercise or create a lack of exercise take you out of peak performance. Right now I am skipping running today because I got 4 hours sleep.
Dietary issues cause other body issues, or just general illnesses and considerations you pick up along the way.
Sleeping difficulties are more prominent. I've realised how many people have them after dealing with insomnia again for another two months.
Mounting stress due to things like family issues, deaths, illness, kids, and heavier workloads.
More financial obligations often make changing course in thinking or life more difficult.
Greater contrast between your reality and the younger global collective.
Loss of people that help frame reality in the way you are accustomed to operating in. Yes, you can always just watch or interact with the next person, but there is a certain random chance at finding another connection irl or even online that fills that void, and of course grief or reflection on what was.

To name a few, I am tired again, so the brain isn't working at full capacity, but that's my point.

Unless you contemplate the difference, you can accept the reality you are currently in as being as fast as you were when you were 20, but it is not. I talk too quickly for most people, but I realise I am operating in a dull mental space again due to fatigue. I also realise I resist a lot of new patterns that I am not accustomed to, but I catch this and take a day to think about them.

Edited December 11 by BlueOak

[ChrisZoZo]

@Davino 28 here you learn where you fail. So then taking on a hard task you don’t fall for the traps that you would normally.