When we hit the mid-point of our lives, a natural reflection begins.

We take stock of our lives and often discover that they’re not as good as we thought they were.

Sure, we checked all the boxes we believed would make us happy, but something is “off,” something is missing.

We may have professional success and the materialistic trappings that accompany that success, but there’s no purpose, meaning, or fulfillment.

And we find ourselves drawn, with the force of Jupiter’s gravity, to a life of purpose, meaning, and fulfillment. 

We stand at the crossroads of what we’ve created and the life we want to create as the clock ticks louder in the background. 

If we don’t take meaningful action, we suffer.

This is where far too many fall into the trap of the midlife crisis.

Life feels empty, and they long to feel something, anything, different than they feel, and they chase externals to fill the void.

• Buy a boat
• Have an affair
• Buy a sports car
• Start drinking to excess 
• Bury themselves in work

These are merely a tiny sampling of the million other “solutions” people chase; I know I was guilty of a few of them.

Then there’s a rare breed, those who have mastered midlife and have set themselves up for massive success in their second act. 

They may have come to their path on their own, or they may have pursued externals only to find that they don’t work and that there has to be a better way.

But whatever it is, these are the 9 mistakes Midlife Masters DON’T make.

1. Believe it’s a crisis.

Masters of Midlife understand that it’s not a crisis but one of the most significant opportunities to meaningfully change the trajectory of their lives. 

2. Point fingers.

Masters of Midlife accept extreme responsibility for their lives; they will never point the finger at anyone but themselves. 

They consciously create their lives with personal agency. 

3. Believe their career is an obstacle to their dream life.

Masters of Midlife understand that the security their income provides paves the way to their life calling – and the life of their dreams.

4. Settle for existing.

Masters of Midlife understand the difference between merely existing and thriving.

Their first half was existing; their second half is all about thriving. 

And they know thriving is only one choice away. 

5. Buy their fears at face value.

Masters of Midlife understand their deepest fears hold the keys to their extraordinary lives and are willing to explore them and move towards them. 

6. Believe materialism will fill them from within.

Masters of Midlife understand that the lives they dream of don’t come from owning all the “stuff.” 

They know all that “stuff” is a prison. 

They create their lives from the inside out and earn their personal freedom along the way. 

7. Attach their identity to their profession.

Masters of Midlife embrace their professional success and are proud of their accomplishments.

But they also know it’s just one small piece of a more significant puzzle.

They are more than their careers and never stop reinventing themselves. 

8. Believe they’re too old

Masters of Midlife understand they are exactly the age they are meant to be because it can’t be anything other than it is. 

9. Believe they missed their chance

Masters of Midlife understand that they can only miss their chance by not taking a chance at all. 

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Mistakes are a natural part of life, and if we fear making them, we’ll never try new things, grow, expand, or craft our remarkable 2nd act.

I wrote this article to highlight the mistakes so you don’t make the same ones (I know I did), and if you do, you can identify them faster. 

Because Masters of Midlife also understand that a mistake remains a mistake only if they keep repeating it and don’t extract the lesson from every mistake. 

Here’s to midlife and the incredible opportunity it is. 

📣 If you’re ready to get unstuck and master midlife so you can craft your remarkable 2nd act, check out the Midlife Mastery Program.

Schedule your Free Call here.