Many people in their 60s and 70s have quietly achieved something remarkable —they just don't realize they're doing it.
When I was at the farmers' market last weekend, I watched a couple in their seventies carefully selecting heirloom tomatoes together. What struck me wasn't just their energy or the way they navigated the crowded aisles. It was how they discussed their dinner plans, debated which variety would work best in their recipe, and laughed when they couldn't agree on the ripeness of a particular tomato.
That simple moment reminded me of something profound: reaching your 60s or 70s with certain abilities intact isn't just about luck or good genes. It's extraordinary, and most people who achieve it don't realize just how remarkable they are.
After spending nearly two decades as a financial analyst, I've seen countless clients approach retirement with varying degrees of vitality. Some seem defeated by age, while others radiate a energy that defies their years. The difference? It often comes down to maintaining specific capabilities that many take for granted.
If you can still do these seven things in your 60s or 70s, you're doing something incredibly right.
1. You can learn completely new skills
Remember when everyone said you can't teach an old dog new tricks? Well, if you're picking up new hobbies, technologies, or skills in your later years, you're proving that myth wrong in the most spectacular way.
I have a neighbor who started learning Spanish at 71. Not because she had to, but because she wanted to connect better with her new daughter-in-law's family. Six months later, she was having basic conversations. A year in? She was planning a solo trip to Barcelona.
The ability to remain cognitively flexible and embrace new learning isn't just admirable; it's neurologically impressive. Your brain is maintaining its plasticity, creating new neural pathways, and fighting against the cognitive decline that many assume is inevitable.
Think about it: How many people do you know who gave up learning anything new after 50? If you're still curious, still growing, still challenging yourself mentally, you're in rare company.
2. You maintain deep, evolving friendships
Making and keeping friends gets harder as we age. People move, priorities shift, and social circles naturally shrink. But if you're still nurturing meaningful friendships, especially ones that continue to deepen and evolve, you've mastered something many people lose.
During my years in finance, I watched too many colleagues let friendships wither as work consumed their lives. Now I see the cost of that choice. The clients who thrived in retirement were always the ones who had invested in relationships along the way.
Are you still making plans with friends? Still having those deep conversations that go beyond weather and grandkids? Still laughing until your sides hurt? That social connectivity isn't just nice to have. Research consistently shows it's one of the strongest predictors of health and happiness in later life.
3. You can adapt to change without excessive anxiety
Change is hard at any age, but if you're rolling with life's punches in your 60s or 70s without being consumed by anxiety, you've developed a resilience that's genuinely extraordinary.
Technology changes, grandkids introduce you to new music, your favorite restaurant closes, health issues arise. How you handle these shifts matters. I've noticed that people who stay mentally young share this trait: they see change as inevitable rather than threatening.
My father had his heart attack at 68, and watching him adapt to a completely new lifestyle, new diet, new exercise routine, all while maintaining his sense of humor, taught me more about resilience than any self-help book ever could. If you can face change with grace and even curiosity, you're demonstrating a psychological flexibility that many people half your age haven't achieved.
4. You still pursue physical challenges
This isn't about running marathons or climbing mountains (though if you're doing those things, incredible!). It's about still pushing your physical boundaries in whatever way works for you.
Maybe it's taking up yoga, learning to swim, hiking a new trail, or simply committing to daily walks despite creaky knees. The fact that you're still willing to be uncomfortable, to push through initial difficulty for long-term benefit, sets you apart.
I discovered trail running at 28 as a stress outlet, and now at my age, those 20-30 miles weekly are non-negotiable. But what inspires me most are the older runners I meet on the trails. One woman I regularly see must be in her seventies, and while she's not fast, she's consistent. Rain or shine, she's out there, proving that physical vitality isn't about performance metrics but about showing up.
5. You can admit when you're wrong and change your mind
Cognitive rigidity often increases with age. People get set in their ways, their beliefs calcify, and admitting error becomes almost impossible. But if you can still say "I was wrong about that" or "I've changed my mind," you're demonstrating a humility and intellectual flexibility that's increasingly rare.
This ability shows you're still growing, still processing new information, still willing to update your worldview. In our polarized world, where everyone seems locked into their positions, the ability to evolve your thinking is revolutionary.
Think about your political views, your opinions on social issues, your judgments about younger generations. Have any of them shifted in recent years based on new information or experiences? If so, celebrate that flexibility. It's a sign of a mind that refuses to stagnate.
6. You maintain genuine curiosity about others
How often do you find yourself genuinely interested in other people's stories, especially those much younger or different from you? If you're still asking questions, still listening with real interest, still learning from others regardless of their age or background, you're exceptional.
So many people reach a certain age and stop being curious about others. They've heard it all, seen it all, and conversations become one-sided monologues about their own experiences. But maintaining genuine curiosity about others keeps you connected to the world's evolution.
During a recent therapy session, we discussed emotional suppression, and I realized how curiosity about others had helped me break through my own walls. When you're truly interested in someone else's experience, you can't help but open up yourself.
7. You can find joy in simple moments
If you can still find genuine happiness in small things, a good cup of coffee, a sunset, a phone call from an old friend, you've preserved something precious that many people lose to cynicism or depression as they age.
This isn't about forced positivity or denying life's challenges. It's about maintaining the capacity for joy despite having experienced loss, disappointment, and the full weight of human existence.
Every morning at 5:30 AM, before my trail run, I stand outside for a moment in the pre-dawn quiet. That simple ritual fills me with peace. If you still have moments like these, moments where contentment washes over you for no grand reason, you've kept alive a spark that illuminates everything else.
Final thoughts
Reading through this list, how many resonated with you? If you recognized yourself in even half of these points, you're doing something extraordinary. These aren't just nice qualities to have; they're indicators of psychological, social, and cognitive health that many people lose long before reaching your age.
The tragedy is that our youth-obsessed culture rarely celebrates these achievements. We praise young entrepreneurs and athletes while overlooking the everyday heroism of maintaining curiosity, flexibility, and joy through decades of life's challenges.
Your ability to keep learning, growing, connecting, and adapting isn't just personally beneficial. You're modeling for younger generations what aging can look like when approached with intention and grace. You're proving that getting older doesn't have to mean becoming rigid, isolated, or joyless.
So please, recognize your extraordinariness. Not in an arrogant way, but with the quiet confidence of someone who has navigated decades of change while keeping their essential self intact and evolving. That's not just aging well; that's mastery of the human experience.
