Super High Achievers Share Their Greatest Accomplishments (So Far) After Turning 40
When they say the best is yet to come, it's because it really is true.
Dmytro Zinkevych / Shutterstock With a new year on the horizon, we tend to reflect on the highs and lows we’ve experienced throughout the year — even throughout all the years of our lives. Some of us may feel disappointed at what we couldn’t or didn’t accomplish. And others may feel that the highest moments of life can never be experienced again.
But there are so many people who want you to know that life doesn’t just even come close to winding down when you're 30 and that their own best work and highest highs came well after they turned 40.
Life is what you make of it, and, regardless of your age, there’s always hope to be found and glimmers of good things to come, even in the darkest of times.
3 High Achievers Share The Accomplishments They're Most Proud Of Reaching After 40
New York Times bestselling author Jon Acuff
For people who struggle with anxiety, it may feel as if there is no escape. And trust me you’re not alone. I know anxiety can feel a lot like a boulder squishing you down until there is nothing left to smother. So, how can you possibly turn anxiety into productivity?
Bestselling author Jon Acuff writes, “In the first 34 years of my life, I wrote 0 books. In the last 13 years, I’ve written 10 books.”
He then asks, “What changed?” And the answer is, well, a lot.
He shares that learning to apply his imagination to creativity instead of anxiety is what helped him most.
Acuff highlights that this didn’t completely end his anxiety, but rather, it helped him process and funnel it into something more positive.
Bilingual wellness content creator Lorraine C. Ladish
In an Instagram reel, bilingual wellness content creator Lorraine C. Ladish talks about her journey in love at the age of 46-years-old.
She asks the question, “What were the odds that two struggling midlife single parents would hit it off and hit the ground running?”
The odds were in her favor, it turns out. When she met her partner 14 years ago they were both single and broke parents. At that time, they were in their mid-forties and as she recalls, “I had made a list of qualities in a life partner, he checked every one.”
Ladish goes onto write that they were both struggling financially. Her now-husband Phil was close to foreclosure and Ladish had to file for bankruptcy. She was so financially vulnerable that she couldn’t even afford $150 to go to the dentist.
But as she sweetly recalls, Phil gave her that $150 to get her tooth removed — and to her that was super romantic.
After 14 years of being together, they have faced hardships — from shared parental struggles of raising teenagers to financial difficulties. Despite this, she claims that her marriage is stronger than ever, closing with a beautifully provoking question:
“Would you have thought you could meet someone at your lowest point in every way and still be attractive to them?”
Podcaster, speaker, and author Amy Edwards
Podcaster, speaker, and author Amy Edwards writes, “For what it’s worth: At 38 I picked up a guitar. At 40 I wrote my first song. At 41 my first album came out. At 46 my first book was published.” Adding that at age 47 Edwards began dating again for the first time in 20-plus years and at 48 she signed with a podcast network.
Edwards encourages us to “start our week as If the best thing is yet to come.”
In another post, Edwards admits that being the oldest person in the room makes her happy.
While she says this came as a surprise to her, she explains that her age has brought her a sense of security within her experiences and wisdom — as well as a sense of empowerment as she decides to own her age in a room full of people.
Edwards writes, "Life experiences have taught me a lot and I can feel it. I have less judgment, more freedom, more compassion for both myself and others, and a strengthened inner peace. Not to mention a bigger smile and better sense of humor about nearly everything.”
Keep all these people and their triumphs in mind as we flip the next page on our calendars to a new year. Embrace your passions and seize the chances that are still to come!
Remember, life is brimming with opportunity and there's a really good chance you haven't been on your greatest adventure yet — and maybe even met the love of your life just yet.
Marielisa Reyes is a writer with a bachelor's degree in psychology who covers self-help, relationships, career, and family topics.