Have you ever wondered if older people are wiser just because they’ve lived longer? It’s a common belief, but it’s not always true. While older people have more experience, wisdom isn’t just about age. Even young children can show wisdom in their own ways!
Meet my Nana, who is 85 years old and the wisest person I know. She has taught me many life lessons. A psychologist once said, “Wisdom is expertise in the fundamental pragmatics of life.” This means wisdom is about understanding the basics of living well.
Nana has faced many challenges, like losing loved ones. She doesn’t necessarily feel wiser because of these experiences, but she has learned a lot. Wisdom might come from learning not to repeat mistakes. So, what exactly is wisdom?
Wisdom is often defined as having good judgment and giving advice in difficult situations. Over the past 30 years, psychologists have studied wisdom a lot, but it’s still a bit of a mystery. Experts agree that wisdom is different from intelligence and spirituality. It’s something you gain through experience, and it can grow as you age. It’s a personal quality that anyone can learn.
There are different kinds of wisdom. Practical wisdom helps us make better decisions in our daily lives. Philosophical wisdom involves deep thinking and questioning. Benevolent wisdom is about being kind and moral. In North America, people value practical wisdom the most because it helps us make good choices every day.
Nana was a teacher and a counselor, so people often ask her for advice. She believes that everyone can make good decisions with the right guidance. As a counselor, she learned that listening is crucial. Instead of telling people what to do, she helps them think through their actions and find their own solutions.
Wisdom isn’t just for older people. Teenagers and young adults can be wise too. Studies show that young people can have similar levels of wisdom as older adults, especially when it comes to understanding social situations.
To become wiser, it’s important to know yourself well. This means understanding your strengths, emotions, and goals. Being able to express and control your emotions, build relationships, and handle uncertainties in life are all signs of wisdom.
Nana has some life advice for everyone: love a lot and be grateful. We often forget to appreciate what we have, but focusing on gratitude can make us happier.
So, remember, wisdom isn’t just about age. It’s about learning from experiences, understanding yourself, and making thoughtful decisions. We can all work on becoming a little wiser every day!
Write a journal entry about a personal experience where you learned something valuable. Reflect on what made the experience meaningful and how it contributed to your understanding of wisdom. Consider how this experience might help you make better decisions in the future.
In small groups, create and act out scenarios where characters must make difficult decisions. Discuss the different types of wisdom (practical, philosophical, benevolent) that could be applied in each situation. Reflect on how these types of wisdom influence decision-making.
Interview an older person you know, such as a grandparent or neighbor, about their life experiences and the lessons they’ve learned. Ask them about a time they had to use wisdom to solve a problem. Share your findings with the class and discuss common themes.
Create a collage that represents different aspects of wisdom. Use images, quotes, and symbols that reflect practical, philosophical, and benevolent wisdom. Present your collage to the class and explain your choices.
Participate in a debate on the topic: “Is wisdom more important than intelligence?” Use examples from the article and your own experiences to support your arguments. Reflect on how wisdom and intelligence can complement each other in real-life situations.
**Sanitized Transcript:**
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Are older people wiser? No, not necessarily. I think older people are experienced, and I think there’s a difference. If you’ve experienced something, then you’ve learned from it. Wisdom can sometimes come from even small children.
This is my Nana. She’s the wisest person I know, so I want to share with you some life lessons from an 85-year-old. After all, as one psychologist put it, “Wisdom is expertise in the fundamental pragmatics of life.”
You’ve had lots of difficult things happen throughout your life; do you think those experiences have made you wiser?
I don’t know if “wiser” is the word for it. I’ve experienced losing people through death, and I wouldn’t say that I got wiser because of that, but I learned a lot from it. I’ve had hard times in my life where I’ve learned – in a way, it’s wiser because you don’t want to repeat your mistakes. That’s maybe where wisdom comes from.
I guess, what is wisdom? That’s something we need to start with.
That’s right, yes. This feels like a good spot to jump back in: how do we define wisdom? A dictionary definition says it’s “good judgment and advice in difficult and uncertain matters of life.” Psychological research on wisdom has really taken off in the last 30 years, but what’s meant by wisdom and how we can develop or practice it isn’t entirely clear.
Experts agree on a few things: that wisdom is distinct from both intelligence and spirituality, it’s experience-driven and increases with age, it’s a personal quality, and it can be learned.
You’re the matriarch of a big family, but you were also a teacher and a counselor, so everyone turns to you for advice. But the advice is there; people just have to be led to it. Everyone has the capacity to make a good decision, almost. I think with the right encouragement, they can, because nobody knows you better than you do.
As a counselor, if I start telling you how you should do things, I’m not really helping you. But if I can guide you through a process where you can examine your actions and consider different approaches, then there’s a learning opportunity for you in that.
It’s also helpful to understand that there are different types of wisdom: practical wisdom, which is about improving our well-being; philosophical wisdom, which is more questioning and metaphysical; and benevolent wisdom, which is more moral and compassionate. While all wisdom is highly valued across cultures, research in North America shows that practical wisdom resonates the most with people. More than anything, we want to apply good judgment to help us make the best decisions in our everyday lives.
Do you apply any experiences that you learned as a teacher or a counselor in your own life?
Oh yes.
Like what?
As a teacher, one of the things I have learned is the importance of listening. As a counselor, I’ve learned the importance of being a listener. It’s not something we do really well all the time, but it’s probably one of the most helpful things for others.
As a parent, you learn a lot through trial and error and making mistakes. At the end of the day, you think, “I would have done that differently.” You reflect on everything you do. There are always times when you look back and think, “In retrospect, I would do something different.” So you learn from it.
I think there are wise people and wise teenagers; I don’t think wisdom is something that comes solely with age. While reasoning about social dilemmas improves with age, many studies have found that young adults show similar ratings of perspective and wisdom as older adults.
Research suggests you’re more likely to be a wise person if you have self-knowledge, meaning a good awareness of your competencies, emotions, and goals. If you’re self-wise, you know how to express and regulate these emotions and develop and maintain relationships. If you have self-relativism, you can objectively evaluate yourself as well as others. And a tolerance of ambiguity – the ability to recognize and manage uncertainties in life.
Developing these abilities is the first step in learning to be wise. We can all be a little bit wiser.
Is there any life advice that you have for me? For other people?
Yes, I think there is. One thing is to love a lot. The other is to be grateful a lot. I feel like we’re not grateful enough for what we have. We have so much to be grateful for, and I think people mostly are if they focus on it.
Well, thank you, Nana.
Wisdom – The ability to make good decisions and give good advice based on knowledge and experience. – The philosopher was known for his wisdom, often helping others see different perspectives on life’s challenges.
Experience – Knowledge or skill that comes from having done certain things. – Her experience in studying human behavior helped her understand why people act the way they do.
Psychology – The scientific study of the mind and how it influences behavior. – In psychology class, we learned about how emotions can affect our decisions.
Decisions – Choices made after thinking about different possibilities. – Making decisions can be difficult, especially when we have to consider the feelings of others.
Learning – The process of gaining knowledge or skills through study or experience. – Learning about different philosophies can help us understand the world better.
Judgment – The ability to make considered decisions or come to sensible conclusions. – Good judgment is important when evaluating the consequences of our actions.
Emotions – Strong feelings such as happiness, sadness, or anger. – Understanding our emotions can help us communicate better with others.
Relationships – The way in which two or more people are connected. – Building strong relationships requires trust and understanding.
Advice – Guidance or recommendations offered to help someone with a decision or problem. – She gave me great advice on how to handle stress during exams.
Gratitude – A feeling of thankfulness and appreciation. – Practicing gratitude can improve our mental well-being and relationships with others.
