As we age, our values shift. That's natural and inevitable. But it doesn't have to be a bad thing. In fact, it can be positive in many ways when we learn to appreciate what truly matters in our lives. 

Our twenties are a time for us to establish our paths in the world and figure out what kind of person we want to be. Our thirties and beyond are when we start to appreciate what we've accomplished and are the time when we seek improvement instead of accolades. 

How we define what's personally most valuable changes often, but here's a shortlist of five things that we'll value more as we age.

Books Over Phones

As we grow older, we often find ourselves needing a mental break of one sort or another. Escape can come in the form of a good book that completely transports us to a world outside of our inner headspace, if only for a few hours.

We need relief from constantly checking for the likes, comments, and updates that feed our social media addiction. FOMO (Fear of Missing Out) is rapidly turning us into attention-seeking drones admiring the lives of others while ignoring our own.

We all need moments away from our phones, and we all need time where we can enjoy the serenity of a good book. Reading allows us to create new worlds inside our minds and immerse ourselves far longer than any modern technology could ever allow.

Reading can help us get out of our heads and into the world around us more than anything else ever could. It takes us away from our anxious thoughts, our depression, and our stress. When we find the right book, everything else seems to disappear.

Time With Friends

As we get older, it's natural for our friends to drift apart and find their own paths in life. Due to hectic schedules and, well, life, it's easy to lose touch with people and let friendships drift into the ether. However, friends are the most valuable resource in our lives when it comes to supporting us, caring for us, and sharing the ups and downs of life. Difficult times or significant life events are when we rely upon the quality of our friendships to get us through.

Friendships are gardens that need cultivating with time and attention. We cannot expect to pick the fruit without sowing the seeds.

Better Health 

It's easy to forget about taking care of ourselves as we compete in the rat race of life. It can be convenient to forgo healthy behaviors to get ahead at work or simply get through our days. Still, this attitude is dangerous because ignoring your body's needs leads to poor health outcomes as we get older.

Take time to exercise, eat better, get more rest, and practice mindfulness. When we stress out about this or that, we need to find ways to relax, such as walking outdoors, meditating, or doing deep breathing exercises.

Communication 

As we get older, it's common for people to switch their focus from competing with others to cooperating with them. This competition often leads to confrontation and the breakdown of relationships because people assume that their needs are more important than anyone else's.

However, this attitude about the world only leads to isolation and unhappiness over time because other people may not be willing or able to meet our needs all of the time. We have to try hard not to take things personally and build a line of communication.

Being open-minded and supportive allows room for others to do the same for us. Instead of forcing others to bend to our will, try showing appreciation for their unique perspectives.

Comfort in Solitude

Time spent alone is time spent with ourselves, and it's a time to reflect on the things in our lives that matter most. Take a moment to think about what we want from our lives. Think about how we can improve our relationships and become better people in everything thing we do. 

Too much hustle and bustle fills our lives with noise and leaves us unable to hear the voice of our conscience when it's trying to tell us something important. In addition, too much stress can also be detrimental to our health if not channeled properly. We all have access to some level of inner peace, and we only need to remember how to find it when we need it most.

Depending on our current stage of life, we either read this and say, "Whatever!" or we're beginning to notice the slow transformation of our values as we get older.

The only constant in life is change. If we're not reevaluating our values regularly, the world will pass us by in a blink. One day, we'll look back fondly on today because we'll recognize the person we were then and appreciate who we are today.

Anther. Male wellness where it counts.