You can’t change the stripes on that tiger.
My friend Darren used to tell me those words many times when we would discuss the negative habits of a few people we worked with over the years. He was right. Habits are difficult to change, and most all of us tend to fall back on our customary and predictable ways, especially when feeling pressure.
This is likely why I don’t eat healthy foods and can’t get into the rhythm of regular exercise. I have been doing the opposite of both of those for too long. But this tiger’s stripes are turning gray, so if I am going to develop healthier habits, I better get started soon.
But can an old dog learn new tricks? As a lousy dog owner, I don’t think so. In fact, I can’t teach a new dog new tricks or an old dog old tricks either. But we are not talking about dogs. We are talking about habits, and, for us humans, they most certainly can be broken and reformed.
Michael Gartner offered related advice to a group of young journalists in 1997, and I refer back to his words often. He said, “Keep fit. The older you get, the harder it is to stay in shape, so start staying in shape now. I wouldn’t smoke anything if I were you. I certainly wouldn’t drink much. I’d exercise every day because it makes your work in journalism a lot more interesting if you always have the energy. I have a friend who’s a great, big, successful businessman in Iowa. He’s 82 years old, and we were having breakfast the other morning, and he said, ‘You know, I’m no smarter than anybody else.’ He says, ‘I just get up earlier and I work longer.’ And so, if you’re fit, you can get up earlier and you can work longer and you can have more fun and you can get richer.”
That “great, big, successful businessman in Iowa” he referenced was John Ruan, the founder of Ruan Industries who lived to age 96.
I am not a great dog owner, I know nothing about tigers and I never had the good fortune of getting to know John Ruan, but there is a common theme here, and it has to do with creating good habits at a young age and continuing them for a lifetime.
Have a thoughtful Thursday, and thank for reading.
Shane Goodman
President and Publisher
Big Green Umbrella Media
shane@dmcityview.com
515-953-4822, ext. 305
www.thedailyumbrella.com | 
