INC – In business, longevity matters. Overnight success stories aside, starting and building a business that lasts takes time.
Time to develop a great team of outstanding employees. Time to make lasting connections, forge lasting partnerships, and build long-term relationships with loyal customers.
Even if you’re not an entrepreneur: Who doesn’t hope to live as long and healthy a life as possible?
Problem is, the recommendation bar for living a longer life can seem impossibly high.
One study found you need between 150 and 300 minutes of moderate-to-vigorous physical activity to “mitigate” the risk of death associated with sitting.
Another study found you need to jog five days a week for 30 to 40 minutes a pop for your body to have the “age progression” of someone nine years younger.
But then there’s this. Two studies, one that spanned 10 years and the other 30 years, found that “high optimism” was linked to 11 to 15 percent longer lifespans, even after taking into account factors like health and socioeconomic status.
As the researchers write:
Among psychosocial factors that appear to be potential health assets (e.g., social integration), optimism has some of the strongest and most consistent associations with a wide range of health outcomes, including reduced risk of cardiovascular events, lung function decline, and premature mortality.
Investigators have speculated that optimism may facilitate healthier bio-behavioral processes, and ultimately longevity, because optimism directly contributes to how goals are translated into behaviors.
Let’s unpack that.
“Social integration” directly correlates with living longer; a clinical review of nearly 150 studies found that people with strong social ties had a 50 percent better chance of survival, regardless of age, sex, health status, and cause of death, than those with weaker ties … read more.
