What are you optimizing for?

Last month, I confessed to returning my Oura Ring, one of the holy grails of sleep health tracking. Since sharing my experience of questioning our?culture of more and more data?to embrace a?study of one approach, I've heard from others—even leaders in healthy aging and longevity—sheepishly sharing their own similar experiences.

"Thank you, Barbara! Personally, data overload and connection to devices increased my stress levels…"

"I completely agree, Barbara. I received the Oura ring as a gift and found it novel and fun…at best, it agrees with my experience; at worst, it makes me feel worse than before."

"We can be so obsessed with measuring every piece of health data, whether it's tracking food, steps, sleep, or even 'mindful minutes' that we lose sight of what's important to our personal health and well-being. Thanks for sharing this."

As a coach to high-performing leaders and an advocate?for living a life as healthy as it is long, I was not surprised by these sentiments. To be clear, I was also not surprised by the equally valid reactions of people who find real-time?data and the next new device beneficial. Whatever camp you're in, the study of one approach to healthy aging is about moving beyond the one-dimensional goal of?living longer towards a more nuanced, personalized pursuit of creating a life well-lived for the longest time possible. That entails trusting not only data but also yourself.

Last year, I posted a query on Facebook asking if people wanted to live to 100 and why or why not. Their responses were more split than I anticipated. Those?whose loved ones?were extremely frail or incapacitated?tended to reply, "No, thank you." Roughly 70%,?however, answered affirmatively, albeit with qualifiers. One respondent noted, "If I'm in decent mental and physical health and not a burden to anyone." Few of us would disagree; the long game must be worth it.

Quality of life, otherwise called healthspan, is as important as the number of years lived. One of the primary purposes of the study of one approach?is to close the gap between your healthspan and lifespan. The current life expectancy in the United States is about 78 years. But our healthspan (the number of years a person can expect to live in relatively good physical, mental, and emotional health) is only 66 years. The 11+ year gap between the quantity and quality of years, illustrated below,?has been referred to as?the marginal?decade by Peter Attia. I prefer to call it the trophy years. If there has ever been a trophy you wanted to earn, this is it.

Let's be clear: the very real physical and emotional changes, challenging transitions, and some aspects of decline associated with aging are just plain hard. On the flip side, opportunity lives?in the shadows of change and challenge. It's about becoming our best selves for the longest time possible and for what matters most—which invites the question:

What are you optimizing for?

What makes a 100-year life worth living is when it is imbued with an ability to remain independent, with a sense of community, meaning, purpose and joy. Great teachers, from Victor Frankl to Brene Brown, have repeatedly proven that we fail to thrive as humans without a sense of purpose and a capacity to love and be loved. So, if we seriously consider any formula for longevity, a sense of purpose (think: North Star) and love that brings meaning to life are required. You can cheat on a diet, and you can get away (for a while at least) without daily exercise, but you can't shortchange your spiritual, mental and emotional health for long without serious consequences.

It has been said that knowledge is power, and this is absolutely true. But the true power, which can embolden the agency and practical wisdom you need to cultivate your study of one longevity roadmap, comes from self-knowledge and shifting what we believe about ourselves and the opportunities available to us?as we age. Next month, I will introduce you to a simple but profound formula to help guide you in creating your own roadmap to a life well-lived.