What It Means to Be Mature

Like pretty much anything in life that is worthwhile, maturity doesn't come easy. It requires a great deal of struggle. Accept this fact. Stop expecting shortcuts to becoming more mature.

Unfortunately, or fortunately, maturity is not optional. An immature person is likely to make the wrong decisions, which have poor outcomes, because he or she refuses to see the larger picture.

Some, or many, of the decisions we make in life are irreversible. Often, life can be a hard taskmaster. So, being mature is an absolute must.

Rome wasn't built in a day. Some things in life require a great deal of waiting. Mature people realize this and are prepared to wait when they have to. As far as maturity goes, patience is the name of the game. The one who waits is the one who ultimately obtains his or her reward.

Whether it is evident or not, mature people are respected, even if only in the long run. Immaturity, at least the immaturity that is visibly manifested, is a big turn off for most people. When you behave in a mature way, you gradually gain the respect and admiration of other mature people. Over time, even immature people will learn from your ways.

Mature people are not afraid to exhibit their emotions. Neither are they afraid to share in the emotions of others. A wise person knows that it requires a great deal of maturity to effectively comfort a person who has just lost someone in the family. The wise person also knows that living life on autopilot essentially robs it of its vitality.

Wise people watch the world around them and learn from it. They never rush to conclusions about anything but rather grow their awareness based on experiences of others.

Someone who is mature knows quite well that it makes no sense to deny a choice that he or she made even if it ended up badly. It makes no sense to run away from a decision that was made, regardless of whether it was well thought out or hasty.

A person who is wise knows that failing is not something to be ashamed of but rather only an opportunity to road test something that didn't go as expected. Success almost never comes at the first attempt. Success often comes only to those who persist despite failing repeatedly.

Mature people are relationship experts. On the other hand, immature people are capable of wrecking even solid relationships with their tantrums.

Someone who is mature knows the true value of relationships. He or she is able to look into the future with some degree of foresight and figure out if things will work out or not. He or she has some idea of what needs to be done in order to keep things stable. He or she is able to separate dramatics from substance.

In the big world that we live in, there are a ton of people who are advanced in years but not in maturity. There are also some who seem wise beyond their years. Age and maturity are not always directly proportional, although they are supposed to be that way! Some people just don't seem to learn their lessons well, if at all!