I smiled when I came across that line because I frequently use it--even down to the 80-year old number. It helps put things in perspective, especially with res

I smiled when I came across that line because I frequently use it--even down to the 80-year old number. It helps put things in perspective, especially with respect to fear. We fear so many things and not do it. And yet, a lot of the fear is just imaginary--something the 80 year old you can see looking back but the current you cannot. So I ask myself "what would the 80 year old me think of it?" and if it says to do it, I try to do it. Example: you want to take a temporary crappy job to get back to your feet but you're afraid friends will see you working there and lose respect. Present me: afraid I'll lose my friends, ego hit 80-year old me: proud I followed my dream! Now I totally understand if this doesn't work for you and don't expect it to work for everyone or even most people. But I just thought I'd provide some background on how people who do use this to motivate themselves are using it.