This quote by Benjamin Franklin is a profound commentary on life and personal growth. The number ’25’ is symbolic and represents the age at which most people stop growing personally or intellectually. After reaching a certain age, many people stop pursuing new experiences, learning new things, or challenging their beliefs and ideas. They become complacent, settle into routines, and stop taking risks. Essentially, they stop living a life that is truly alive, vibrant, and growing. This is what Franklin refers to as ‘dying at 25′.
The ’70’ in the quote represents the average lifespan of a person. Despite physically living till 70 or beyond, many people’s mental and emotional growth stops much earlier. Hence, the phrase ‘we just don’t bury them until they are 70’ implies that even though people might be alive in physical terms, they have ceased to ‘live’ in the truest sense of the word.
Applying this to today’s world, we can see that many of us get trapped in the monotony of life, in jobs we don’t like, or in relationships that don’t help us grow. We stop challenging ourselves, stop learning, and stop stepping out of our comfort zones. This is where personal development comes in. To ‘stay alive’ beyond 25, one needs to continually learn, grow, and evolve. This could be through reading, travelling, taking up new hobbies, or simply being open to new experiences and ideas.
In the realm of personal development, this quote serves as a reminder to never stop growing and learning. It encourages us to keep our minds active, our hearts open, and our lives full of new experiences. It warns us against complacency and stagnation, and inspires us to lead a life that is truly ‘alive’ till our physical bodies give way.