From all appearances, Dr. Gary Bradt of Summerfield is a solid fit into both the age demographic and some of the life circumstances of a Baby Boomer. He’s 54 and he’s dealt with aging parents and in-laws, and he has two children, one away at college and one at home working and attending a community college.

But Bradt will tell you up front that not only does he not think of himself as a Baby Boomer, he doesn’t put himself in any particular age bracket. As he sees it, life is a series of changes, a journey best enjoyed in the moment, a journey that can be improved by how you act toward the larger world and toward those who are closest to you. And that’s true, no matter how old or how young you are chronologically.

Bradt knows about change. He makes his living as a keynote speaker, helping individuals and companies work their way through change. He’s also the author of The Ring In The Rubble: Dig Through Change and Find Your Next Golden Opportunity. He’s also been endorsed by Spencer Johnson, M.D. as the leading speaker worldwide on Johnson’s bestsellers Who Moved My Cheese? and more recently, on Johnson’s Peaks and Valleys: Making Good And Bad Times Work For You – At Work And In Life.

Both individuals and the world that surrounds them change over time as part of the normal process of aging, Bradt tells us. Youth that can change the world turn into middle-aged adults who realize they can’t and older adults who pine for the good old days.

“The one place where the world has changed most in my world is technology,” says Bradt. “It is an incredibly different world and that is the part that I enjoy, especially the way that we communicate. Email wasn’t done 20 years ago and now, you have text messaging and cell phones and Facebook, new ways to build and maintain relationships. The world that we get to live in is for the better. I love my technology.”

The passage of time means that change will be automatic. The economic downturn caused many to lose jobs, or to become fearful that their plans for retirement have either been curtailed or eliminated. There are strategies that individuals can adopt to better handle change, Bradt says. “Most of us are not going through this journey alone,” he says. “Most of us have a spouse or a partner. Make that relationship your highest priority on this earth because if you don’t, all the stresses and strains will make that relationship crumble and it will magnify your problems.”

It’s also best to be intentional. If you fear losing your job or your retirement, take some action to solve it. A good reaction to worries over your job would be to find a way to eliminate debt, save money and learn some new skills. Bradt points out that you can’t choose your circumstances, but you can choose how you react to them.

“You really also have to discipline yourself as much as possible to live in the moment,” says Bradt. “People tend to be happier in their older years when they are fascinated by life, by living, by growing, by trying new things…I have known some old and bitter people at 45 and some who are young and vibrant at 85.

“It is not how long you have lived but what you have chosen to do with those years.”