Growing up in the 60s or 70s meant rotary phones, backyard adventures, and a sense of independence that’s hard to find now. Things weren’t always easier, but we picked up a set of life lessons that often get lost today.
Some of these lessons came from parents or teachers, but many were learned through experience—scraped knees, missed curfews, and part-time jobs. While the world has changed, a few of these old-school truths are worth remembering. If you grew up in those decades, see if these sound familiar—or pick up a nugget or two, no matter when you were born.
You don’t need a reward to do the right thing
Back then, doing the right thing wasn’t about rewards or gold stars. You shoveled the neighbor’s driveway or showed up on time because it was the right thing to do. The satisfaction came from integrity, not applause. Today, it sometimes feels like everything needs an incentive, but real character never asked for a prize.
Privacy is a form of self-respect
In the past, we didn’t share everything with everyone. Privacy meant self-respect, not secrecy. Conversations were often face-to-face or handwritten, and trust was earned over time. Knowing when to speak—and when to stay quiet—was a sign of maturity and self-respect.
Earning meant more than receiving
Most of us had a job as a teenager. Whether it was delivering papers or stocking shelves, earning your own money taught you value and capability. That first paycheck felt amazing—not because of the amount, but because it meant you’d earned it. Today’s world of instant everything makes this lesson even more valuable.
Life isn’t fair—and that’s okay
We learned early that life isn’t fair. You didn’t always get what you wanted, but you kept going anyway. Resilience grew out of accepting setbacks and moving forward. That simple truth still carries weight, no matter how much the world changes.
You respect your elders—even when they’re not perfect
We were raised to respect elders not because they were always right, but because they’d lived more life. Listening to their stories—even the repetitive ones—taught patience and humility. A little more respect and patience could help today’s world, too.
Hard work doesn’t guarantee success—but it gives you a shot
Nobody promised us anything, but we learned that hard work builds something inside you. You worked hard because it gave you a chance, not a guarantee. Quiet success may go unnoticed, but it’s deeply earned and satisfying.
You don’t always need to be comfortable to be okay
We got used to discomfort—cold car seats, long trips, boredom. And we survived. Learning to sit with discomfort builds grit, patience, and self-awareness. Those lessons matter now more than ever.
Final thoughts
The best life lessons didn’t come from a classroom—they came from a different time. Which of these do you still carry with you, and which are you passing on? Sometimes, the best parts of the past are blueprints for today. Let’s keep that wisdom alive.
Excellent. In these days of instant gratification, when worrying is called ‘anxiety’ and sadness ‘depression’ the young don’t seem to have any resilience. They also seem to think the world owes them a living and that they are ‘entitled’ to all sorts of things without putting in the work.
The world DOES owe you a living IF AND ONLY IF you put in the HARD WORK! That’s the social contract I was taught. No one is “entitled” to anything without putting in the work. But in today’s world we have wealthy, privileged people AND people in poverty who don’t have to work, which resulted in those of us who do work hard with NO GUARANTEE OF SUCCESS; because those for whom we work and pay taxes to support steal our success instead of working for it themselves!
Disabled and otherwise burdened people who need assistance aren’t stealing from us, but the wealthy certainly are. And they’re the ones who suggested you blame the poor and punch downward.
Born in64 oldest of seven,next door had six kids and on the other side the McKennas had 8 kids,that’s 21 kids in three houses,we watched our parents lips move but we did what ever we wanted to do,we had the numbers, we had to use our imagination,oh yeah no told us what to do,belting’s were great,wouldn’t hurt a fly ,now it’s all cop this cop that,let’s get the little rats, and then they want more money more rules,throw out the rule book inspector, we don’t need you doctors, and stop taxing us and making up nonsense,all fairy tales of boogie men and their relatives didn’t fool us,we knew the trolls were under every bridge,well they are breeding and lying and taking over our tax money.And we could play wicket keeper and cop a bat in the face for standing too close to the stumps,because we were tough we did what we wanted and that’s living man.
Brilliantly stated..Your writing and expression is one of a kind..I hope you’re Writing is a consistent part in your life..So very wise…Too many rules indeed..
You need help
You are judgemental.
See what I mean,my comment is awaiting moderation,that’s another load of nonsense,we never waited for anything,if we were hungry and the answer was no,lol we would cause a distraction,and then we would raid one of the three pantys ,worked every time,sometimes we even got a packet of smokes and go straight to the pine forest and smoke like a chimney,but it wasn’t us who accidentally burned down the pine forest behind the football over,could easily have been started bye a lightning strike and we quickly forgot about stuff like that,those were the days.
D,D. The 1960s and 1970s were so long ago. Almost as long as your sentences. I too remember large family’s, 5 -10 kids. Playing unsupervised for days. Rearly wearing shoes in the summer. We physically fought each other with fist for dominance then organized a baseball team and finished the day sharing bats and balls. Never involved our parents, didnt have a coach, didn’t own a single baseball uniform, settled our own disputes, used rocks for bases, our parents never came to a single game, made friends and enemies in person. It was almost cave man style learning. Yet here we are living to be 90+ years old and still unaware of anxiety or depression. I’d trade every single electronic device I’ve ever owned to experience the camaraderie I felt with those times and people. We built solid lasting relationships face to face in adversity and learned from it. I’m pretty sure the relationship skills we learned as kids in the wild via hard knox is why we are living happly ever after. I loved living and still do. I hope and pray this new digital friend thing works as well as what I was lucky enough to experience.
Growing up with no health and safety, if you hurt yourself lesson learnt, brush it off a d get on with it, no namby pandering.
I don’t know how w grew up sane , every child seems to have mental health issues, if I was depressed, you kick a tin can down the road, or stomp upstairs and bang a few doors, my parents spoke to me, now parents Aron their phones ignoring their children, we knew how to read and write before school, no it’s left up o he teachers. There is no responsibility , I could go on all day
Brilliantly stated..Your writing and expression is one of a kind..I hope you’re Writing is a consistent part in your life..So very wise…Too many rules indeed..
Absolutely spot on and a huge sigh of relief as integrity which is questioned today was a genuine way of life. Caring for others in the true sense of the phrase was all about commitment, sharing and total honesty. Now my life I find is often the result of manipulation, frustration and so many accusations as I try to share my life experiences. Young people get angry and deny the authenticity of my life learned knowledge. The current trend of labels is alarming. If you don’t have one there is something wrong. We live in a time of misinformation which is often documented as facts. Worryingly we will carry this through life. I am of an age where I can reflect. In an era where you can have or do what you want no matter what the cost is without appreciation or respect. Every aspect of life is over dramatised and without real value. I value my upbringing without material gain. Discipline and respect were everything. I’m not a lady of this era and find life today a very real challenge. The will to survive with very little and the deepest respect for family and neighbours gave me more than anything materialistic. I would choose that time again.
No nostalgia here for how things used to be I’m 79 now raised during the 50’s and 60’s and so on. I’m shaped by that era but, nothing from then is useful now. Adapting to now without comparing it with the past allows something new to to be seen and felt, the now is always fresh the past is moldy and stale.
Indeed. Adapt to change or be left behind. Grew up in the 60s. All eras had/have good & bad….
I’m 73. We had 4 kids & 2 parents living together in a small bungalow with one tiny bathroom. No a/c, one car (a station wagon w/ vinyl bench seats & 3 on the tree), one small black & white TV, one phone (party line), all meals were eaten together. No restaurant meals. Hand-me-down clothes. All of the other families in the old neighborhood had at least 4 kids. We rode our bikes for miles, completely unsupervised. We built poorly-designed tree-forts. We fell out of trees and broke our arms. We hiked for miles in the woods and fell into creeks. Fortunately, nobody drowned. Kids got into fights occasionally. Parents stayed out of it. Those were good times. Not perfect, but not too bad!
If you didn’t grow up in the 60’s or 70’s then you just f’n missed out
I just thank God that I made it to almost 75 . Lived near a river ( didn’t drown) , survived motorcycle s, no seatbelt’s, fireworks, smoking, drinking, to name a few of my stupid bad choices. I didn’t earn this life I’ve been given. It’s all a gift from Jesus. Not the decade you grew up in.
We didn’t live for the future we lived day by day and always made the most of it. The only money we had was money we worked for cutting lawns and so on. We never looked down on anyone and accepted people as they were. We believed in GOD and always knew there were consequences for misdeeds and bad behaviour. We relied on each other and would never let a Mate down. We said NO TO DRUGS and we were the real life advertisement for what we lauded as NATURAL HIGHS. We taught ourselves to swim and every Suburb had a great creek and lagoons you could swim and fish in for eels turtles and Lobbies. We used liver from beef or lamb as bait on safety pins and string. We made our own fish nets and dilly-pots and put them to great use often. Our best times were the School Holidays. At School we listened intently and completely unaware competed with fifty or more other kids in the Class. We saw Man walk on the Moon and understood the Discipline of the Astronauts indeed our playful lives were structured without intent in much the same way. We were them and they were us. We learned to despise and avoid any and all kinds of wickedness. We believed that the World could end in a Nuclear War that we had nothing to do with. But we were resilient and took it as a nothing. Anyone (rare) who showed the trait; wasn’t called a coward. He, never she, was called a Dingo. For most there were no bad times to remember. We did our duties for Mum and Dad because we were asked to. We never had to be ordered to do our duties and do the right things. We believed in a fair days pay for a fair days work. We were GOOD AND GOD WAS ALWAYS WITH US AMEN 7/7/2025
Over sharing of private things was part of the gay agenda. Which then became vogue. (Its all in Kirk & Madsens 1987 book “After the Ball”). When NPR had a story on it I looked at a book review.
Since then when it comes up I say ‘that’s none of business at hand’ or I’m 67 and my wife is 80. Let me tell you what we do… usually followed by eeew-no from the offender.
In America we can’t be told what to think. Unless it’s a Journalist with TDS. LOL
They overplayed that card and lost a lot of power to create our current culture. Thankfully
We didn’t judge people like many are quick to do today.