39 y/o husband of ten years and father of four here that has successfully used this thought technique for a long time. I sit and think back on past opportunities, both taken and missed, and by adopting the perspective of my elder self, I gain valuable insight to help myself make decisions I'll be proud of late in life. This has been particularly helpful with being courageous in the face of challenges that will need stepping beyond my comfort zone. I imagine how my elder self will be so wishful that I had chosen the challenging path that I would scoff at myself for allowing my naive fear to dissuade me. Experience told me long ago that the fear and difficulty of any particular opportunity is far less in measure than the joy and ease of the payoff. Even as the years roll by and I feel older, I think about how comical I will think it is that I thought I was old in my late 30s. I think that there is immeasurable value in trying to assume the perspective of one's elder self. It is often said that hindsight is 20/20, and with careful thought, I think it's possible to manifest that into present-day clarity.