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Writing the 2nd Chapter – This time with passion!
By Deborah | July 15, 2009
When I hear there are 70 million baby boomers over the age of 50 out there, it should give me great comfort to realize I am not alone in the transition from a rock star employee status to non-relevant. However, truth be told…the numbers are of little help. It’s like the Titanic sinking. Knowing there are many people sinking along with you is of very little comfort.
As I look around my office, I see mementos of one success after another. So why is it that so many of us at this age begin to feel inadequate and fight to stay relevant in a world made up of young ‘kids’ with little knowledge and even less experience?
One would think the years of service, knowledge and wisdom gained by the time you reach the second half of your life would be an asset to just about any company. So why is it that when you send out hundreds of resumes, you never hear anything? Or, when you do, it’s an auto reply thanking you for applying. Then your resume goes into the deep dark hole, never to be discussed again.
Over the last few years, I talked to many colleagues from engineers, mortgage brokers, CEO’s of companies, to sales and marketing people over fifty. Everyone experiences a similar transition. It would be easy enough to write it off as age discrimination, but is the problem something deeper? Is there some light switch that turns off the moment we hit 50? As if you are smart and relevant up to the end of your 49th year…and then, abruptly, when the clock strikes midnight…you become stupid and irrelevant?
I suppose we could blame the marketplace with so many people at all ages continually floating their resumes and competing for the same jobs. It used to be that if you weren’t employed by the same employer for over two years, they considered you to be a job-hopper. Today, 1-1/2 to 2 years is the norm. The volume of resumes for each job is astounding and I’m sure most end up filed away until it’s time for the shredder.
Is it the marketplace…or is it us? Does our attitude change after 50? Are we less patient, burned-out, and tired of the same old routine? Have you caught yourself saying with a sigh, “same deal…different day?” Or, perhaps it’s one of my favorites “been there, done that, and have many t-shirts to prove it?” Or, the typical, “this is not my first rodeo.” What message are we sending?
Are we simply bored with the whole idea of working? Do we have so many medals that the everyday world of business lacks the fun, passion, creativity, and fulfillment that it once held for us?
Several years ago, while attending the funeral of my uncle, my sister said something so profound that it gives me a chuckle every time I think of it. There were four or five of us sitting in circle discussing career choices and, bragging about our accomplishments in business. When my sister was asked, “So, Mary, what do you do for a living,” she excitedly interjected “work has never appealed to me!” We giggled and resumed the conversation. Instead of feeling left out, she was happy to be on the outside looking in. She couldn’t imagine business would hold anything of interest for her. She had crafted a remarkable life of a ‘Martha Stewart’ clone outside the normal rate race that all of us were so consumed with. Not being part of the ‘inner circle’ was just fine with her. In fact, it was better than just fine.
Isn’t it about time to start working your passions? You know, those things you absolutely love to do but never had a chance to do them due to the long work weeks, burning both ends of the candle, and keeping the midnight oil burning for too many years. Trust me…we’ve earned the right to take this blank canvas and do something creative with it. Let’s write this 2nd chapter of our lives so that it is something worth talking about…and this time…let’s do it with passion!
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