Fashion models: 30 years old (unless you’re Maye Musk or Jeff Hamaoui).
Pro athletes: 35 years old if they’re lucky (unless you’re Tom Brady).
Software engineer: 40 years old (unless you’re Carol Shaw).
Advertising exec: 45 years old (unless you’re Lee Clow).
Arthur Brooks’ piece in “The Atlantic,” “Your Professional Decline is Coming (Much) Sooner Than You Think,” chronicles how career obsolescence has accelerated in the digital age. It’s a sobering article, but there’s some genuine hope toward the end of the article. He writes:
“The best synthesizers and explainers of complicated ideas—that is, the best teachers—tend to be in their mid-60s or older, some of them well into their 80s. That older people, with their stores of wisdom, should be the most successful teachers seems almost cosmically right. No matter what our profession, as we age, we can dedicate ourselves to sharing knowledge in some meaningful way.”
What are the professions that ripen with age? Professor? Mediator? Life coach? Author, tour guide, counselor or therapist, “modern elder” in a tech company, caregiver, religious or spiritual leader, workshop facilitator? Go ahead and add to this list.
I look forward to hearing from you. And, you can hear Arthur and me chatting today at 1 pm PT if you register here.