Reflecting on my experience last year as guest faculty for the Modern Elder Academy’s Reframing Retirement course, I’m reminded of the profound transitions we all face. Whether it’s leaving behind a career that once defined us or stepping into a new phase of life with a sense of possibility and uncertainty, these moments raise deeper questions: What happens when we finally have the time, health, and resources to pursue something meaningful but are unsure of what that is? Who are we when our identity is no longer tied to a title or career?
These moments reveal our true potential. It’s not just about what we’ve accomplished – it’s about who we are becoming and what we still have to offer the world.
For many, retirement brings great change. Some feel relief leaving behind work demands, while others feel unmoored without the structure and identity it provided. But retirement is not an end. It’s an invitation to rewrite the script, explore new passions, reconnect with purpose, and rediscover ourselves in community with others on a similar journey.
At the Modern Elder Academy, we say retirement is a team sport. Last year’s Reframing Retirement course was a labor of love, built with a remarkable group of intergenerational master and guest faculty. As I look ahead to the fall offering, I am excited about the potential these programs hold for those seeking to reset and reignite their futures.
But this is just one part of a larger movement that recognizes the power of longevity and the unique opportunities it creates. Higher education has a crucial role in offering pathways for exploration and supportive communities for midlife learners charting new courses. Once considered for the young, universities now serve learners at every life stage.
This is the vision behind the Experienced Leaders Initiative (ELI) at the Yale School of Management, where Marc Freedman, Chip Conley, and I serve on the advisory board. ELI helps accomplished leaders transition into “what’s next.” It’s been described as “turning 20 again”—having the freedom to pursue something meaningful but now with decades of wisdom. The program blends intellectual exploration, hands-on experiences, and cohort support for those who don’t want to be “done-done” but instead seek meaningful contributions while embracing life’s flexibility.
On October 10th at 3 PM ET, the Yale ELI will host a webinar, Inward, Outward, Forward: What Success Looks Like Next, featuring Marc Freedman, the ELI Faculty Director and Co-CEO of CoGenerate and Bonnie Wan, bestselling author of The Life Brief. They’ll explore collaboration and community in navigating these transitions, moderated by Lauren Holden Kilbane, a strategy advisor and board member of Yale ELI.
In his recent Wisdom Well blog, Reinventing the American University for a Multigenerational Future, Marc shares how universities can be epicenters of intergenerational collaboration. Our work on the Yale ELI advisory board aligns with this vision, supporting those in midlife while creating spaces for all to thrive.
This thinking also underpins an article I co-wrote with Lindsey Beagley and Kyra Jones, Enrollment Cliff, Meet Longevity Boom, for Inside Higher Ed. The longevity boom is a tremendous opportunity for higher education to innovate with programs for midlife individuals. Universities are well-positioned to serve this demographic if they embrace the shift.
Having been part of both the Modern Elder Academy and Yale ELI, I see the profound impact of embracing life transitions with intention. Programs like Yale’s ELI and MEA help us explore new possibilities, supported by community and designed for this unique stage of life.
While lifelong learning is valuable for accomplished leaders, this new stage may also prompt a search for purpose and connection. Programs like these help us ask the right questions and provide pathways to new journeys of exploration and experimentation.
If you’re curious about what’s next for you, join us on October 10th for the Yale ELI webinar. Let’s explore how longevity is reshaping our world and how we can all move forward with purpose and possibility.
Register here for the webinar and take the next step in discovering what success looks like for your future.
-Simon
Simon Chan is guest faculty at the Modern Elder Academy and the Founder and CEO of Adapt with Intent Inc., a strategic advisory firm focused on longevity, the future of work, and age diversity. Simon is a global Ambassador for the Stanford Center on Longevity and serves on the Advisory Board for Yale School of Management’s Experienced Leaders Initiative. He collaborates with global leaders to design innovative strategies that empower individuals and organizations to thrive in an era of 100-year lives.