Chip Conley
Sam Bankman-Fried, Where Were Your Modern Elders?
Haven't we seen this movie before?
Will Mid-Lifers Save College Campuses?
"50% of the 4,000 colleges and universities in the U.S. will be bankrupt in 10 to 15 years." - Clayton Christensen (2013)
Who Do You Think You Are?
One of my most profound lessons from our five years of running MEA (3,000 alums and counting) is that many of us in midlife have an outdated idea of who we are or want to be. Our identities—and our mindsets around those identities—are like a straitjacket confining us to being exclusively the hero, the joker, the caregiver, or the underdog (go ahead and fill in your own blank). While these archetypes may have served us at one time, there is a good chance they’ve also limited us.
The 8 Qualities of a Wise Leader.
Lately, I’ve been thinking a lot about what qualities define a wise leader in the 21st century. Before I share my list, let’s define some terms. I believe wisdom is “metabolized experience that leads to distilled compassion.” It’s not just learning from your mistakes; it’s assuring your mistakes (which lead to your wisdom) serve a social good.
What’s the Difference Between Opinion and Judgment?
As we age, many of us become more discerning. We believe our metabolized experience has built an unfailing intuition that serves as a wise editor.
Become Your Own Midlife CEO: Chief Emotions Officer.
It’s breathtaking to witness the purity of emotions of a four-year-old. One moment, they’re bawling their eyes out, and the next, they’re giggling with their puppy.
How to Find Joy and Success as a Late Bloomer.
My mom used to take pride in saying I was a late bloomer, but—being the obsessive achiever—I wondered why I couldn’t be an early bloomer.
Becoming "Age-Fluid."
I was giving a speech the other day and somehow summoned the term “age-fluid” to describe a world in which our age or fear of aging does not define us. Maybe we are all the ages we’ve ever been.
Where’s the Roadmap for 21st-Century Adulthood?
Last century, we had the tyranny of the three-stage life: learn till you're 20-25, earn till you're 60-65, and adjourn till you die. Your "earn" period was defined by Milton Bradley's The Game of Life, complete with tokens earned for the typical life achievements—spouse, kids, career, homeowner, savings, and all of the other responsible decisions along this linear path.
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