Chip Conley

Knowledge may be power, but wisdom is wealth. It’s experiential self-knowledge that accrues for a lifetime like an annuity that keeps paying you. Given the value of wisdom, it’s shocking we have so few ways to define and cultivate it.

Some of you are familiar with Dan Buettner and his series of bestsellers, starting with "The Blue Zones: Lessons for Living Longer From the People Who've Lived the Longest."

I’m either an idiot or a visionary, depending on who you listen to. I’ve made my share of mistakes and some of them whoppers.

Ever since I heard about the U-Curve of Happiness, I was intrigued by it. Yes, my low point in life matched the nadir of their social science research: mid-to-later 40’s. And, yes, my fifties have been my favorite decade. But is this graph below truly accurate? Are we happiest in life at age 98?

Are you up for a little workshop exercise (best-suited for those 60+, although anyone could try this)? This exercise is designed to help you identify what you’re looking for from a companion later in your life.

Many of our Sabbatical Sessions guests ask for time alone with me and my co-founders, Jeff and Christine. I often recommend a walk and talk, and, I guess, I’ve earned a bit of a reputation for being a "zippy Chippy."

This is such a foundational question, especially when you’re sitting on a Baja beach surrounded by fellow mid-lifers. Once you’ve taken yourself off the habitual treadmill (aka, the "hedonic treadmill"), you start to notice things that were previously just wallpaper in your life.

Until Covid-19 came along, MEA was figuratively a one flavor ice cream shop. You might say we offered the best chocolate ice cream in the world—our popular one-week themed workshop in Baja. And then along came Covid, and like the rest of the world, we were forced to do the pandemic pivot.

"If you really knew me and my relationship with money, you’d know ___________." Welcome to one of the more intense sessions we do in many of our MEA workshops.

As we age, we begin imagining what we will leave behind. When it comes to families, it may be our kids, extended family, or the way we’ve created memories for loved ones. When it comes to our communities, it may be the cleanliness of a nearby park or the strength of a Girl Scout Troop, two of our favorite volunteer activities.