Chip Conley

I love the humanity of this author. Sara Lawrence-Lightfoot is a MacArthur Prize-winning sociologist and Harvard professor. In this book titled “The Third Chapter: Passion, Risk and Adventure in the 25 Years after 50,” she writes, “We must develop a compelling vision of later life, one that does not assume a trajectory of decline after fifty but recognizes this as a time of potential change, growth and new learning, a time when our courage gives us hope.”

I was 18, a sophomore in college, attending an early autumn nationally televised football game. All I was wearing was a diaper. All I was carrying was a calf nursing bottle full of alcohol. And, all I was asking was, “Is it halftime, yet?”

They say never trust a word with more vowels than consonants. “Truck,” “trick,” “trust.” These are solid words. You know what they mean. They give you confidence. But, “luau,” “utopia,” “aureola,” “uvula,” “anemone.” These tongue-twisting, vowel-loving words are challenging. Most of us avoid them like the plague for fear of sounding stupid.

What’s a part of your body that disappears when you stand up? No, not your belly! It’s your lap. Around our house, I call our 25-yard-pool Lapland. I get lost once a day, swimming endless laps while the sun gloriously bakes my body, all while our dog Jamie perfectly-times a bite of my rubber fins as I flip-turn at each end of the pool. She’s no lap dog! Suffice it to say, this daily ritual brings me far more joy than my laptop.

This is the second day of our interview with New York Times bestselling author Bruce Feiler’s whose new book just launched this week. The premise of “mastering change” is core to our MEA philosophy and a fundamental skill that Bruce articulates in the book. Bruce, you believe “lifequakes” shake us enough to ask the question, “What is it that gives me meaning and how does that influence the story of my life?” How has that question influenced you?

Chip: One benefit of being at the sweet nexus of writing, leadership, and psychology is that I get to meet the most interesting people including Bruce Feiler who’s crafted six consecutive New York Times bestsellers including “Walking the Bible” and “The Council of Dads.” His new book came out this week called “Life is in the Transitions: Mastering Change at Any Age.”

My first book, which I gestated for ten years, was called “The Rebel Rules: Daring to be Yourself in Business” and chronicled the qualities of the new business rebels of the 20th century from Steve Jobs to Oprah Winfrey.

Nearly 40% of us have a younger boss. If you’re 55 years old, it’s 70% likely your boss is your junior chronologically. By the year 2025, it’s estimated that the majority of Americans will have a boss that is younger than them.

In this recession, many Boomers are busy brushing up their Slack and Instagram skills, doing their best to stay relevant. Maybe there’s another newly discovered skill that has even greater upside?

I remember the first time I saw the acronym for the Institute for Retired Professional, IRP. Wow, that felt a little too close to RIP! Not sure people later in their career want to join a school that reminds them of a tombstone.