Why is it that our culture creates so many words and expressions that under the surface is masked ageism? In turn, we internalize those words and place limitations on ourselves.

The power of the “Modern Elder” paradigm is that those of us 40 and older are entering fertile new territory, building on years of life and career experience to stay interconnected, adding value to the world.

The word “consumerism” is 67 years old and helped Americans see that a certain prevalent society message unconsciously influenced our behaviors around “keeping up with the Jones.” While the word continues to serve us well, I think it’s time we welcomed a new word (and concept) into the American lexicon: “successism.”

At Airbnb, I was a Socrates-wannabe. I liked asking questions. Most of the time, this worked. It helped us to see our blind spots, both personally and organizationally. But occasionally, I would get a response like this one from a mid-level manager: "Okay, Mr. Modern Elder, enough with the curiosity! Let's get shit done!"

I love working with aspiring entrepreneurs. It’s part of the reason I’ve written five books and been a mentor to younger CEO’s from organizations as diverse as Airbnb to Burning Man.

Jeff Bezos and Bill Gates may be phenomenal businessmen, but who's to know whether they're great husbands? They've both gotten divorced in the past couple of years, giving further evidence to the fact that more money (one-third of a trillion dollars in net worth between the two of them) doesn't mean a merry marriage.

I’ve got Godin goosebumps. That’s also how I felt in 1982 when I met Seth for the first time as the two youngest members of our Stanford Business School class. We were the brash upstarts of our class who got restless in lectures, especially from professors who’d never run a business and our older classmates who thought we never should have been admitted at age 21.

The title of today’s post comes from a great new book by Steven Petrow with Roseann Foley Henry. I’ve recently become friends with Steven and look forward to having this wise man be part of our MEA community. It encouraged me to make my top ten list of the things I will no longer do as I add a few years to my life.

I've been Cocooning as of late, still working and experiencing two of my adult childrens' weddings (all in the last 12 weeks) but setting tighter boundaries so I could fully feel the joy without distraction. I still feel the chaos and change in and around me but have placed myself in a protective virtual shell by reducing my digital connections, getting enough rest, and keeping my head clear.

“The problem in most situations is not a lack of calling; but a fear of responding to the call. Besides the issue of leaving everything behind, there is also the fear of being inadequate and the terror of being overwhelmed."