Chip’s Note: Paul Hawken was my hero-from-afar when I started Joie de Vivre Hospitality in 1987, the year that his book “Growing a Business” was published (which was made into a PBS series). He was the mentor I never met till a couple decades later.

Loving my second wave career stage, I’m reflecting upon how I got here.

Definition: "the societal worship of success in a manner that is damaging to the well-being and dignity of many citizens; most modern elders wake up to the fact that neither consumerism nor successism will buy them happiness and it’s around midlife that they choose to rewrite their 'success script.'"

What’s the wisest gift anyone has ever given you?

Imagine a world where every child could speak weekly to a kind, caring and engaged older adult who is available to listen to them, and provide friendship and support. A world where a thriving community of older adults of every nationality come together with one purpose: to make the life of the next generation better.

This afternoon, I worked on my obituary. No, I am not announcing a heavy diagnosis, a sense of foreboding, or even a glimmer of a deathwish.

"Everyone knows conventional wisdom about metabolism: People put pounds on year after year from their 20s onward because their metabolisms slow down, especially around middle age. Women have slower metabolisms than men. That’s why they have a harder time controlling their weight. Menopause only makes things worse, slowing women’s metabolisms even more. All wrong, according to a paper published Thursday in Science."

If the question above has you stumped, you might try this: if someone made a movie about you, what would the name of it be? Or better yet, if you wrote a book about your life, what would the title be?

This Saturday, Sept. 18th from 9-10:30 am PT, MEA is offering a free online event that seems perfectly-suited to the times we’re living in. Are you feeling a little weary and perhaps a little less resilient with so much change coming without respite? How do we continue to regenerate our mindset towards positivity, growth and wisdom?

Mine is the Self-Observer. I do not need to draw my power from someone else’s view of my worth. I manifest my own outcomes from a field of infinite possibilities.