Aging can be a time for flourishing in life and career
In her new book, Breaking the Age Code: How Your Beliefs About Aging Determine How Long & Well You Live, Dr. Becca Levy makes a compelling case for how adopting a positive mindset to aging can add nearly eight years to your life. Levy is a PhD in Psychology from Harvard University and Professor of Epidemiology at the Yale School of Public Health and Professor of Psychology at Yale University. While her book is an engaging, accessible read, it is backed up with science-based and statistical findings.
“While analyzing data from my study about the lives and outlooks of the inhabitants of the small town of Oxford, Ohio, I found out that the single most important factor in determining the longevity of these inhabitants—more important than gender, income, social background, loneliness, or functional health—was how people thought about and approached the idea of old age. Age beliefs, it turns out, can steal or add nearly eight years to your life.” – Dr. Becca Levy in Breaking the Age Code
The first half of the book includes reporting on how aging is viewed in different cultures
Spoiler alert: negative stereotypes of old people abound in the US. Levy also shares specific real-life stories of people thriving in late-career – e.g., Chaucer writing The Canterbury Tales at age 60, Goethe completing Faust at age 80 – but also general statistics on thriving at older age.
“…people who started running in their fifties can be just as fit and healthy as competitive older runners who have been doing it for many decades. People who started running thirty years later than lifelong athletes had very similar finishing times, muscle mass, and body fat.” – Dr. Becca Levy in Breaking the Age Code
The second half of the book includes actionable steps you can take to fight ageism and change your own age beliefs
Keep the advantages of aging top of mind. Have role models who are active and accomplished as they age.
“Participants who had been primed with positive age stereotypes for just ten minutes improved their memory performance. Ten minutes of negative age priming saw a comparable decline.” – Dr. Becca Levy in Breaking the Age Code
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Levy’s book is not a career advice primer, and this column is all about careers. So, how can you apply Levy’s encouraging findings about aging to career specifically? Assume that you’ll have a long career – 50, 60, even 70 years and not just retirement at 65. Here are three ways to adapt your mid- to late-career strategy with longevity in mind:
1 - Match your work to your passion – even if it means a career pivot
If you buy into Levy’s findings that one can have a vibrant, thriving life where the best is yet to come, then you definitely don’t just want your workday to be counting down till retirement. A 40-, 50-or 60-something still has decades to go for big, exciting goals. What is your version of Canterbury Tales or Faust?
This might be a continuation of work you’re currently doing, or it might mean entering a new industry or taking a different role. With decades of contribution still to go, now is the time to figure out what you want for your next career (here are 10 exercises to help you figure it out). And, no, you don’t have to quit your job to free up time to find that new direction – there are small steps you can take while you’re still working.
2 - Continually learn something new
If runners who start at age 50 can still reach competency in that domain, what skill or expertise area might you be putting off that you can get started on? Growth areas are tech-focused – software engineering, machine learning/ AI, automation. However, this 82-year old launched an app after only learning to code for a year, so why not you? Use your resume as an audit tool, and see if you have added new skills or expertise within the last year. If not, it’s a warning sign that you’re not growing and may be less competitive in the job market.
3 - Cultivate role models that match your life stage
Many publications report on young up-and-comers to watch, but Forbes has put out a 50-over-50 list, which can give you the career-equivalent of the positive age-priming that Levy advocates. The Going Solo podcast hosted by David Shriner-Cahn profiles experienced professionals pivoting to entrepreneurship after a long corporate career and is a great resource for ideas, inspiration and community. The I Used To Be Somebody podcast hosted by Carl Landau features “unretirement” stories (i.e., adventures after job retirement), many of which are second careers. (Full disclosure: I have appeared as a guest on both David’s and Carl’s shows.)
If you believe the premise of Breaking the Age Code – that aging can be a vibrant and exciting life stage – then you’ll want a vibrant and exciting career to match. Pivot as needed, keep learning and find the right tribe. Let me know when you launch your app or write your masterpiece!
