When you dedicate a good portion of your life to something – in this case a career, it’s hard to step aside and pass the torch to the next generation. I see this among professionals in so many careers. We hear all kinds of chatter about being past their prime, too old to function at the same level, or wonder why someone doesn’t just say: “hey, hang it up and enjoy your life.” The truth is, these individuals do enjoy what they do for a living, it is what seems to give them purpose and vitality.
This month we have seen The Rolling Stone (in their 80’s) and the remaining Beatles (from the same generation of music) both release new records. They are, by the way, all still performing on the road for endless “last hurrah” tours. Our politicians are finding it difficult to get around in their 70’s, 80’s and beyond, doctors are reluctant to let their licenses expire, and a few professional football players continue to perform ten years past their expiration date. So, what gives? Why is it so hard to step back and relax?
Chefs, like those listed above are beaten up, stressed out, pressured, critiqued, and second-guessed throughout their careers, so why in the world do many continue to hang on past a reasonable point in their lives. Enough is enough – right? Well, let’s try to make sense of it and look at the issue through the eyes of the “should be” retiree.
[] A LIFETIME OF EXPERIENCE: After 50 or so years of investing in a portfolio of knowledge and skills, making several mistakes along the way, learning from those mistakes, building your network of influencers, creating, and building a reputation, planning hundreds of menus, and leading teams of talented cooks it is impossible to just find a day when you can walk away. I’m sure the same is true for Mick Jagger, Paul McCartney, Tom Brady, or pick your senior citizen politician. What they do is who they are, and they all worry who they will be without it.
[] SMARTER EVEN IF A BIT SLOWER: All those years and experiences have made the musician, artist, coach, business leader, doctor, politician, or chef able to continue finding a role and a way to contribute. This is how any individual can continue without viewing age as a roadblock. Musicians and artists can teach others, players can coach, coaches can kibitz on sports news, business leaders can play a role on company boards, doctors can volunteer in clinics, politicians can (I’m not sure about this one), and chefs can mentor and journal their work. They may not be able to do the job of a thirty-year-old in their field, but they have incredible value to offer in other forms.
[] WHAT WOULD I DO WITH MY TIME: Since semi-retired I have had conversations with many retirees from different professions. In many cases there is real concern about filling their days, doing something meaningful, continuing to make a difference, and continuing to feel good about who they are. Those who are content and those who are fulfilled are the ones that know that there is always something or someone who can benefit from a lifetime of experience. These are the talented people who view their age as an opportunity.
[] DON’T LET THIS KNOWLEDGE GO TO WASTE: “I’ve spent all this time learning and growing, contributing and making a difference, helping others succeed and pushing younger people to aspire for greatness; I have volumes of knowledge – if I stop will it all be for naught?” Hey – write it down, put together your memoirs, write a professional cookbook, create a how to be an effective chef manual, adopt younger cooks and mentor them through the same process that you went through, teach a course at a local culinary college or at least volunteer to assist – there are plenty of opportunities to “pass it on”.
[] I THINK I CAN, I THINK I CAN: Some of the older chefs I know (I include myself in this) don’t grasp the words of wisdom from the band leader Lowell George (of Little Feat) when he proclaimed:
“You know that you’re over the hill when your mind makes a promise that your body can’t fill.”
This does not mean that age takes you out of the game, it just means that you may need to play a different position and have a different level of personal expectations. I still try to convince myself that I could jump back in the game and play at the same level I did when I was 45. Nope, physically not possible, but I can coach from the sidelines and help others problem solve using my decades of successes and failures.
[] HISTORIANS AND GATEKEEPERS: The generation of cooks and chefs that I align with were immersed in the history of the profession. We hailed respect for Careme, Escoffier, Pointe, Robuchon, Trotter, Keller, Waters, Morimoto, Crenn, and Folse. We were proud of our uniforms and what it represented, respected our tools, took the craft of cooking seriously and supported classical preparations. We fear that all this tradition and history will be lost if we fully step away. The reality is the history will always be there – how people reflect on that and use what came before may change, but that is simply the way it is. Our job is not to live solely in the past but to support and mentor those who will move the profession forward.
[] STILL TRYING TO MAKE A DENT IN THE UNIVERSE: Ah…now here is maybe the strongest reason why professionals find it so hard to step aside. We all want (as Steve Jobs once stated) to make a dent in the universe. We want to be remembered for something of value, a significant contribution, a person who raised the bar or made a difference in other’s lives. We seek a legacy of accomplishment and crave to be viewed as great at what we chose to spend our lives doing. Too many people push aside the joy of existence for citations and medals on the wall. Be a good person, share with others, raise a family to be productive members of society, work hard, breathe in the fresh air around you, and enjoy the short time we have. That is your dent in the universe.
[] THEY ENJOY THE WORK, WHY GIVE UP WHAT YOU ENJOY: I am always baffled at people who are quick to point out how much they dislike what they do for a living. Why waste your time on this planet feeling that way? The people I chose to work with and hang out with were(are) passionate about what they do. They are “all-in”! At the end of days, you should be able to say: I enjoyed it, I embraced the opportunity, I had the pleasure of working with good people, and I dedicated myself to learning and growing in the profession every day. If you enjoy your work, then why give it up? Simply find another avenue for contributing once your mind makes that promise that your body can’t fill. Hey, if Mick Jagger and Keith Richards can bounce around the stage in front of 50,000 people singing “I Can’t Get No Satisfaction” – there is hope for each of us.
A good thing never ends.
PLAN BETTER – TRAIN HARDER
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