Retirees Are The Complete Package: What's Next?

 By Erica and Karen

So, that ultimate glass ceiling is unbroken. And what we face now are policies of the past intended to keep it in place. But we need to keep the faith. We will make it happen one day. In the meantime, think about what your super power is and then think about ways to use it. Our collective force is needed more now than ever. 

As a cohort, we have a lot of powers to choose from. Among them:

Intelligence, curiosity and a willingness to learn. We didn’t get where we were in the working world without knowing what we were doing. Or without recognizing and adjusting to the new. Just think about how the world has changed since we started. IBM Selectrics, Wite-Out and dial phones. No PCs, no "tech", no internet. Then pagers and Palm Pilots. Then Apple. Now, Amazon Echo and Sonos. Now, we blog. We tweet. 

Experience and judgment. We don't have a lock on good judgment, but ours has been tested and we have learned from our mistakes. 

Leadership skills. We can do it--people, issues and risks. And we can do it efficiently and effectively. We had to, for our own sake as well as for our clients, companies and firms. We know that if we can’t make the people part work, the rest won’t work either. Teamwork is critical. Organization is critical too. 

Strategic vision. We find new ways to tackle problems. We think out of the box. We are not linear. We are holistic. We look at things from many angles, trying to find the best solution, one that will stick. We’re more interested in the long term, but recognize that sometimes we need to act right away. Offense has usually played better for us than defense.

Energy and enthusiasm and passion. We get our highs from working hard and seeing it all come together.

And we care. 

As a group we are a potent force. We have accomplished much. And we’re not done. What’s next?