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Captions: Learning across generations.
From time to time, one comes across books that make you think. “The 100-Year Life: Living and Working in an Age of Longevity,” written by Andrew Scott and Lynda Gratton, is one of those books. It is an easy but challenging read on quite a few different levels as it encourages us to rethink the way we look at life.
According to research and statistics presented in the book, more than half of the people born today in England and Wales are likely to reach their 100-year birthday. Meaning, the current tradition of the Queen sending birthday cards to everyone turning 100 years old, may have to be revised.
Retirement in Our 80s
As Scott and Gratton explain in their book, the lives of the millennials, won’t just be longer, but will inevitably have to be shaped differently to what is the norm today, and indeed what was common 30 years ago. Living longer will make it almost impossible for any pension system, personal or government funded, to allow anyone to stop working at 60 or even 65 years. We may be looking at retirement in our 80s!
No Longer a Three-Stage Life
We have grown up expecting to follow a three-stage life model: education, work, followed by retirement. In a 100-year life, this isn’t going to work, as no single one-off education can take us through 40-50 years of work. According to the authors Scott and Gratton, to enjoy a longer life, we need to be looking at — and preparing for — a multistage life with a variety of careers, including breaks and transition periods. We also need to ensure our bodies are ready for a longer life by living healthily and keeping active.
The authors also point out that there is little doubt that the next half century will be one of massive turbulence in employment; many of today’s jobs will disappear as technology, including artificial intelligence, develops further. The Google Assistant shown off at Google I/O in May was just one example made public.
Companies will also have to rethink how they operate. Today, there is usually a link between age and seniority, with 25-year-olds becoming CEOs hitting the press. Going forward, with a multistage career, someone who is 60 years old may become the CEO, after only two years in the industry; which should also make the headlines!
Taking the First Step
An example of someone who’s moving toward a different kind of career progression, partly by happenstance, is New Yorker writer and published author Maria Konnikova. With an A.B. in psychology and creative writing from Harvard University and a Ph.D. in psychology from Columbia University, she followed the traditional path of “get a degree and find a job.” While carrying out research for her next book, about fortuitousness and the role it plays in life, she picked poker as an example. She got so immersed in the research that her new book is now put on hold while she pursues a career as a poker professional.
Final Thoughts
With more people living longer, the way individuals, as well as the educational institutions and companies, think, plan and operate will have to change. It’ll require a complete rethink of finances, education, career and relationships. According to Scott and Gratton, we need to start this work now, or it’ll be too late. The change will be dramatic compared to what we take for granted today, but the book sets out a framework for how this could be done.