A Few Words About Adaptability, Judgement, and Lived Experience

In between blog posts, I occasionally like to highlight something timely that feels relevant across the Career Adventures community. This is one of those moments.

Because age and experience are such focal points in coaching conversations, I want to share an excellent article I came across this past week, which I think is really worth a read for everyone – men and women of all ages.

Why Women over 50 Are the Future of Work in the Age of AI by Laëtitia Vitaud of Fast Company

First: It’s not only about age or gender. It’s about adaptability, judgment, and lived experience.

For GenX Women: The themes in this article will feel familiar - and validating.  The most important point being, “contrary to cliché, many women over 50 are not winding down. Quite the opposite. Midlife often brings a sharper understanding of one’s strengths, limits, and aspirations. Many women at this stage are more interested in meaningful contribution than corporate theater.”

For Young(er) Professionals:  Build adaptability as a core capability. Keep learning and learn how to evolve with change. Consider reinvention a muscle you want to develop. Your key career accelerators will be effective communication, empathy and listening, problem solving and decision-making and ability to synthesize information.  Having a variety of experiences will help shape your career.

For all Leaders: Navigating uncertainty is paramount; you have been through several disruptive tech transformations in your career – you know the right questions to ask. Remain curious and continue to look for patterns in those transformational moments. Your perspective, judgement and EQ will bring calm to chaos and change.

Final Thought: Despite the title, this article gives us all a lot to consider about the value we can deliver as we navigate unprecedented disruption and change in the workforce and career landscape.

What are your thoughts?