Number 43 of 52 Lifelong Communication Lessons: Young whippersnappers
October 26, 2015 |
| A youthful 18-year old Justin Trudeau in 1990 (Photo: The Guardian) |
The year was 1990.
Depletion of the ozone layer is discovered above the North Pole. Margaret Thatcher announces her resignation as British Prime Minister. The Hubble Space Telescope is launched. The Vancouver Indy gets off to a grim start when a volunteer worker is struck and killed by a driver on the track.
I was made President of PJS Communications, a division of Palmer Jarvis Advertising that year. The announcement was made in a paid ad in the Globe & Mail, a sign to me I had arrived. I was soon to be a partner in the company. My hard work was paying off. I was 35. I did not feel I was too young for the title and most people in my circle seemed to accept it as well. It may have been a boomer thing. We were all young and thriving in our careers. Nothing seemed beyond our reach. I was eyeing New York at the time with aspirations of life on Madison Avenue and a penthouse apartment with a Central Park view.
There is something enchanting about being young and ambitious. You don't have many barriers. In my case, there was good health all around, boundless energy and entrepreneurial ideas swirling in my head. There was a steady stream of new adventures in business and I was fully engaged. Racking up oodles of frequent flyer points, taking full advantage of a generous expense account and working around the clock for big brand names. It was a high time and I was the right age for it.
I still have buckets of energy and love the adventures that new clients and changing markets bring. However, at this point I don't want to travel as much for business as I have grown weary of the process of getting places and bland hotel rooms. (Excluding the Grand Bohemian Hotel in Florida, of course!) I have a few barriers that come with aging. Some important people in my life need more support making me more than willing to stick closer to home.
I never did work in the Big Apple but got there enough times to fulfill my New York appetite. My little Chinatown condo has enough spectacular evening views to satisfy my big city needs. I have no regrets about my choices and feel every age has been lived fully and experienced to the max.
I don't think my mind is any different now. I still embrace new stuff with gusto and love learning how to help people connect and communicate better.
Age is fairly immaterial to me and I can thank my 92-year old Mom and 25-year old co-facilitator for daily reminders that wisdom is not necessarily about tenure and excitement and curiosity are not necessarily owned by the young. These two amazing people are both loaded with those attributes.
I have met as many young people rigid in their ideas as old. I have met as many old people with as much vigor and zest for life as the young. Doing workshops exposes you to people of all ages and I continue to marvel at the elderly young and the young elders. Overall, I am intrigued at what makes people tick, at any age.
Communication Lessons:
- Age is only a matter of perception. You must talk to people to truly see the age of their spirit and get a sense of their wisdom.
- Young people can bring as much to the table as the old, they may have different perspectives but they can both have huge value.
- Don't let confirmation bias sneak into your perceptions about the young and the old. As much as you can't lump together people by the colour of their skin, neither can you make generalizations about age.
Fast Forward to 2015:
Most Canadians are enjoying the promise that comes with having a youthful Prime Minister. I think we connect to the energy and enthusiasm of someone who does not seem jaded by life and who is willing to be different. Without a doubt, Justin Trudeau will make mistakes but will that really be because of his age? I, for one, am excited by youthful exuberance. Bring it on, Justin.
Posts
1 comments
I'm with you, Della. I feel very hopeful that Justin Trudeau will breathe fresh air into our country and introduce new and intriguing ways of governing. And I think, as a country, we will benefit from his leadership and style. Dawne Wooten
ReplyDelete