I shall turn 50 tomorrow which does not worry me at all. Not having set goals financial or personal that needed to be achieved by a date certain I am free to pursue my open-ended objectives: a happy marriage kids who seek success for their own fulfillment and not for the greater glory of their parents friends who share universal values but present them in novel and fun packages a dog who is always happy to see me and the sort of work at which one does not eagerly count the days to retirement.
As the philosopher-poet George Santayana wrote “For these once mine my heart is rich with these.” There is but one aspect I fear. In the Pyrrhic battle against aging but not age I put in my time at the gym and its sweaty blend of weights and technology. I have long since resigned myself to punching my true body weight into treadmills cross-trainers and stationary bicycles and I had little trouble entering “49” this time last year. However I can’t quite yet see myself entering “50” tomorrow. Perhaps for all sorts of good reasons I should get to the gym still tonight.
Happy big 5-0 Birthday!! I enjoy reading your blogs – and love the humor. Thanks for bringing a few uplifts to my day!
Well happy birthday!
Many Happy Returns. You have now passed the invisible marker of half a century a point I reached myself just 5 months ago. You say it does not worry you and neither should it but it is a little different – or at least it was for me. My 20th 30th and 40th birthdays were all milestones and all coincident with great changes in my life that propelled me onwards and upwards. But my 50th passed without that same sense of new beginnings and more of a sense that the die is cast; that its time to look backward and not forward. Fortunately I am very happy with my life my family my lot. But I am not yet ready to ruminate and relax. I returned to the gym with renewed vigour defiantly entering 50 (so that I might exceed expectations) and determined to act 35.
You are not a grumpy old man of fifty. You are a happy young man of fifty. Awesome! Wish you a very Happy Birthday!
Dear Mr. Glocer Belated Birthday Greetings. Wishing you another 50 to reach the pinnacle 100 Sai CSS Corp New York
Belated Happy Birthday! It is nice to see the personal side of the corporate world. Business has undergone much change in the last 50 years. I’d love to hear a perspective from your position. A 60ish neighbor of mine commented that when she first entered the work world training costs and company knowledge retention were important concerns as evidenced by the pensions offered back then. Her interviewer was concerned she might “get married or something”. She was hired on the premise that she would stay with the company for a very long time. She liked the job and developed skills and knowledge of the company. Years later approaching retirement after decades of excellent reviews suddenly her marks were unacceptable even though the job requirements had not changed and her performance and work ethic was better than ever. She observed that the employers attitude towards employee retention had changed 180 degrees and that company knowledge was not valuable and/or easily replaceable. As a young man in the upper corporate ranks what is your observation about the US corporate attitude towards company knowledge its retention and the associated costs? Has it truly changed during your lifetime? Why or why not? To what do you attribute the current culture climate on this subject as you see it and is it good for business?