OPINION: Why I want to follow Colonel Sanders’ model in my 60s

Yes, I love the restaurant chain Kentucky Fried Chicken (or KFC YUM;
+0.10%,
(as it is simply known today). You can imagine the good Colonel building his fast food empire over decades and turning it into a powerhouse. But the story is quite different. Sanders worked several jobs in his youth, from railroad worker to practicing law, but it wasn’t until much later that he began perfecting his own chicken recipe.

More importantly, he didn’t establish his first KFC franchise until he was in his early 60s.

This tells us about the strange paths we can take in life. But for me, it’s an important reminder that better days may lie ahead.

As someone who has always looked at the people who appear on various media outlets’ “30 under 30” or “40 under 40” achievers with a slightly puzzled look, perhaps even a little jealously. It says this. In fact, until last year I used to joke that my goal was to be on the “60 Under 60” list. Even though I know full well that it’s actually not a big deal. Ultimately, the point of these tributes is to celebrate the triumphs of youth.

But now that I’m actually turning 60, I’m looking at things differently and asking why there aren’t any more rumors about the senior set.

Of course the answer is clear. We are a youth-obsessed culture. Just ask any Hollywood actress who has trouble finding good roles after turning 40, despite the success of recent Oscar winners Michelle Yeoh and Jamie Lee Curtis. Or, for that matter, ask older workers in almost any occupation who are having trouble finding another job that pays decently after being laid off.

But the reality is that older people are starting to play an increasingly important role in employment situations, if not in society as a whole. A Pew Research Center study last month found that 19% of people 65 and older are working. This is almost double the number from 35 years ago.

No doubt many older workers remain in the game because they cannot afford not to. Consider that we live in a time when traditional employer-provided pensions are rare, there are concerns about the future of Social Security, and the average retirement account balance for people ages 55 to 64 is only $71,168.

At the same time, I think many older workers engage in this field because they feel they still have something to offer or achieve, and because they find productive enjoyment in their later years. Maybe they’re not aiming to get on the “60 Over 60” list (and they just happened to stumble upon one!), but they’re looking for fulfillment nonetheless. In fact, another Pew study found that workers 65 and older are a much happier group than younger workers, with two-thirds saying they are very or very satisfied with their jobs. By comparison, only 44% of 18-29 year olds said the same.

Having just turned 60, I can’t yet speak with complete authority about being an older person finding one’s way in the world. But I do have some thoughts on how I benefit from this stage of life.

The first is that we have better clarity about how the world works and what doesn’t. I don’t mind being tormented by idiots any less, but I can often spot those idiots a mile away and as a result I can often avoid trouble. And not only do I have confidence in my ability to execute my skills, but I also have confidence that I have a better handle on what I don’t know and what I still need to learn. Perhaps the best way to put it is that I gained perspective.

And what about the second? I have been somewhat liberated from the burden of feeling the need to climb the ladder – the corporate ladder, the social ladder, any kind of ladder. I have gained a degree of financial security that I didn’t have as a child (i.e., my kids are already in college and I have their tuition paid for them). And I am not as jealous as I once was of a high-achieving colleague or colleague or protective of my own turf. Essentially, I am where I am. Let the proverbial chips fall where they may. Again, it’s all about perspective.

This may sound like the perfect formula for someone who doesn’t feel the need to succeed. But my point is that freeing yourself from those desires can actually create a better environment for success.

I reached out to a variety of successful people in the 60+ camp who work in a variety of fields, and found that my thoughts generally aligned with theirs. A prime example: American-born Leonard Slatkin, one of the greatest symphony conductors of his generation, said that even at age 79, he has the experience and technical expertise to feel comfortable with himself, allowing him to truly “start to make it happen.” “All the possibilities that music gives you.”

At the same time, Slatkin said he no longer feels trapped by the musical competition. “When you’re young, you worry about your career,” he said seriously.

Marty Nemko, a 73-year-old career coach and author of several books, puts it even more bluntly: “As we get older, we realize what is worth doing and what is worth throwing away,” he said.

Even if all this is true, the sad fact remains that society tends not to give older people much consideration despite all their potential. Rather, it is bothersome that the person who received recognition is of a very young age. Think of the late actress Betty White, who hosted ‘Saturday Night Live’ at age 88, or the late Charlie Munger, a financial expert who still dispenses pearls of wisdom in his 90s.

I’m not saying those people didn’t deserve the attention. But that would be like stipulating that society is only interested in later-stage achievements when they come very late. It’s more of a celebration of the strange than the mundane, as millions of us over-60s get on with our lives and do some great things along the way.

So what cool things do I plan on doing in the next few years? Time will tell. To be honest, I’m not even sure it’s about greatness. I don’t have a special fried chicken recipe to offer the world, and it’s on my “60 Over 60” list. Success can be defined in many different ways, and achievement later in life may take the form of simply finding time to pursue hobbies and passions that you may not have been able to pursue in your busier, younger years.

But either way, there’s little time to rest.