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January 27, 2023
Your weekly dose of Startup Decoder: inspiration, career tips and tech news–with an edge towards older perspectives.
Top of Mind
Last year when we moved to a small South Carolina town, I was shocked to learn that one of my favorite music artists from way back in my college days—Jesse Colin Young—lived here, too. His wife happens to be in a class I take, and she lamented this week as they headed out on the road that it may be their last time on tour. “The travel is just getting to be a little much. He loves performing and it’ll be hard to give it up. But he’s 81….”
Well, that hit me hard. How could my young idol possibly be 81? In my head, I’m still that college freshman with the blue plastic record player blasting Grey Day in my dorm room.
I was also struck by his discomfort at the possibility of giving up his work identity as a performer. In other words, retirement. I guess even teen idols face career transitions with trepidation.
I happened upon two YouTube videos this week that also juxtapose late-career and music. One is a clip of a rehearsal of We Are the World. The 1985 performance by dozens of iconic singers raised money to fight famine in Africa. As the camera moves from Lionel Richie to Stevie Wonder to Paul Simon to Bette Midler, and on and on, I was moved by alternating waves of nostalgia and respect. A few have passed, but many of these performers continue to wow audiences almost 40 years later, well into their “senior years.” For many, their careers and their voices have evolved but reached even greater heights.
I also watched an interview in which Elton John chats with Joni Mitchell. They talk about her appearance at the Newport Jazz Festival in July, 2022 when she sang Both Sides Now. The crowd went crazy and even the musicians in the orchestra were weeping. It was her first performance since a brain aneurysm left her unable to walk or talk in 2015. What a moment!
Mitchell wrote Both Sides Now when she was in her early 20s, and was highly criticized for it: “What do you know about life at such a young age?” critics charged. As Elton commented, the song is actually even more relevant now. One YouTube commenter said it well: “She wrote the song for her future self to sing.” Her album Blue hit the charts at #1 a second time in 2021, 50 years after its initial #1 run in 1971. Amazing!
Age is a wonder, poignant, and perplexing. I take heart from these musicians who model ways age does not diminish, but changes us and sweeps us along. “Something’s lost but something’s gained from living every day.” Wise words, then and now.
Your Job Search Game
“What’s your best advice for people who are job seeking or making a career transition this year?”
The always-amazing Chip Conley shares three tips for dealing with a transition, borne out over time at Modern Elder Academy.
Pro-Tip
Readwise Reader AI Summarizes Articles
We all know headlines these days are written for clicks and may not accurately reflect an article’s content. I’ve been using Readwise Reader to save articles, and Readwise has a nifty feature: Open the article, then click on the three dots at the top. If you click on “Invoke Ghostreader,” and select “Summarize the document,” a transparent ghosts floats around the bottom right corner of your screen, and then a summary of a few paragraphs appears. It’s a feature I didn’t know I needed! And now I’m obsessed.
Newsworthy
The next big thing in 2023 will be…
In December, 50 thought leaders made their predictions on what would rock the world this year. While many may be off-base, taken as a whole, almost as a mosaic, they probably provide a directionally correct view into the upcoming year.
I Spent a Week Using Only TikTok for Search
To understand why 40% of youngers start their searches on TikTok, not Google, Lauren Goode test-drove the idea for a week. I’ve been experimenting with this and have found TikTok search most helpful for travel info or lifestyle instructions. Otherwise, it’s hard to beat Google.
When an Interviewer Thinks You’re Overqualified
This is a classic bias, but it’s possible to neutralize a negative response to your extensive experience.
How We Show It: Family Caregiving
I loved this commentary from Shutterstock on how they’ve pulled together a collection of images that reflect positive and diverse experiences of caregiving.
Random
Is tipping getting out of control? Many consumers say yes
This exact question has been on my mind after a friend posted that they were forced to tip for a bottle of water at the airport, because the credit card machine had no $0 choice or ability to bypass the tip screen. Learn what the experts say about the state of tipping in 2023.