Here are a few suggestions for overcoming certain habits that others find annoying:
Remain Open to Ideas, New or Old
Young people often attempt things tried many times before because they aren't aware of failures. So they approach a problem from a new viewpoint and with enthusiasm, and they sometimes succeed in finding a new, workable solution. One of the distressing signals of a man's advancing age is his patiently pointing out that something cannot be done for very good reasons and then giving a detailed history of previous trials and failures. The suggestion here is to resist the inclination to do this and instead say, "Try it, try it-only way to find out!" This assumes, of course, that the cost of trying is not enormous and that the risks run will not jeopardize the organization.
Concentrate on the Future
"Back in 1930 we had a great time ..." becomes wearisome indeed to the hearer. Unless someone asks what happened at some point in the past, save your memories for friends of the same age, family, or the editor of your memoirs. Consciously try to allot a good part of your working conversation to contemplating the next year, the next decade, or the next century. And if you possibly can, do so with anticipation and enthusiasm. Plan your work to include its probable application one to five years from now. Ask for some assignments involving long-range planning, and give your imagination a workout thinking ahead and predicting future events.
Come to the Point
The long-winded, circuitous way to the point bores listeners. Pretty soon they are thinking their own thoughts while you ramble on. If you're going to comment on something, make advance notes of what you want to say and force yourself to stick to them. For off-the-cuff commentary, look at your watch and limit your remarks to one or two minutes at a time. If you're not making the point clear so that you feel you're losing an important argument, say simply, "I'm not expressing myself well. Would you delay the decision overnight and let me put my thoughts on paper?"
Initiate Change in Your Responsibilities
If you have indications from your boss or associates that they feel you're trying to continue to do a job that has become too much for you, initiate a discussion about a change in your responsibilities. If your boss feels it's too soon for a change, he'll tell you. But be prepared with suggestions of work that will continue to be satisfying to you even if it is less demanding. You might consider, for example, consultant responsibilities instead of managerial ones or a smaller group if you've had a big one. Or take on a project that you've been interested in for some time but that never seems to get done, and let someone else carry your job while you do it.
"Leave the job while you're still ahead" should be your motto. The manager who holds the reins too long is just as sorry a sight as the athlete who plays past his prime. Since you may not know when this moment has arrived for you, you need a good friend or a good boss or an outside counselor to tell you. Make arrangements for this kind of help before the time comes when you need the advice. Then you can both talk about it more freely and discuss how you'll handle any (quite natural) bad feelings you might express when the moment actually arrives and you are advised to change.
Make Notes
Start the habit of taking notes and preparing agendas early so you won't feel awkward when they become a necessity.
Cooperate With Your Physician
Work with a physician who is interested in the aging process and will follow your personal physiological and emotional changes with constructive concern. He will suggest changes in work patterns, extracurricular efforts, diet, and similar matters. These can prolong the number of active years and make the transition to a less active life easier.
Pass Along Your Experience
It could prove valuable to capture the experience you've gained throughout your working life, package it, and leave it for the use of others. If you are the sort to write a book, you might try your hand at it. If you prefer to talk, buy a tape recorder and, talking from an outline, tell what you know. Or find an interested junior in the firm and pass along some of your experiences to him by word of mouth. Or perhaps you can get someone to put them into a series of reports, instructions, or procedures. At least, go through your files with a competent clerk and destroy the accumulation of useless materials, consolidating the best under a set of descriptive headings. The kind of work you've done dictates what to document. If, for example, you're a technical specialist, your reports and designs probably speak for themselves. If you're an executive, you've probably transmitted your knowledge through personal example over the years. But do take time to determine what your most valuable experiences have been and how they can best be passed along to your successors.
Make Retirement Plans
Sometimes the best way to transmit experience is by making it available to other kinds of organizations, various institutions, or perhaps other countries where expertise of your special variety is less developed. It's unlikely that, if you have had a good career, one that has been personally satisfying and rewarding, you can drop it once you reach a certain age and do nothing constructive with your life from that point on. So it's a good idea to have a plan in mind for what you will do when the time comes to retire. Lay the groundwork while you're still on the job by making the necessary contacts for your next career or the next phase of your career. This, too, will keep you oriented toward the future, and while you may not-in fact, should not-discuss it at great length while at work, the fact that you are planning and taking steps for your future will reinforce your sense of personal worth and enhance your image among your associates as a contributing member of today's and tomorrow's society.
