The Paradox Blocking Gen X Career Advancement

The Wall Street Journal reveals how our “forgotten” position between Boomers and Millennials is wrecking our employment prospects.

We’re known as the Forgotten Generation.

As the smaller group between the massive Baby Boomer and Millennial generations, Gen X is often disregarded and ignored.

This has been mostly cool with us. We define ourselves by influence, not attention… which is why we’ve had an outsized impact on culture, technology, and entrepreneurship.

But when it comes to the transitional phase we’re in, being ignored puts us in a pretty tough spot. 

This is the Longevity Squeeze, and it's an intersection of multiple factors that will eventually be worked out, but nowhere near in time to help us.

At the center of the squeeze is something that should be an unqualified positive development, which is the ability to live longer, healthier lives. And while Gen Xers who take care of themselves may be the first group to live much longer, the phenomenon isn’t starting with us.

It started with the Baby Boomers. And this is creating yet another obstacle to our economic security as we approach traditional retirement age.

Medical advances and lifestyle changes have already blessed Boomers with longer, healthier lives, and this is now creating an unintended consequence: They're squeezing Generation X out of the executive suite. 

As Boomers work well into their late 60s and 70s, they're inadvertently crushing the career aspirations of the generation that expected by now to inherit corporate leadership. It’s not their fault by any means, it’s how employers are reacting to the situation that’s the problem.

The Wall Street Journal explores this new wrinkle in our “forgotten” position between Boomers and Millennials:

Many Gen Xers say they operated on the belief that if they paid their dues, their time would come. But as they enter what is usually the prime, C-suite career stage, more businesses are retaining their aging leaders or skipping a generation in search of the next ones.

Now, you may be thinking, “Boo hoo for the C-suite class.” But this goes beyond being locked out of the CEO position and impacts the career advancement of people in their 50s in general.

Your 50s and early 60s are a crucial stage of your career. It’s when you’re supposed to be at your earnings peak, and this is how you “catch up” on lagging retirement savings.

This usually depends on being promoted to a pinnacle position in your field, whatever that may be. If that doesn’t happen and your earning power is lower than expected, combined with the very real prospect of a flat or declining stock market over the next decade, you’re in trouble:

Facing a pandemic, recession and supply-chain problems in recent years, companies prized boomers’ experience. Now some are turning to millennials to navigate the advent of artificial intelligence. 

This is a highly problematic paradox. 

Because of the instability caused by the pandemic, companies retained more of their seasoned employees. And yet, people in their 50s are being leapfrogged because they’re viewed as less competent with new technologies.

It’s as if ageism skipped a beat while still managing to negatively impact us. And isn’t that just par for the course? 

Never mind that, of all the technology we’ve had to adapt to in the last 30 years, artificial intelligence is the easiest to learn. And given that AI is best paired with advanced experience and expertise, there’s no way Millennials are “better” at it than we are.

Keep in mind, I haven’t even addressed the economic turbulence on the horizon.

All indicators suggest we’re heading toward inflation and recession in the best case, and financial crisis in the worst. When companies start making cuts, who faces the chopping block first?

That’s right; we do. This couldn’t be telegraphed any more clearly.

But again, this line of thinking is not only wrong, it’s idiotic. Megan Gerhardt, founder of a firm that advises companies on managing multigenerational teams, notes that if AI is the biggest workplace disruption since the internet, then Gen Xers who navigated the previous big shift can be a steadying presence.

“It’s this attitude of, ‘Well, I figured that out, so I can figure this out too,’” says Gerhardt, who is also a management professor at Miami University in Ohio. 

And of course, she’s a Gen Xer, because it’s difficult to find anyone who’s not one of us who is willing to notice, much less advocate. All of which brings us right back to the only logical solution to the Longevity Squeeze:

Create a solo business based on decades of accumulated expertise, experience, and wisdom while augmenting yourself with AI and other tech.

The sentiment that “we’ve figured everything else out to this point, so we’ll figure this out too,” is correct. But it won’t be by trusting or depending on an employer.

Keep going-

Brian

P.S. Want to get up and running with your own expertise-based business and live anywhere while working from wherever? Join us in Further Premium.

further: destinations

Toluca: Perfect Weather in Authentic Mexico

We’ve entered the dog days of summer here at Cerritos Beach. 

That means temperatures are inching into the upper 80s, but we’re not exactly suffering over here. Beach breeze, sparkling pool, short walk in flip flops to both — yeah, it’s hard to complain.

Compared to the winter high season, though, it’s a bit hot. There’s nothing like 70 degrees enhanced by Pacific breezes every single day for six months to spoil your perspective.

We intentionally chose to begin our adventure here, since it’s the rainy season in Costa Rica. We'll head over there in January to enjoy the lush greenness that results from the rains. 

But for now, I catch my eye wandering toward Mexico City.

We've got a trip to Ciudad de Mexico on the calendar for early October, right when things start cooling down here. I'm genuinely excited about this one — it'll be my first time there, and many of the American expats I've talked to in Baja can't stop singing the city's praises.

As I write this, it’s 72 and sunny in Mexico City, thanks to the 7,350 foot elevation and its own less intense version of the rainy season. I have to admit I miss being up high after leaving Colorado, even though, again, the Pacific Ocean makes it hard to complain.

So when an overlooked area near Mexico City recently came across my desk, I was intrigued. 

It’s not a tourist spot or an expat haven. It’s a city with mountain views, cool weather, excellent healthcare, and very low rents, just one hour from Mexico City.

The city’s name is Toluca, and its list of benefits is long, according to Mariana Lange of Mexico Relocation Guide:

• A noticeably lower cost of living than most popular expat cities — about 30-50% lower, in fact.

• A more local, authentic vibe, with less tourism and more real Mexican life.

• Safe and very comfortable to live in.

• Modern conveniences like modern shopping malls, hospitals, international schools, and an international airport.

• Pleasant year-round temperatures (think 70 degrees F almost every day), thanks to its elevation of over 8,700 feet above sea level.

• Easy access to nature, charming nearby towns like Metepec, and quick day trips to Mexico City.

You’ll need a better grasp of Spanish than in the typical expat hubs. But what you’ll get in return is an authentic experience, amazing weather, and a drastically lower cost of living.

Check out this video from Mariana for more:

further: flashback

🎶 Blondie – Heart Of Glass, Parallel Lines, 1978 🎶

Blondie was part of New York’s punk and new wave scenes, subcultures that loathed disco. And yet, in 1978 the band did disco on their own terms with Heart of Glass and got away with it. Likely because Debbie Harry is one of the coolest humans to ever live. (YouTube)

further: sharing

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