Lessons from Chip Conley

"Aging is an extraordinary process whereby you become the person you always should have been." [1]
"A modern elder is as curious as they are wise." [2]
"We're not really wired to listen to and learn from young faces—but that's exactly what we need to do in order to reap the rewards of being a Modern Elder." [3]
"Wisdom isn't just about what comes out of your mouth, but what you understand based upon listening from your ears and heart." [4]
"The first half of your life is focused more on accumulating... The second half of your life is about editing." [5]
"We may live ten years longer than our parents and may even work twenty years longer, yet power is moving to those ten years younger. That can lead to a decades-long 'irrelevancy gap'." [4]
"Perennials are ever-blooming, relevant people of all ages who know what's happening in the world, stay current with technology and have friends of all ages." [6]
"Everyone gets older, but not everyone gets elder. The first just happens (if you're lucky and healthy). The other you have to earn." [3]
"In the age of acceleration, the older you are, the more you need to think like a startup." [7]
"The future is not some place we are going, but one we are creating." [7]

Chip Conley's book, Emotional Equations, breaks down complex feelings into understandable formulas:

Anxiety = Uncertainty x Powerlessness. [1][8]
Despair = Suffering - Meaning. [9][10]
Joy = Love – Fear. [9][10]
Happiness = Wanting What You Have / Having What You Want. [9]
Disappointment = Expectations - Reality. [11]
Regret = Disappointment + Responsibility. [11]
Authenticity = Self-Awareness x Courage. [10][11]
Integrity = Authenticity x Invisibility x Reliability. [11]
"Think of your emotions as messages that give you the freedom, rather than the obligation, to respond. Fear protects. Regret teaches. Sadness releases. Joy uplifts. Empathy unites." [1]
"The more we ignore our emotions, the more likely they are to wield a powerful influence over us." [12]
"Letting an emotion move through you is healthy. Letting an emotion define you is not." [12]

"At the heart of great leadership is a curious mind, heart, and spirit." [13][14]
"Great leaders help their people see how they can directly impact the company's objectives and their own personal goals." [12][14]
"Leaders are the emotional thermostats for those they lead, not the thermometer." [15]
"Business principles are only as good as the practices that back them up." [13][16]
"Organizations that can diminish fear are those that are able to motivate, create, and innovate." [13]
"Daniel Goleman has proven that two-thirds of the success in business is based upon our Emotional Intelligence as opposed to our IQ or our level of experience." [13][16]
"Someone could be amazing at what they do, but if you don't like them, why bother hiring them?" [12][14]
"We're all human. It's the most important, neglected fact in business." [16]
"When the world is in the midst of change, when adversity and opportunity are almost indistinguishable, this is the time for visionary leadership." [13][14]
"My two favorite interview questions are 'Tell me about a failure in your career, what you learned from it, and how you've leveraged this lesson' and 'All of us are misperceived at one time or another. What's the most common way you're misperceived in the workplace and why?'" [12]

"The purpose of life is to discover your gift. The work of life is to develop it. The meaning of life is to give your gift away." [1]
"You are not just a human being; you are a human becoming." [7]
"A growth mindset is based on the premise that you're not trying to prove yourself, you're trying to improve yourself." [2]
"We have a choice in how we tell our life story. We don't write it in permanent ink." [1]
"Make curiosity a wonder-ful habit." [12]
"Experience what it means to be 'the other.' The world is full of 'others' and it's when we're young that we learn the empathy to know what it feels like to be the other." [5]
"Look at how you learn best and then double-down on that means of learning, whether it be visual, aural, verbal, or physical." [5]
"I started something called the wisdom book...and every weekend I would make a list of what I learned that week...a way to metabolize some meaning and some learning and feeling a sense of progress." [15]
"The more digital we get, the more ritual we need." [17]

"Social scientists have found that the fastest way to feel happiness is to practice gratitude." [12][14]
"Feeling good about your life, but not expressing a heartfelt 'thank you,' is like wrapping a gift for someone and never giving it to them." [12][16]
"Younger people tend to associate happiness more with excitement and the future, while older people tend to associate happiness with peacefulness in the present." [12]
"The U-curve of happiness shows that life satisfaction tends to decline from the early 20s to a low point in the late 40s or early 50s, before rising again to new heights." [17]
"My job is to be grateful for MY life, for the things I have." [1]

"The purpose of life is not just to be happy, but to matter and be fruitful." [7]
"We spend the first half of our lives serving our ego and the second half serving our soul." [18]
"Ten years from now, what will I regret if I don't learn it or do it now? Anticipated regret is a form of wisdom." [18]
"I am what survives me." [19]
"Midlife is not a crisis but a calling." [19]

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