"Rollover!"
While I never intend to 'retire,' I am in a bit of a transition. Today I was reading "99 Retirement Tips" from a financial planning firm, Fisher Investments. Fisher is a fee-based financial planning firm. Their services are high quality and their website contains considerable good, introductory advice. In this particular brochure I was struck by the comment that "...pets can replace co-workers..." While it would have been handy and entertaining to have employees who could sit or rollover on command or enthusiastically retrieve a stick, the "99 Tips..." book would indicate that a dog should be able to twist the truth, leverage organizational politics to their advantage or on a more positive note put lunch on their corporate credit card, or at least that's what I read into it. Further consideration of co-worker replacement follows.
| Command | Co-Worker | Points | Dog | Points |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Pats on head | Lawsuit | 0 | Loves it | 1 |
| Rub belly | Could go either way | 1 | Loves it | 1 |
| Rest room | Lots of time spent there | 0 | Always outside | 1 |
| "Come" | Have to check Outlook | 0 | Always. "Do I get a treat?" | 1 |
| Loyalty | Fickle | 0 | Constant | 1 |
| Likes Treats | Free food is good | 1 | Loves it | 1 |
| Hit w/ newspaper | Lawsuit likely & "Can I read that when you're done?" | 0 | Cowers Quickly forgets | 1 |
| Leash & collar | Some like it | 0 | Expected | 1 |
| Happy to see you | Not really | 0 | Always | 1 |
| Weekends | Absent | 0 | What's a weekend? | 1 |
| Sick days | Uses them | 0 | Rare. Coughs up grass occasionally. | 1 |
| "Sit" | Expects reprimands or firing. | 0 | OK. "Do I get a treat?" | 1 |
| Travel | Likes Vegas conventions | 0 | Only to dog park. | 1 |
| "Fetch" | "I'm on my lunch break." | 0 | Yes. "Do I get a treat?" | 1 |
| "Mud Events" | Team building | 0 | Yes. "What's a team?" | 1 |
| Use nose to identify people. | Not usually. | 0 | Of course. Cannot read ID Badge. | 1 |
Certainly one can find some humor in this but the reality is that the loss of co-workers is a big deal, especially those with whom you've build personal relationships or those that you simply enjoyed, and it's hard to keep those once you've left an organization. Their framework is the organization. While it might still be important to you it's in your past, all part of "I used too..." You need to focus on building your future. This past week I had a great hour and a half conversation with the CEO of a local firm. It was challenging, tested my knowledge of my own specialty area and of the broader construction, design and engineering industry. It was the kind of conversation that I miss.
There is a danger in going back even if that is what you really liked to do. My focus is increasingly on looking forward primarily in personal development and income-producing areas that are new...and a challenge. Of course I can get a job or fees doing what I did before but if I pare off the surface points of that past engagement it's not really what I want going forward. This post evolved into a personal statement because...I don't even have a dumb job.
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