Find Your Beginnings

Get busy livin', or get busy dyin' …

?… I hope the Pacific is as blue as it has been in my dreams. I hope.

??????Ellis Boyd "Red" Redding, The?Shawshank Redemption?

I am sure that many of you would recognize these lines of monologue even if I had not identified the 1994 film -- one of my favorites.?Although winless at the Oscars, it has gained significant stature and admiration over the years.?The words have always reminded me of the importance of approaching each day as a beginning and to never lose the excitement and joy of pursuing dreams.

Twenty years after the film’s debut, the ideas behind the words served me well as I battled the psychological trauma that comes with a cancer diagnosis. Now approaching eight years in remission, I realized how it continued to influence my thinking as I contemplated retirement from Corporate America over the last couple of years.?While I knew I would miss the daily interaction with my friends at work, I am grateful for the opportunity to restructure a life that no longer is dominated by the generally inflexible demands of a full-time executive role.

To be sure, I could have bungled the opportunity were it not for the wise counsel of trusted colleagues and friends.?It would have been easy to do so given tempting overtures when my retirement was announced.?It can also be difficult to extinguish the rush that accompanies thoughts of climbing a new mountain.?I am grateful for people like Larry Kellner, Board Chair at Boeing and former lead director at Marriott; Vance Tang, American Woodmark’s Board Chair; Luke Visconti, founder and chairman at DiversityInc and many others who shared their experiences with me.?Their counsel to stay true to my desire for a more diverse and flexible activity portfolio and to filter opportunities to ensure they merit the investment of time was wise counsel indeed.

So, six months into my new life and I am enthralled with new beginnings and the pursuit of personal dreams.?I am especially proud of newfound patience (I am sure there are some skeptics among you based on past shared experience!) and more consistently saying ‘no’ when warranted. It has helped to fend off the “rush” and ensure that I stay on plan and invest my time disproportionately on my target activities.

That includes more time than ever with family, and especially our 4-year-old granddaughter, who was joined recently by her newborn brother, and their amazing mom.?I am also taking golf lessons with our other daughter while enjoying hearing about her career exploits.

I am also greatly enjoying serving as a public board director and invested the time to achieve certification with the National Association of Corporate Directors (Disclaimer:?Sitting for a 3-hour exam was not a target for my activity portfolio).?I am considering serving on a second board as interest and need for human capital oversight intensifies in Corporate America.

I have also reengaged with fellow I/O psychologists and recently worked with Dr. Kathleen Lundquist to co-author a book chapter on future directions for diversity and inclusion. It accentuates the linkage with some of my favorite topics – employee wellbeing and organizational culture – and I look forward to speaking about them at the Leading Edge Consortium in October conducted by the Society for Industrial and Organizational Psychology (SIOP).?I am humbled and honored to be elected recently a SIOP Fellow by my peers and to join the board of the SIOP Foundation.

And I am pursuing a lifelong dream by taking piano lessons.?It is the best decision I could have made, and it has reinforced two important life lessons.

Throughout my career, I have counseled many to believe in their potential and to focus on what they can achieve, and to leave the “screening out” to someone else.?It has been fascinating how this has played out in my piano journey.?My instructor will play a piece beautifully for me to consider while I stare at music that is dizzying in its complexity.?While I have yet to say no, my in-the-moment inner voice is simultaneously saying “it’s too big a leap; you could never play it, let alone master it.”?Until I do.?Suspend your disbelief and believe in yourself, because sometimes you simply can’t see your success until you achieve it.???

A few days ago, I participated in my first piano recital although I was not sure at first about doing it given that the 17 other students range in age from about 5 to 16.?However, at my session a couple of weeks before the recital, the instructor explained how valuable it would be for the kids to see that learning is a lifelong activity and for their parents to see another adult “break the ice.”?Since there is always a spot in my heart for a mission, I agreed.?And although I had a small blip midway, I grinded out the rest of the piece and “stuck the landing.”?At the reception afterwards, an elderly gentleman said he enjoyed hearing me play and wished his arthritic fingers would permit him to join me.?While I don’t know the reaction of my fellow students or the adults in the audience, I do believe that the learning process is probably as close to a fountain of youth as many of us may ever find.?It helps to ensure that every day is a new beginning, and it is fundamental to the pursuit of our dreams.

As Red might say, retirement is “just a made-up word.”?I am not sure what tomorrow will bring but I am excited that each day is a new beginning on my never-ending journey of discovery.