The Secret Sauce When Choosing a Second Act Career

What’s the secret sauce to a satisfying second-act career? Most people assume meaningful work is the key. But according to Rob Cross, Edward A. Madden professor of global leadership at Babson College, research shows that people tend to overestimate the… Continue reading

Chip Conley: Teaching and Cultivating Modern Elders

Hospitality entrepreneur Chip Conley coined the term “modern elder” when he jointed Airbnb at 52 as a strategic adviser and was twice the age of the average employee there. In the last year, he has opened the Modern Elder Academy, a boutique resort for… Continue reading

My Second Act: Starting a Newsletter

It’s 7 a.m., and, like clockwork, the Nonpolitical News digital newsletter lands in my email inbox. I’m a subscriber. After slogging through my daily morning news reading — mostly from national media outlets and my Twitter feed — this free newsletter i… Continue reading

A Funny Look at Getting Older in ‘The New 60’ Comic Strip

Life after 60 may not be all laughs. But it’s proving to be fertile territory for the wit and insights of Andy Landorf and John Colquhoun, the funny creators of The New 60, a twice-a-week comic strip now in its second year. The strip centers on four 60… Continue reading

Second Career: Becoming a Sorority or Fraternity House Director

When I was in college in the early 1980s I had a second mother, so did my 40 sorority sisters at the Tri Sigma house at Northern Illinois University. Her name was Doris Streepy, a widow who patiently managed the sorority and tended to the daily dramas … Continue reading

Becoming a Standup Comic at 70 — No Joke!

Why would a 70-year-old divorced woman with a house in a beautiful beach area close to her daughter and year-old grandson start a new life as a comedian? It’s just doing what comes naturally for Stephanie Bass. “Grandmothers who have nothing to do but … Continue reading

An Artist Displays ‘Serious Whimsy’

Part of the VITALITY ARTS SPECIAL REPORT A rooster sports a tower of vegetables on his head; a deer is adorned with Jack-in-the-Pulpits; blue jays and robins don weedy fascinators; a cardinal goes undercover in a mask made from seeds; a lamb is outfitt… Continue reading

Quitting Corporate Life to Play the Blues

The terrific podcast, “Second Act Stories With Andy Levine,” is out with another episode worth hearing. It’s called “Never Too Old to Rock N’ Roll: Meet Tom ‘The Suit’ Forst” and is all about a corporate VP who decided to chuck it all to pursue his lif… Continue reading

How a Crafts Entrepreneur Weaves Business and Life

Dena Gartenstein Moses’ path to artistry and craft wasn’t a straight line — there likely aren’t many weavers with a background in physics who worked on optical filters that ended up in the Hubble telescope. But Moses, 54, couldn’t ignore the pull of fi… Continue reading

Becoming a Truck Driver for Your Second Career

(Editor’s Note: This story is part of a partnership between Chasing the Dream and Next Avenue.) Bryant Walker, of Los Angeles, started driving a truck at an age when many veteran truckers think about calling it quits. In 2016, Walker (then 51), retired… Continue reading