... as an, err, seasoned American can be difficult.
Once you've worked in a field for a long time, you have developed skills and a reputation. Most people respect you and will at least listen to what you have to say if not act upon it. It dawned on me recently that should I change careers due to retirement or something else, I'd have to be willing to go back to square one and start at the bottom again.
For me, barely-suppressed-arrogant by nature, this will take some effort. Don't you know who I am? will be ringing in my head over and over again. I noticed that in Cursillo where I've only been asked to give a talk 3 times in 7 years. Me! I do this all the time at work! I'm well-paid to do it, too! Don't they know who I am?
Whoops. I did it again.
No, they don't know who I am and it would be a good idea to get off my high horse (more of a giraffe, really) and cheerfully pay my dues like I did when I was 23. I wasn't full of myself back then.
I'm not sure where life will lead post-retirement, but that date is now only low single digit years away, so some thought and experimentation will have to be devoted to answering that question. Posts dealing with it will start to show up from time to time here. In any case, working on true humility as opposed to well-masked arrogance will be a good start.
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