The ‘Midlife Collision’
On Monday of this week I wrote a heartfelt post on LinkedIn - at the time of writing this piece, it has been viewed 208,839 times around the world, liked/supported/loved 2,525 times, has 354 comments and 56 reposts…this is not me having a little humblebrag - it’s me realizing that I have very clearly tapped into something that many folks feel very strongly about.
What was my post about? The ‘Midlife Collision’…I’m reproducing it here in full, or click here to read it on LinkedIn. And if you’d like to talk about how I can help your organization’s support its employees through their own Midlife Collision, then I’d love to hear from you!
“Can we stop calling it 'the Sandwich Generation' and start calling it by something more appropriate - like 'the Midlife Collision'? (credit for this term goes to Dr Lucy Ryan, from her book Revolting Women - which I heartily recommend - link here to my interview with Lucy last year).
At 51 I am fairly typical in juggling two school aged children (one a newly-minted teenager), two parents with complex chronic illnesses, my own symptoms of perimenopause (mainly wrestled into some semblance of control thanks to HRT and lifestyle changes), and running my own fledgling business (mostly started to give me enough flexibility to manage the aforementioned Midlife Collision without my head exploding...)
How many people in your organization are quietly managing their own version of this? Maybe it includes a painful divorce. A teenager with mental health struggles, or who can't be in mainstream schooling for other reasons. A partner with a chronic illness. Or bereavement. Or a whack a mole combo of all of those...
We are the glue that holds those families together. Often we are the glue that holds companies together - running ERGs, mentoring younger colleagues, making sure the life-events get celebrated, that colleagues feel included.
Supporting your experienced employees through midlife is about SO much more than 'just' menopause.
Our careers are Squiggly - we don't want to step down and step out (and nor can we afford to, with the pensions gap being what it is) - we deserve employers who 'get' this and champion us and support us when we need it most.
And in return? You get loyalty, and someone who will shout from the rooftops to their friends, family, and colleagues about what an amazing place it is to work, how they couldn't imagine going anywhere else.
Shall we talk?
[Pic shamelessly for attention - aren't they lovely? Not pictured... the strain of supporting someone with Stage 7 Alzheimer's Disease, the worry of what will happen when your 77 year old father gets a knee replacement, the 'Dadmin' (yes I just made that up) of helping manage finances, wills, house clearances, moving house, cataract operations, new radiators, why the DVLA website won't work, the fact that the faulty front door locked them out in fierce February weather, and on and on and on...and no, I'm not special, there are millions of us doing this, because the burden of care still falls disproportionately to women.)”