38: Embracing Your Age and Wisdom - The Making of a Modern Elder, with Chip Conley

“When you create an environment where you have a mixture of ages, just like a mixture of genders and a mixture of races, you create a better workplace and more effective teams.” - Chip Conley

In our increasingly accelerated world that venerates the young, many in mid-career sense that the ground is shifting beneath their feet, leaving them feeling invisible, undervalued, and threatened by the digital natives nipping at their heels. However, today’s guest on Finding Brave argues that experience is on the brink of a comeback.

Rebel hospitality entrepreneur and New York Times bestselling author, Chip Conley disrupted his favorite industry... twice. At age 26, he founded Joie de Vivre Hospitality (JdV), transforming an inner-city motel into the second largest boutique hotel brand in America. He sold JdV after running it as CEO for 24 years, and soon the young founders of Airbnb asked him to help transform their promising start-up into the world’s leading hospitality brand. Chip served as Airbnb’s Head of Global Hospitality and Strategy for four years and today acts as the company’s Strategic Advisor for Hospitality and Leadership. His five books have made him a leading authority at the intersection of psychology and business. Chip was awarded “Most Innovative CEO” by the San Francisco Business Times, is the recipient of hospitality’s highest honor, the Pioneer Award, and holds a BA and MBA from Stanford University.

In this episode, he tackles the hard truth that ageism is as big an issue in the working world as any other bias. In the process, Conley liberates the term “elder” from the stigma of “elderly” and ignites a conversation for society to embrace age like any other diversity while also celebrating the value of wisdom and experience.

To learn more about today's guest, visit: https://chipconley.com/