Thursday 31 December 2009

Supposedly I'm Middle Aged

According to Erikson's Psychosocial Stages, I'm middle aged. I'm not quite mid-30's yet, but I definitely don't fit into stage 6, which is intimacy vs isolation. I have gone past young adulthood, it seems. This article, on Expat Exchange, where I got the below, (obviously) geared the stages towards expats.

"Stage 7
Middle Agers (Mid 30s-Early 60s): Generativity vs. Stagnation
- Adults in the heart of their lives need to be productive and have a sense that they are able to create something of value in their lives.
For Expats: What do you hope to accomplish as an expat? How is it going to impact your long-term goals? Do you have long-term goals? When one elects to move abroad, a lot of soul searching is likely to take place. Take advantage of that by giving some real thought to where you've been, where you are, and where you hope to get to in terms of accomplishments. "

I was asked, at a recent job interview, where I saw myself in 10 years. Funnily enough, just before heading to the interview, a work colleague and I were discussing the '5 year plan' interview question. I hate these types of questions. Had someone asked me 5 years ago where I would be today...well, let's just say I would have been so far off with the answer. I've never really had long-term goals, other than to travel more, find a good travel buddy/life partner, and to someday be working in a job where using my brain, in a way I enjoyed, was actually part of my daily work. Becoming an expat has actually furthered these goals, directly yet without a structured plan involved. I have been in 5 different countries in the past 5 years, completed a Master's degree, gotten married, become a homeowner, and now, just finally, for the first time since I left uni over 10 years ago, gotten a job I actually really want.

3 comments:

DanYells said...

When do you start your new job?

Can you link to the original article I'd like to read it. :)

Suzer said...

I start on the 11th:) Will email and tell you more about it. The link is right in the beginning of the post.

A Free Man said...

Congrats on the job! What is it?