I love getting massages and typically choose deep tissue to alleviate the knots in my upper back and shoulders. My wife and I recently marked our 48th anniversary with a day at the spa, and of course, I booked a deep-tissue massage.
As the therapist attacked each knot and I winced with a mix of agony and relief, the idea of “deep tissue” ran through my mind. It struck me that the work of transitioning from career into Chapter X also begins in our deep tissues.
Our experiences, from childhood through careers, have always been directed in one direction: achieve, succeed, and repeat. But moving into Chapter X asks something different. It asks us to press deeper and consider not just what comes next, but who we are becoming and what we’ll leave behind.
Contemplation is not something many of us are comfortable with. You know, just sitting, walking, and thinking deeply. But we need to do exactly that to discover who we are after our work mission is over.
It is meaningful work in itself, and perhaps the most important. After all, if you want to get rid of those “knots” in your thinking, you definitely need to go deep.
