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Gift Of Time
The Smart Manager
|May - June 2017
In The 100-year Life, Lynda Gratton and Andrew Scott refer to a French fable in which a nymph, Ondine, curses her husband Palemon: as long as he is awake, he will breathe; as soon as he sleeps, he will die. From that time on he spends every moment in frantic activity, fearing death. Will an extended three-stage life be like this—entailing constant work, boredom, and missed opportunities—or full of possibilities?
For much of human history, life was well described by Thomas Hobbes’ famous quote as ‘nasty, brutish and short.’ However, continued scientific, economic, and social progress over the centuries has raised living standards and life expectancy. Whilst these benefits have not been spread equally across countries, or even within countries, in general, life is now less nasty, less brutish, and certainly less short. The challenge now is to ensure that this progress continues in the face of growing longevity.
Over the last 200 years, best practice life expectancy has increased at a near constant rate of more than two years every decade. In 1900, life expectancy in India was 24 years, compared to 49 years in the US. By 1960, the US’s life expectancy had risen to 70 years while India’s had only risen to 41 years; the gap in longevity between these two nations was widening. However, as India’s economic success picked up, the gap narrowed. By 2014, India’s life expectancy was 67 years and the UN demographic forecasters estimate that this should increase at the rate of around two years every decade. India may start with a lower life expectancy than the US, but it is rising in much the same way. In many countries around the word, the same is true—the 100 year-life is becoming a global phenomenon.
What does this extending arc of life mean for people, and how can government best respond? In many countries, the main focus of governments is on dealing with ageing and end-of-life issues such as pensions and healthcare. But longevity is not just about ageing—it has crucial implications for all ages. Already people are marrying and having children later, creating mid-career breaks, taking time out to explore, building their own businesses, going back to education. This is already leading to a redefinition of age—how many times have you heard that 70 is the new 60, or 40 the new 30?
This story is from the May - June 2017 edition of The Smart Manager.
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