Tommy wrote: "I believe that for my generation, if people were actually truthful with themselves and the rest of the world, retirement isn’t all it’s cracked up to be. The real achievement in life is the 'achievement of business.'"

I agree with this, and I’m trying to figure out how it applies to me. The phrase "achievement of business" really stands out. It’s easy to think of it as financial success, but I see it as more than that. For example, your work in public service is also a kind of achievement in business, just a different kind.

I’m not sure what my calling is growing into. For years, my career has been about helping big companies get a little more efficient. It’s been rewarding financially, but I’m finding it hard to feel excited about doing this for the next few decades. At the same time, the idea of making a big change feels scary. Still, I’m starting to see that the cost of not trying might be even greater.

Figuring out what my "achievement of business" means to me seems less about sticking to the usual path and more about finding a new idea of success—one that I can really look forward to.