Longevity is NOT Overrated

These days we've accepted the idea that employees (especially Creatives) will move from job to job pretty casually. The days of lifetime employment seem to be gone, particularly within creative fields where the demand for particular talents shifts over time and opportunities pop up when you least expect it. The style of work has changed for many Creatives as well, as they may alternate between working full-time for a company, to working as a free agent. There are so many possibilities open to Creatives that it seems hard to stay with one thing permanently, so we often don't think much about long-term employment the way that we used to.

Having said that, though, we shouldn't ignore the benefits of longevity. Just because it's not as common doesn't mean it's not worthwhile, though we need to figure out how to put those benefits to use.

I spent 21 years in the US Air Force, and you might think things would get boring after a while. If I'd stayed in the same location, and moved along some typical career path, that might have been true. However, the military moves it's members around every few years, which keeps things fresh and allows for the introduction of new perspectives based on experiences in other units. They also made it possible to have a unique career rather than staying on some preordained path; while many of my peers followed their career field's "pyramid" for 20 years, I alternated between being a nuclear missile officer, then being a professor at the Air Force Academy, then being a strategist and international affairs specialist. The big advantage of my longevity was that I was immersed in the culture and understand both the formal and informal relationships necessary for getting things done, and I was able to learn from experiences and apply them later (my 2007 experience in Afghanistan, for instance, was a lot smoother than my 2004-2005 experience in Iraq). At the same time, I avoided getting stuck in a rut and doing things simply because that's how we'd done them before; by moving around, trying new things, and engaging in professional development (an MBA and PhD, as well as a one-year staff college and various planning and special operations training courses) I was able to provide a new perspective when I came into a new organization.

Of course, the main reason I'm thinking about longevity right now is that today is my parents' 50th wedding anniversary. Marriage is a case where we respect longevity, and again, I think it's best when it doesn't get boring. My folks went through a lot (Dad was a military officer as well, and spent a lot of time gone, some of it to wars) but the stress of moving every few years may have been balanced out by the new experiences they had and new friends they made. It also helped them appreciate the slower pace of their post-military years.

We look favorably upon longevity in relationships, so perhaps we should consider the benefits of it in the workplace, too. Though I can't imagine doing anything for 50 years (and absent any major changes in health care, at this point in my life I probably don't have to worry about that), there's something to be said for doing something for a long time and doing it right.

Congratulations, Mom and Dad!