Back in the action

In December 2010, Mickey Maurer wrote the following in one of his columns: “I made a big mistake almost 20 years ago when I decided I had created sufficient wealth to cash in on the American Dream. In a period of six months, I retired from my law practice and sold all my business interests. What a fiasco! After a few months of retirement, I grew dissatisfied. The calls and the mail dried up. The office was a lonely place. I missed the psychological satisfaction of seeing opportunities, making deals, creating value—of being in the arena. I realized that my original vision of the American Dream was a nightmare.”

He went on to describe how he came out of retirement and back into the action of work.

During the last four years since my retirement from the Glick Co., I kept busy by joining the boards of several not-for-profit organizations, which enabled me to stay active while having the satisfaction of helping these organizations accomplish their worthwhile missions. My wife, Katrina, and I also traveled. And all of that seemed to work and I felt OK, though not as great as I was accustomed to feeling during my 33 years with the Glick Co. I attributed that, in part, to getting older.

Then something happened about a month ago on the way to taking another trip and attending another board meeting. The CEO of the Center for the Performing Arts resigned suddenly and the executive committee asked me to become the interim CEO.

Now I am really back in the action—and loving it! The inevitable frustrations and challenges only add to the excitement. I now know what Mickey was talking about. When a new permanent CEO is located, I may consider doing something else, probably part time, to keep in the action, besides participating on the various boards, which I also enjoy.
____________

Frank Basile