Wisdom at Work: The Making of a Modern Elder
Chip Conley sold his boutique hotel company in his early fifties and a few years later joined Airbnb as a mentor to its much younger founders. Wisdom at Work draws on that experience to make a case for what he calls the modern elder, a worker who pairs hard-won judgment with the curiosity of a beginner. Conley moves between his own story at Airbnb and research on aging, mentorship, and adult development. He offers practical guidance for older workers who want to stay relevant and for younger leaders trying to use the experience already in their organizations. The book has become a touchstone for conversations about age, mentorship, and the changing shape of careers.
What you might want to know about Wisdom at Work: The Making of a Modern Elder
The questions readers send us most often, answered without spoilers.
Hotelier Chip Conley draws on his years as a mentor at Airbnb to argue that experienced workers have a new role to play in a young company culture.
Chesky wrote the foreword to Wisdom at Work, describing how Conley joined Airbnb as a mentor in his fifties and reshaped the way the company thought about experience, age, and leadership.
Both. Conley writes for mid and late career professionals figuring out their next chapter and for younger leaders who want to make better use of the experience already on their teams.
Wisdom at Work: The Making of a Modern Elder was written by Chip Conley, published in 2018 by Currency.
Wisdom at Work: The Making of a Modern Elder is 304 pages in standard print editions, though page counts vary slightly between hardcover, paperback, and large-print formats.
At an average reading pace of about 250 words per minute, Wisdom at Work: The Making of a Modern Elder takes most readers 5 to 7 hours to finish.
Wisdom at Work: The Making of a Modern Elder is available in hardcover, paperback, ebook, and audiobook formats from Amazon, Bookshop.org, ThriftBooks, and most major bookstores.
