I Don’t Feel Like Gen X - I feel like a Perennial
Peonies are very hardy perennial plants - they just keep showing up every year!
It’s everywhere: The never-ending boxing of people into generation specific behaviors
I believe it’s a phenomenon of our overwhelmed lives.
Boxes make life easier. One less challenge on the plate.
Because if we box people, we don’t need to talk to them.
We don’t need to take the time to get to know them.
It’s brilliant, really.
We already “know” their needs. Their habits. Their behaviour.
But beware if their actions don’t comply. ;)
I’ve never liked being labeled “Gen X.”
Even when working in marketing, where segmenting people into neat boxes was literally the job, something in me resisted.
And now as a career transition & leadership coach, I refuse to put people into drawers. As there is no one size fits all solution to any challenge.
In the end we are all humans.
And humans are complicated. And beautifully complex.
We evolve. We learn. We unlearn. We start over.
Yet at midlife, many of us feel boxed in again.
Or shall I say outboxed?
Too old to start over.
Too experienced to take a junior role.
Too far behind the next generation.
I hear this so often in my coaching sessions:
“I’m 45. Who’s going to hire me now?”
“I’ve been out of the workforce for six years. My CV has a gap the size of the Grand Canyon.”
“Everyone wants someone younger, cheaper, faster.”
And underneath all of it?
Fear.
Fear that the world has moved on without us.
That we missed our window.
That reinvention has an expiry date.
But here’s what I know:
The most dangerous thing we can do at midlife isn’t starting over. It’s believing we’re supposed to stop.
That’s why I love the term Perennials*.
Coined by Gina Pell, Perennials are people who keep blooming. Regardless of age.
They stay curious. Relevant. Open.
They connect across generations. They read, listen, and learn. Not because they want to stay young, but because they want to stay alive.
They don’t define themselves by the decade they were born in.
They define themselves by how they show up now.
(*A perennial flower is a plant that lives for more than two years and regrows from its roots each spring.)
Ok, so what does a Perennial look like in action, in everyday life?
It’s the 50-year-old who learns to code because she’s curious about AI.
It’s the mum who stops apologising for her non-linear CV and starts owning it as proof of resilience, adaptability, and courage.
It’s the senior leader who leaves corporate and starts a coaching practice (Yep, that’s me).
It’s the parent who goes back to school while raising teenagers.
It’s the globally mobile professional who reinvents their career every time they relocate.
Perennials don’t wait for permission.
They don’t ask if it’s “too late.”
They ask: What am I curious about now?
Your experience isn’t a liability. It’s your superpower.
But here’s the uncomfortable truth:
Staying curious requires courage.
It means admitting you don’t know everything.
It means being willing to be the beginner again: in the room, on Zoom, in your own life.
It means letting go of the version of success you spent decades building and asking:
What do I actually want now?
That’s not easy.
Especially when the world keeps telling “that’s not for Gen X”.
My invitation
Stop letting your age or label define what’s possible.
Start letting your curiosity lead.
Change lanes. Learn something new. Ask the uncomfortable questions.
(And yes, having a financial pillow to rest your head on whilst your curiosity takes over helps. Let’s keep it real.)
The world needs your experience. And your courage to begin again.
Your turn
What’s one small way you can feed your curiosity this week?
Write me an email or drop a comment. I read every single one.
Warmly, Viviane
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P.S. If you’re navigating a career transition or feeling stuck between “too experienced” and “not quite there yet,” let’s talk. Book a free chemistry session and explore what’s possible when you stop fitting in and start exploring.
P.P.S. This is the kind of insight I share every week in my newsletter: real stories from life and leadership, with frameworks you can actually use. Subscribe here so you don't miss the next one.