Older People Can Learn Too
This concept illustrates the importance of resilience and not feeling sorry for oneself during difficult times, using the example of Charlie's uncle Fred who coped with job loss during the Great Depression by adapting his skills.
THE IDEA
Older People Can Learn Too
The next day Charlie was meeting with Mr. Brown for lunch.
Mr. Brown: "Hey Charlie, nice to meet you again. Are you a modern-day stoic? But I am not like you; I’m a more emotional person. I was not sitting all the time at Wall Street. I have worked very hard all these years. I always took the money as reward and all of this nerve, talking nonstop, selling, and telling my client stories. By the way, what do you think about the poor employment market? It is hard to find a job for a lot of young people right now."
Charlie: "I tell you about an example of what I call a real bad employment market. My uncle Fred graduated from Harvard School of Architecture with great distinction and had a very successful practice during the 1920s, when he made over $10,000 a year. When the 1930s came, the architecture building permits dried up in Omaha. There was exactly zero work to do for architects, including my distinguishing architect uncle Fred. He moved to California and took drafting work at low rates for architects that still had some work…and when it got worse than that, he went to the country of Los Angeles. And in the country, they classified him as a laundry man to save money and had him do drafting work. He was always exercising his skill. He never complained but coped as best he could. His pay after deductions all through 1931 to 1934 was $101.08 per month.
When they created the FHA, he took the civil service exam and came first. For the rest of his life, he was the chief architect of the FHA in LA. He had a long and happy career doing that. He never got discouraged. He never thought what he had to do was something to wail about. In my long life, one should never feel sorry for yourself. If your child is dying of cancer, don’t feel sorry for yourself. And the other thing you never want to have is envy. It’s the only one of the deadly sins that you are never going to have any fun at all xli."
When to use it
When facing job loss or career setbacks
When dealing with personal hardships
When feeling envious of others' success
When needing to maintain a positive outlook during economic downturns
FROM THEORY TO EVERYDAY LIFE
In practice
Uncle Fred's Resilience in the Great Depression
In the account attributed to Charlie, his uncle Fred adapts to the loss of architectural work by taking lower-paid drafting jobs. He is classified as a laundry worker to reduce his pay but continues drafting. He later becomes chief architect of the FHA in LA.
A MOMENT TO REFLECT
Put it to work.
In a current challenge, which useful action remains within your control?
In what situations have you felt envy, and how could avoiding it improve your life?
How can you adapt your skills to changing circumstances like Uncle Fred did?
CONTINUE THE CONVERSATION
Source texts
- The Art of Being Rational Charlie Munger