I worked for Vanguard since I was 22, and I love the place. The premise, the people, the culture. The opportunities proffered to me were amazing. Being on "the ground floor" when an organization starts has its perks. However, even though I love the place, and made a very fair wage, I knew I needed to make a career change. How long is too long at one place? I do not know the answer, but my personal answer was 31.5 years.
Starting fresh at 54.9 years of age is a little scary. It may be that my skills were a perfect match for Vanguard and no where else--worry does not have to be rational. Regardless, I see myself working another 30 years, time to get over any trepidation and find a few organizations trying to improve their customer experience.
I have always loved to write. In my old position I was offered the opportunity to blog to over 4000 retail employees. Sharing career experiences, good and bad, proved very cathartic. Whenever I walked the hallways employees would stop me and comment on my blogs, usually positive, but also with constructive feedback. Blogs are a beautiful thing. Even though my audience may only be my wife and kids, I plan to use this to share career and life experiences. Lacking my PHD and other credentials, it is not meant to be authoritative, only my journey and thoughts. There is one lesson in life I am sure of, we can all learn from each other.