JANUARY 2024 (Pre-order now!) The midlife crisis is the butt of so many jokes, but this long-derided life stage has an upside.
What if we could reframe our thinking about the natural transition of midlife not as a crisis, but as a chrysalis—a time when something profound awakens in us, as we shed our skin, spread our wings, and pollinate our wisdom to the world?
In "Learning to Love Midlife," Chip offers an alternative narrative to the way we commonly think of our 40s, 50s and 60s.
Drawing on the latest social science research, inspiring stories, and timeless wisdom, he reveals 12 reasons why life gets better with age.
Chip Conley is on a mission. After disrupting the hospitality industry twice, first as the founder of Joie de Vivre Hospitality, the second-largest operator of boutique hotels in the U.S., and then as Airbnb’s Head of Global Hospitality and Strategy, leading a worldwide revolution in travel, Conley co-founded MEA (Modern Elder Academy) in January 2018.
Inspired by his experience of intergenerational mentoring as a ‘modern elder’ at Airbnb, where his guidance was instrumental to the company’s extraordinary transformation from fast-growing start-up to the world’s most valuable hospitality brand, MEA is the world's first ‘midlife wisdom school.’
Dedicated to reframing the concept of aging, MEA supports students to navigate midlife with a renewed sense of purpose and possibility.
A New York Times bestselling author, Conley's 7th book Learning to Love Midlife: 12 Reasons Why Life Gets Better with Age is about rebranding midlife to help people understand the upside of this often-misunderstood life stage and he was asked to give a 2023 TED talk on the "midlife chrysalis."
A three-time TED speaker on the big stage, Chip Conley is one of the world's leading experts at the intersection of business innovation, psychology and spirituality.
As one of the creators of the boutique hotel movement and the "modern elder" to the young Airbnb founders, Chip's been a disruptor and expert on entrepreneurship and business leadership.
But, what sets him apart as a speaker is the fact that he's written 7 popular books and is a globally-recognized thought leader on the future of work, the value of corporate culture, and the competitive advantage of a multi-generational workplace.
Attend a 7-day workshop for a deeper exploration of our core curriculum and added wisdom from our guest teachers. Or a 5-day Mastery Week that offers key curriculum elements with a greater focus on our guest faculty's work. Tuition is the same and previous workshops are not required to attend a Mastery Week.
“Rarely have I read a book that so succinctly captures the upside of midlife, a life stage that is more an opportunity than a crisis. Chip Conley reminds us all to savor the wisdom, self-knowledge, and joy that accompanies this time in our lives.”
"I've personally experienced the magic of midlife at Chip Conley's MEA where thousands of people have learned how to curate a life that's as deep and meaningful as it is long. Finally, Chip has gathered the secrets of that program into a book that will help you to feel happier, healthier, and wiser starting in your 40s."
“Does aging give you a sense of dread? If so, you need to read Learning to Love Midlife right now. In this wonderful book, Chip Conley will show you that aging is a superpower, capable of changing you (and our world) for the better.”
“This vital and necessary book is a roadmap for the rest of your life. With large doses of wisdom and frequent sprinkles of wit, Chip Conley shows how all of us can approach our 40s, 50s, and 60s with intention and wonder. 'Learning to Love Midlife' will stir brains, open souls, and transform lives.”
“For many of us, midlife can be a confusing stage of life, full of unfamiliar transitions and few clear milestones. And now that we’re living longer, this period lasts much longer than it did in the past. 'Learning to Love Midlife' is an invaluable guide to how to navigate this period with curiosity, energy, and optimism. With cutting-edge research, deep insight, and examples drawn from real life—including candid accounts of his own experience--Conley provides a clear blueprint for creating the lives we want.”
“If we are lucky enough, midlife will find us all, but that doesn’t mean crisis has to accompany it. The brilliant and beloved Conley reminds us that with transition and uncertainty comes possibility. No, our doors are not closed after forty, fifty, sixty: in many ways, they are more open than ever. Read this book to reimagine every stage of midlife.”
"This is ultimately a book about how we can develop deeper connections, disrupt how we think about teaching and learning, and make more meaningful contributions in our lives and our careers. With stories, questions, and strategies, Chip shares his heart and wisdom on every page. This is exactly what we need right now!"
"Anyone feeling jaded, jejune or just plain past it at work can read this book in a morning and feel revived.”
“An engaging, timely exploration of how to bring more wisdom into our work lives. Chip Conley has lived it, and here he teaches you what it takes to find more of it.”
"Being smart comes from studying or understanding complex things, yet wisdom is something deeper. We don’t become wise simply because we get old, wisdom is something we must actively cultivate in order to accumulate. Every one of us should learn what it takes to gain wisdom, and Chip Conley is the wise guide for our journey."
“I love the idea that society needs more Modern Elders who offer generosity without an agenda. Chip Conley's articulation of the growing need of wisdom and emotional intelligence in a world obsessed with speed and digital intelligence is spot-on! Every young company could use some 'wisdom insurance'."
"Wisdom at Work beautifully illustrates the opportunity that each of us has to embark on an encore career. Bravo to Chip Conley for writing this timely and inspiring book. Having begun my third chapter at the age of 60, I can attest that this is the most productive and rewarding time of my life. Applying one’s knowledge and passion in the service of missions larger than ourselves is the greatest gift of being a Perennial."
“In an era in which a brilliant idea or even gut instinct seems to be celebrated as success, Chip Conley’s book is a great reminder that wisdom, including analysis, hard work, patience and the like, is still essential.”
"Chip Conley embodies the generosity, insight and spirit of an elder. He understands that it's not an age, it's a state of mind, and he shares his wisdom here with all of us. Precisely the sort of long-game thinking we need today."
"Laced with penetrating clarity and insights relevant to both large and small companies...will help you get your message across and forge stronger, more intimate relationships."
"Beautiful little book that makes a plea for responsible business practices and entrepreneurship that goes beyond the singular goal of making money. It's slated mostly for people in marketing departments in large companies, but entrepreneurs can get a lot of good information out of it as well."
"Eric and Chip are practitioners, not consultants, and you get that sense immediately in this handbook for those who are a little squeamish about how marketing has been used by some companies. They bring a values-based approach with enough examples and to-dos to help any reader more accurately and honestly promote their offerings in today's competitive global marketplace. Enjoy!"
"Great book, very easy to understand and interesting. Every chapter has examples of companies to represent the core values they had in every section of the book."
"Rarely has a CEO bared his soul in a book as Chip Conley has in Emotional Equations. This powerfully authentic story makes for a compelling read and an invaluable operating manual for life. Chip’s stories are used to create emotional building blocks that define how we can understand and navigate our internal weather and emotions."
“If you want to understand (or persuade) your boss, sister, neighbor, or teenager, it helps to have an emotional equation. Chip Conley built one of the most innovative, customer-inspiring businesses of the last 20 years. He’s a leader who clearly understands the value of analyzing emotions.”
“Emotional Equations offers a splendid menu of rules-of-thumb for a satisfied, meaningful life. Chip Conley has tried what he advises; his equations to live by are clever, useful, and profound.”
“In this remarkable book, one of America's finest entrepreneurs shares the wisdom that’s helped him find personal and professional renewal in the face of some devastating life events. Chip Conley's equations are powerful tools for helping to make our emotions work for us, rather than against us, in business and in life.”
“Chip Conley makes the case that great business leaders don't have to leap tall buildings in a single bound. Rather than superhuman, the best leaders––at work and at home––are simply super humans who know how to use their internal resources effectively. Emotional Equations offers practical advice so you can make your emotions work for you rather than against you."
"Emotional Equations is a fresh, original guide to an authentic and fulfilling life. Every line is based on good science and lived experience and rings truthful and invigorating. There ought to be a law against successful CEOs writing such good books...where does that leave the rest of us?"
“Emotional Equations is a masterpiece by a master teacher. Philosopher/CEO Chip Conley peels away the thin veneer of let’s pretend organizational life and introduces us to the very raw and tender emotional core of our human experience. While reading, I felt joy, delight, curiosity, insight, inspiration, amazement and, most of all, a much deeper understanding of my own inner life. Simple, yet profound...you really must read this book.”
“If you’ve struggled to understand how to get control of your emotions, Chip Conley’s Emotional Equations is the book for you. Conley makes elegantly objective the subjective realm of feelings through the prism of simple mathematical formulas that offer fresh insight into how we can more effectively manage our emotions.”
"It's incredibly rewarding to see one of my former psychology students evolve first into a very successful businessperson and then into a thoughtful observer of human nature. Chip Conley's Emotional Equations is challenging, thought-provoking, insightful, and, ultimately, very practical."
"You may scoff at the idea that all the complexity and subtlety of human emotion can be reduced to a handful of arithmetic operations. Scoff all you want, but read the book. There is something important to be learned from every chapter. Chip Conley has written a book that is both welcoming and challenging, simple and complex, abstract and concrete. Read this book and take it to heart and your emotional life will never be the same."
"After Frankl's memoir, Man's Search For Meaning, got him through a very dark period, Conley concluded that its message was "despair = suffering - meaning," an elegant distillation of Frankl's insight that extremes of anguish need not destroy the soul if a sense of purpose, and of choosing the meaning of one's experiences, remains. At their best, Conley's equations prompt a revelation: by reducing an emotional problem to its core elements, you can glimpse new ways to address it. The formula provides clarity, which isn't to suggest the solution is easy."
"Chip Conley gives a brilliant analysis of the absolute necessity of Maslow's hierarchical paradigm in unleashing the talent and commitment of customers, employees, owners—in fact, stakeholders. Great resource material for leaders, trainers, educators, even parents. Chip practices in his hotels what he teaches—most successfully!"
"Chip Conley presents a creative and thought-provoking new approach to running a business. He brilliantly applies Abraham Maslow's theories to management and provides insightful prescriptions that will help you gain peak performance in your company. Conley's depth and candor make this book a must-read for everyone who wants to improve their organization."
"One of the best business books I've read. A unique combination of organized intelligence and creative insight. I guarantee it!"
"Strategy? Got one. Tactics? Check. But there's one more key element without which you won't get anywhere: Motivation. Peak will show you how to create motivated employees, customers, and investors, and tells the story of how one spectacular entrepreneur does it by treating people right—and how they return the favor."
"Chip Conley's book is a perfect combination: part personal story, part business theory, and part how-to instruction. Peak combines head, heart, and soul for today's aspiring business leader. Don't just read this book—do it!"
"Conley filters his own readings in psychology and philosophy into his teachings, which may help some readers who can appreciate a rational, mathematical approach to managing their emotional lives."
"I've never read a book that so plainly and compellingly states the case for why every company should become self-actualized. It's pretty simple: a company that creates the conditions for its people to have peak experiences will also create peak performance."
"It's one thing to read about an approach to business that seems both practical and admirable. It's a whole different matter when you see it practiced and work miraculously. I was fortunate to experience both the power of Peak and the power of Chip's leadership presence as we grew Airbnb together from 2013–2017."
"Peak was influential to me because it made me think more clearly about the needs of our customers, investors, and employees individually."
"I admire Chip because he has organized his life around his passions and turned those passions into a story, a thriving enterprise, and a leadership philosophy that marries psychology with business. Peak is a compelling peek into the magic he made at both Joie de Vivre and Airbnb."
"Chip Conley's Peak reminds us what's most meaningful is creating positive, uplifting outcomes for human experiences and human relationships. Business, like life, is all about how you make people feel and Chip and his businesses are a master at making people feel good."
"Peak is about how we can bring out the best in people at work. Chip Conley has done that at both Joie de Vivre and Airbnb, and he makes a convincing case for karmic capitalism: what goes around really does come around."
"Chip Conley beautifully explains the importance of the new breed of entre/intra-preneur. The Rebel Rules gives us each the opportunity to explore and put into action the rebel within us."
"The Rebel Rules is more than just an inspirational handbook for the new generation of leaders -- it's essential reading for anyone who really wants to make a difference. The future belongs to the rebels who can take the principles in this book and run with them."
"Rarely have I read a business book that feels real. Most are written by consultants trying to hawk their services or ego-fed execs at the twilight of their career."..."This book is as good as Paul Hawken's "Growing a Business" but more contemporary, hip, and fun."
"It seems like the world has turned upside down. No wonder business rebels are succeeding like never before - they break with the conventional wisdom and create a whole new paradigm..." "I highly recommend this book for anyone trying to understand where the world of business is going."
Founder of Toms Shoes, author of “Start Something That Matters”
“Chip’s blog has been a tried and true digital daily habit for years. Now, his book sits on my coffee table – providing an offline daily ritual that truly inspires.”
