Editor's Note: My continued thanks to my daughter Olivia for maintaining my website. She has stated she enjoys my comments but I am ‘gramatically challenged’. She is correct. However, I have gotten away with it for 60 years, my overuse of commas is a rare form of Tourette’s Syndrome, and I believe you can put prepositions anywhere you like.
2023 has been the first full year of quasi-retirement, and of course, life manages to create paths quite different than planned. The plan was to move back to the States early in the year and adjust to not being employed while building a consulting base that engages without dominating our lives. And as it usually does, life blew that plan up early.
My devoted spouse fractured her femur on the last day of 2022, with a week in the hospital and three months of no weight on the leg. In April, I went through a series of Angina episodes, which resulted in two angioplasties, and now I am the proud owner of three stints in my heart. No more details are necessary to describe, but I turned 2023 into just finding a way to move back and spend the year in some form of recovery. I am pleased to state Karen is now without the use of a cane; I am doing just fine with heart issues under control, and we are safely relocated back to Oregon, where I spent my youth and many of my years.
The year did include consulting on a couple of acquisition efforts, reconnecting and updating my connections and knowledge of the US Maritime space and adjusting our lifestyles to a retirement phase. Life continues to be a learning experience, and here is what I think I learned in 2023:
Retirement Gives You the Luxury of Choice.
Want to sleep in? Take on a short-term project? Work out today or put it off till tomorrow? Binge on a TV series or read a book a day? The luxury of unplanned days is so different and so nice.
Retirement and Entering Senior Life Require Change.
The goal is to have as many quality years as possible. So, owning your health issues, establishing a body maintenance regime (weight training four times a week!), and learning how to fill your day effectively have been this year's path. And I think we have done well.
Planning to Retire Completely Should be Deferred.
It is a shock to move from working full-time for decades. For starters, after a year and a half - I have determined that I never want a full-time position again. Second, I think I have learned and amassed a significant amount of knowledge and skills and enjoy tapping those assets through consulting. Engaging in areas where you have had success is enjoyable, improves self-worth, and generates some funds to go play with. I now plan to consult until life tells me differently.
It is the People, not the Place or Position.
Over the years, I have worked for several good to great companies (the most prominently named ones are BAE, Vigor, and Seaspan). And the locations were amazing, and the positions were challenging and worthy of effort. But in the end, it was the men and women I worked with and experienced success and failure that carried the most weight and significance.
The Ship Repair Market Space Remains Surprisingly Active and in Constant Change.
There are fewer big companies (over $1B in revenue), but a surprising number of small to medium-sized companies are growing and competing. The US Navy's movement from multi-year cost-plus contracts to contracts competitively bid under IDIQ contracts or open market has allowed more market players and, I think, a better product to the customer.
Building a Consulting Business is Quite a Challenge and Comes With Frustrations.
Having a good skill set and experience is just the start. Communicating that set of skills is a learned process and so different in the current information space. Finding the fine line between making your talents available and applicable to clients while avoiding being an annoyance is difficult. Using your network to build the business while dealing with the sense of imposing on their lives is mentally challenging. Having the sense that you can provide the answers or support a potential client's needs but cannot get them to pay attention or commit can be quite frustrating. I am thankful I do not need the revenue for my retirement and can let it go when required.
Open for Business in 2024.
With health issues and relocation behind me, I will be entertaining offers to assist in the coming year. With a strong background in Accounting/Finance, Operations and Management, and M&A - I can add value to your efforts. Short-term projects, interim executive positions, and Buy /Sell efforts are where value matches capability.
Congratulations, and my thanks if you made it this far with this soliloquy. I hope all of you have a great Holiday Season and a safe and secure 2024.
Cheers!!
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