Joline

Why I Don’t Have a Bucket List

For years I have instinctively recoiled from “bucket lists” but had not really considered why until last week when I read a blog post by my friend Karen Caplan. She wrote that since the Hollywood film by the same name came out, every CEO or spouse she knows seems to have created one. But her own perception of them changed when she got an email from a client who, after developing cancer, urged others to develop meaningful bucket lists “before life deals them a shot and they have no time for the things they always wanted to [do].”

I appreciate Bugatti and Bulgari as much as the next girl, but ownership of brand name stuff is not, for me, at the heart of a life well-lived. There’s a lot of talk these days about shifting from the accumulation of things to seeking great experiences (climbing Mt. Kilimanjaro, sailing to Ireland in your grandfather’s sloop, learning to bake like your Aunt), but if you’re just checking items off your lists, it seems to me that you’re still focused on accumulation, rather than the deep appreciation of each day, the mindful awareness of an apple pie right out of the oven or the moment of deep joy you feel when sharing laughter with a friend. Finishing another list (as opposed to noticing each rare moment) is not how I want to spend my life.

Karen’s blog underscores the self-absorbed nature of traditional bucket lists that makes me so uneasy.  She writes:

Besides the regular items like “Visit Morocco,” and “See the Great Wall of China,” what about including things like, “Helping out at a homeless shelter several times a year; ” “Mentor a student or another colleague for THEIR benefit.”

Bucket lists, or any listing you are asked to imagine in executive seminars and leadership classes, are intended to help you consider a higher purpose. If a list  furthers such reflection, I’m all for it.  But Karen is right, it’s in the consideration of other that is too often missing from bucket lists.  Looking back over my shoulder, I see a rich history of experiences and moments that would constitute a good bucket list. Looking ahead, I hope I appreciate the cup of coffee I share with a friend tomorrow and I get to spend with employees picking fruit for the local food bank, as much as I savor the anticipation of my next trip to Rome—and the purchase of that Bugatti!

From Karen’s Plate: Summer Interns

I’ve been thinking a lot about internships this summer. Just as the season started, the Department of Labor issued new rules that could hinder how companies hire interns. Then, I wrote about the importance of internships, explaining that they are “vital as vehicles for helping the next generation integrate into the social network of an entrepreneurial culture.”

My friend Karen Caplan, CEO and President of the specialty produce company Frieda’s Inc., took on three new iterns this summer and recently shared her experience on her blog. She couldn’t speak more highly of the experience:

No matter how small (or large) your company is, I highly recommend having student interns. What a great way to give back…and for students to get real world experience.

Karen is absolutely right. Internships give role models (such as Karen and her staff), as well as access to the specialized language and industry knowledge that is so critical to launching into adulthood. For young people they are essential and for the people that make up companies they are a way of giving back, of sharing their human capital.

Read the post in its entirety on Karen’s blog, including insights from each of her three interns about what they learned or share your own experiences below.