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Midlife Reset: Redefining Learning After 40

  • Writer: horizonshiftlab
    horizonshiftlab
  • Oct 9
  • 18 min read
Elderly couple smiling, sitting on a couch looking at a tablet. Warm tones, cozy room with soft lighting and a shelf in the background.
Image Source: Marcus Aurelius via pexels.com

The way we learn and the skills we need is changing faster than ever. AI, automation, and a shift to a skills-based economy mean that what worked in your 20s might not work in your 40s, 50s, or beyond. But here’s the good news: midlife can be your greatest opportunity to reinvent how you learn, grow, and shape what’s next!


In this episode of Signal Shift, we dive into the future of learning for people 40+: beyond the classroom, beyond college, and beyond career ladders. We explore why data literacy is quickly becoming the new life skill, why midlife is actually a peak time for certain cognitive strengths, and how rethinking education could open up decades of new possibilities. Whether you’re planning a career pivot, exploring a new purpose, or simply want to future-proof your brain, this conversation is for you.




Beyond the Degree: Navigating the Future of Work in Your Mid-Career


The modern workplace is changing at an unprecedented pace, driven by the acceleration of AI and the shift toward a skills-based economy. As we discussed last week, the value of the traditional four-year degree is being questioned—but what about professionals in their 40s, 50s, and beyond who are well past the stage of considering a formal degree?


For this experienced segment of the workforce, the challenge is urgent: How do you keep pace when the skills curve is steep and constantly evolving?

In this episode, Raakhee and Sue delve into the critical factors driving continuous learning for midlife professionals, from foundational skills like data literacy to the surprising truth about cognitive longevity. The goal is no longer just extending your career, but finding meaningful, productive work for a longer, healthier life.


The Foundation: Why Data Literacy is the Unspoken Crisis


When we talk about re-skilling, the immediate thought often jumps to AI or coding. However, a more foundational crisis is lurking beneath the surface: the decline in data literacy and numeracy among adults.


Raakhee highlights that in a complex, information-saturated world, the ability to read, interpret, and contextualize data from reliable sources is paramount—yet alarmingly deficient. Recent statistics from the National Center for Education Statistics in the U.S. show troubling trends:

  • Literacy Decline: The percentage of low-performing adults increased from 19% to 28% over a recent study period.

  • Numeracy Gap: The percentage of low-performing adults in numeracy increased from 29% to 34%.

  • Problem Solving: The U.S. average score for adaptive problem-solving (a skill inherent to data literacy) is below the international average, with 32% of U.S. adults scoring below the level considered necessary for successful participation in contemporary society.


In an era of deepfakes and generative AI, the distinction between a reliable source and an inference is crucial. For mid-career professionals, integrating formal training—whether through workplace programs, journalism courses, or dedicated data evaluation tools—is not just a career booster; it’s a necessary life skill to thrive in a digital society.


The Mid-Career Training Gap


If data literacy is the foundation, engagement in formal training is the construction crew. Sue points out a significant divide between younger and older workers:

  • Training Disparity: Only 38% of people aged 45 and older participated in professional training in a recent three-year period, compared to 53% of those under 45.

  • Experience vs. Skills: Unfortunately, many older workers mistakenly believe that experience alone is sufficient qualification, but hiring managers are actively seeking mid-career and older candidates who have demonstrably updated their skills.


This training gap is exacerbated by the rise of AI. While older workers express interest in AI, there is a sizable gap in formally acquired credentials compared to their younger peers. In a job market already sensitive to ageism, possessing stackable credentials in key areas like Generative AI, data management, and specialized cloud tools is essential to maintain a competitive edge.

The answer, therefore, is proactive ownership. Individuals must raise their hands for training within the workplace and seek out external courses to ensure career longevity.


Debunking the Myth of the Cognitive Peak


A common, long-held belief is that our cognitive capacity naturally declines after we hit our 40s, making it harder to learn and re-skill. Raakhee explores research that effectively debunks this myth, offering powerful motivation for lifelong learning.


Past studies incorrectly concluded a general decline by comparing different age groups at a single point in time. More rigorous, longitudinal research paints a far more encouraging picture:

  • Skills Peak: While raw speed in processing information peaks around 18 and 19, and short-term memory levels off around 35, other essential skills increase well into midlife.

  • Emotional Intelligence: The ability to evaluate other people's emotional states (a crucial soft skill for leadership) actually peaks in your 40s and 50s—a significant asset older workers bring to the table.

  • The Use-It-or-Lose-It Principle: Most critically, studies show that participants who actively use and exercise their cognitive skills in their jobs show virtually no difference in cognitive abilities between the ages of 40 and 65 compared to those who didn't.


The human brain, much like a muscle, can be maintained and strengthened. There is no biological necessity for cognitive decline to interrupt your career or professional ambition, provided you commit to continuous mental exercise. Re-skilling is not just an investment in your career; it’s an investment in your mental health and longevity.


Two Takeaways for Immediate Action


Re-skilling in midlife and beyond is a multi-faceted endeavor—it is about health, longevity, and professional relevance. For those wondering where to start, the path is simpler than you might think:

  1. Just Start the AI Course: Don't overthink the exact right credential. The most important action is to simply enroll in a foundational course—specifically Generative AI—to begin grappling with the technology that will underpin all future work.

  2. Conduct an Annual Digital Check-up: Commit to a yearly self-assessment of your data literacy and core digital skills. The landscape changes rapidly, and a periodic check-up ensures you are adapting to the new norm, not relying on obsolete knowledge.


The era of passive learning is over. The future of work for midlife professionals is in their hands, defined by proactive learning and a commitment to mental fitness.





Selected Links:





Data Literacy Resources:



Episode Transcript:

Sue (00:00)

Hello and welcome to Signal Shift. I've got Raakhee here and we're continuing our series on the future of learning. So let's face it, the way we learn, the way we work, it's changing faster than most of us can keep up. And as we mentioned last week, we're moving into this skills-based economy and AI is accelerating things even faster. So, you know, we talked about is a four-year degree worth it and...


the benefits of possibly micro credentialing and stackable certificates, especially when you're younger. But let's face it, if you're in your 40s, 50s or beyond, you're well past considering getting a four year degree. And it's a space where there hasn't really been an emphasis on formal skills training. So it raises some pretty, pretty big questions. How do you keep up, especially when your younger colleagues seem to pick up these skills overnight? And


A while back, we had an episode on the future of retirement. So hopefully, we're all living longer and healthier lives. So why retire at 65? And so that just gives us even more reason to find more meaningful work for multiple reasons later in life. So in today's episode, we're really diving into the future of learning focused on midlife professionals and beyond, really, 40s and beyond.


I, for one, am super interested in finding these answers. So, Raakhee I'll start with you. What signals have you got for us today?


Raakhee (01:24)

My first signal is I think the top skill that I think some people call out, but I don't, I'm not seeing it being called out as widely and as clearly to people as it should be, especially people in their 40s and going beyond. And that is data literacy. this is going to become.


And this is outside of tech skills. It is simply data literacy. We live in such a complex time. And I'm often shocked by how people cannot read information. The information that people share, that people consume, is typically what somebody says. It is not source information, right?


If it's anything that's outside of your formal role, you typically consume information in a very, she said, he said, I heard this there. And I think if anything, we are definitely living in a time where we have to be able to step back and look at the source of information and to read data and understand data. Yeah, this is some interesting statistics which speak to, I think, the scale of this issue.


But the National Center for Education Statistics, right? It's a agency of the US Federal Statistical System, and they are primarily responsible for collecting and analyzing all data related to education in the US. So, for literacy, the percentage of low-performing adults, and they have these levels, right? Level one being the lowest, and then think it's level five at the highest. level one, the percentage of low-performing adults in the US increased from 19 % in 2017 to 28%.


The percentage for high performing adults, so that's three or above, decreased. So same trend from 48 % to 44 % in that same time period. Smaller decrease, but the fact that we are seeing these kinds of numbers is really scary, right? And that's literacy, literacy being really more just reading in essence, pure literacy. Numeracy, we're looking at numbers like the percentage of low performing adults, one or below, increased from 29 % to 34%. So again, an increase in the lower levels. The percentage of high performing adults was not different. So, okay, that's a bit of a, that's a good, that's a good sign.


And then this is a bigger question, right? And the reason why data literacy is so important is also the concept of problem solving. It's inherent to it. We can't actually problem solve if we don't know how to read data and have data literacy skills. And so you see this reflected in there as well, but the US average score for adaptive problem solving was a number that they calculated 247, and it's below the international average of 251.


So again, I think the fact that the US scores so mid-level compared to many other countries, were 14 other countries at highest scores and there were five or 11 other countries below. I'm looking at that small number of countries again, they're not measuring this in all of Africa or all of Asia. Those countries are not even counted. I'd have hoped we'd do better.


And I think for me, really, and maybe I guess I wasn't close enough to the data or knowing how literacy is an issue, but statistically, it's a little concerning. And I think I thought our scores would be higher. Countries like Japan and Finland, of course, lead on those sort of problem solving scores and tests. And that is to be expected. But I did think we'd be doing better. But yeah, I just wanted to put those numbers out there and say, you know, data literacy is going to be critical. And we've said this with AI as well, we have this issue now with AI where we need to use it. We always saying that, but some people are overusing it. you know, it's going to make this problem even worse. it's a big call out and saying, look, what are you going to re-scale in?


This sort of foundation of data literacy is going to be really critical. they basically say that you need to be level two in adaptive problem solving to be a successful participant in contemporary society. So when our problem solving skills are that low, 32 % of US adults are below that level.


If our problem solving skills are that low, we just we can't participate successfully, build the right structures in our society function ⁓ effectively. So think it's very important. And I just I don't understand why it's not spoken about more called out more. And I'm sure there are people who doing that. It's just I'm like, OK, as much as we have ads for like, don't smoke, shouldn't we have ads about increase your data literacy today? That's how urgent that is.


Yeah, maybe doesn't answer the risk killing that directly, Sue, but I think it's an urgent call, especially for those of us our 40s who are just naturally going to lose that more and more as we get caught up in our lives with everything else.


Sue (06:19)

You know, it is true in terms of where you're getting your information with especially so many people looking at AI. It's still so important to look at your sources. Like you might check and say, what's the source? And they'll come back like, actually there is no source. It's just an inference. Like, well, I don't need your inference. I need a source. And like you said, it's not... may not be directly related to reskilling in your 40s, but it's essential. And again, because there's no formal learning environment when you're that age and older, it's even more important to really find some kind of structure to be able to make sure just even like the doctor, it's good if you go to wellness checkup like every year.


Just to make sure you're maintaining your health. How are you maintaining your digital health too, to be part of this digital society? So is it like, hey, here's a one-year checkup. Here's like all the things that are different. Maybe that's a new product people should be offering. Yeah, and that kind of segues into some of the information I found.


Right, so some of the reports I saw, there's this nonprofit focused on kind of the future of work, workforce training called Generation. They did several reports with OECD, actually, Raakhee, you might have seen these from last week. But there's one that specifically focuses on the mid-career opportunity. And in that, they said only 38 % of people aged 45 and older participated in professional training in the past three years compared to 53 % of those under 45. And I imagine that might be even more exacerbated as time goes on. And it works because switched jobs are the ones that most likely had that recent training. And it fits because employers are saying they want the mid-career and older workers who have been recently trained. But unfortunately, a lot of older workers are thinking that experience alone is sufficient in terms of their qualifications. So, you know, based on this last episode, it's not necessarily a degree you need to go back to, But you can also get those stackable credentials and certificates. It's now more important than ever to really help you get ahead. And again, like with AI, it's just integrated in everything, right? So...


There's a sizable gap in older workers getting formally trained in AI, even though despite being self-taught and expressing interest in this, it's still a gap compared to their younger peers. And hiring managers looking for those AI credentials, there's existing ageism in the workplace. It's just more critical than ever. So the problem I found is like, okay, there's the data. At least people are studying this effort and what's happening.


I went to look for what kind of career training paths are there for mid-career professionals, especially in AI, or what kind of credentials are employers looking for. I hit a dead end. And so it's basically, again, going back to the idea of these stackable credentials. mean, just like you were saying, it's data literacy, data management, AI learning, all of those things people are expecting to see somewhere on your resume. I mean, it differs per industry, but generally speaking,


This is a lot of what I found.


Raakhee (09:24)

And Sue, like linking it exactly to what I spoke about, one of the ways to ensure you have the data numeracy and data literacy is through workplace training. And people who are getting that will obviously score higher. And if you step out of that, you'll score lower.


We're carving out new paths and new ways for how we can exist and what work is going to look like. And so I'm hoping it's really because of that gray area. But I think, you know, all individuals really need to take initiative at their workplace, right? And put up your hand and say, I want that AI course. Like, please. And go and find something from outside. And I know it's not that simple. I know there's, of course, complexity navigating that in your workplace. But I really think that's important to at least give your career a bit more longevity over the next few years as we figure this out. But a lot of people have the attitude of, no, I don't want to do this. Or I just don't like AI.


And unfortunately, that's detrimental to you, right? It's detrimental to us. Like we do have to start grappling with it. yeah, I will say that. then, you you had that great idea with the data numeracy as well. And it reminded me that we've spoken about this tool before on the show, but there's a tool called Brainly, some of those brain exercise tools. And I think they are one of the tools that has a component where it'll teach you how to evaluate data sources. So, you can go to tools like that, and then there's tons of great journalism courses out there as well that teach you this skill. And I was just thinking that the media landscape itself is changing. And as it changes in terms of who we listen to, again, we need to empower ourselves with some of those skills that those people had that we need to take on for ourselves individually.


Sue (11:09)

It's not just about the workplace skills that we're talking about, right? this is really like life skills to thrive in your 40s and beyond. Think about not just reskilling in the workplace, but what other kinds of skills you need really in midlife and beyond and who might be doing that.


Yeah, what else did you find, Raakhee?


Raakhee (11:28)

And this was another almost adjacent signal. I found, when I was thinking about re-skilling and I thought about the people in my life and a lot of people I know, especially 40s, more so 50s we have had this long-term held belief that our capacity and our cognitive ability just starts to decline, right? Like from around the 40s, very similar to how we think about our bodies.


I'm in mid life now. I've just hit that place and it's really hard in the mornings. And yet equally, for as many people who say that, there are certainly sufficient examples of people who I see who totally don't need that, who are keeping themselves either physically fit or at the peak of their careers, et cetera. So I think the question that arose for me was, do we hit these intelligence peaks? Like, is that actually effective? Is it a myth? Like, what is the truth behind our brain intelligence and our capacity to then actually re-skill and learn? Is it going to be harder? Are we getting just naturally by our brain neurons kind of diminishing? Are we getting slower intellectually?


And this is interesting, right? And so it's not necessarily a myth. It does come from past studies that have been done. And past studies kind of show that cognitive performance does decline by age. But what has happened with past studies is that they were done in a very, maybe not the best research, driven manner. And these studies would simply take groups of people and analyze them. And typically, the older people performed lower. And so there was a generalization. However, a lot of other studies have been done since to say, maybe we need to re-question this, or how we test older people.


There's a lot of reasons why things look different. One is simply, like we said, who is actually continuing to educate themselves, where are they based, what sort of information do they have access to? Here's another typical example of how they did it wrong is, if you tested people on their tech skills, of course, older people typically would score lower simply because they weren't native to a lot of these tools. They didn't have the chance to grow up with them.


And so both these individuals might not have taken a tech course, that's true, but this person was assimilated into this lifestyle. Does that mean that the older people cannot learn that skill? Not at all. So they were testing, you know, not always in sort of the right way. And so different studies have kind of re-looked into this. And one of the studies kind of examined this and they tested some people at multiple different ages, right? So they took the same group of people. They basically did a longitudinal study similar to the Harvard you know, what keeps us happy study, right?


And they did that for cognitive performance for the same people over many, many years and said, let's really see if there's a decline. And this was a German study. It was done with German adults. And what they found is that skills actually increase substantially into the 40s for both literacy and numeracy. Subsequently, average skills sort of slightly decline by around that time.


So your day-to-day kind of intelligence peaks at 40, right, and into your 40s, and then you see like this slow, slow decline. But what they also found is that participants who used their cognitive skills, who were in jobs, who kept their cognitive skills exercised, fine up until they like 65 or so, there was really no difference in their cognitive abilities in that 40 to 65 if they were exercising those skills.


Those who didn't keep their minds active saw a skills dip in their forties. And so there was something, and Sue, I know you spoke about this before, were like points at which you age or something, right? And it reminded me a bit of that, of forty seemed to be this interesting place where we clearly peak, generally all of us, and then yes, a decline is going to happen and just speaks exactly to what we are talking about here and the importance of re-skilling, right?


And if you do that, like the people who have, till 65, sorry, there's no difference between a 40-year-old and a 65-year-old, and likely even beyond. A second study was done by a postdoc from Massachusetts General Hospital and someone from MIT from their brain and cognitive sciences, a postdoc from there. And they did this sort of piece with the World Economic Forum around this. And they had these sites. One was called Games with Words, and the other was called Test My Brain.


And they did like a more randomized, generalized, like, let's just get people to complete data here and collect data over time on these games. And they used what is called, and I hope I'm pronouncing this right, but the Wechler or Wechler Adult Intelligence Scale. It measures IQ and the Wechler-Wechler Memory Scale. But they also added another test around emotional state, because emotional processing is really critical, right? And this is interesting. They gathered data from nearly 50,000 subjects.


and found a clip showing that cognitive skills actually peak at different ages also, different types of skills. So that's also really interesting. Raw speed in how we process information, like the data stuff I was talking about, peaks at around 18 or 19, and then actually starts to decline pretty fast. Meanwhile, short-term memory improves to about 25 and then levels off around 35. And then the ability to evaluate other people's emotional states peaks in your forties and fifties and I think that tracks with life experience, I think growing more empathy, that sort of thing, right? So yeah, and they've included other tests. I'm not going to go into all these details.


It's really, really interesting. You want to look at the references and the sources on our post for this week's episode. But the big, big lesson and the big point, and the studies have proven this, is that what we believed really was, in essence, just the wrong understanding. We got it from the wrong ways of looking at data and research. And the more that researching this, we understand now that there's a lot more complexity to regions of the brain and how they decline, right? And when they peak and when they decline. So it's different for different skills. But utmost, utmost importance is the fact that if you use the muscle, very much like exercise and the rest of our muscles, you can keep it up really, really nicely into your later years. And so there's no need for that cognitive decline. And then of course, on a separate note, that is also linked to preventing other age-related diseases, Neuro generative diseases. So that's also important.


Sue (18:02)

It brings up an important point, which is that it's re-skilling for multiple reasons in midlife, It's re-skilling for your health and longevity, for career. And what you were saying also made me think that at this stage of life, how these types of roles can be different to really harness the assets that you have in this particular period of your life and how unique they are. So if you're more emotionally intelligent at this point, maybe there is a different kind of role for you than the particular one that maybe a younger colleague would be apt for. So that's an interesting point.


So Raakhee, you're making me feel a little bit better about this.


Raakhee (18:42)

Think it's going to be in our hands, like we discussed with what you're saying. do have to just take ownership. And like we discussed last week, start with AI. Just take that AI course. Even if you don't know what you're doing, just go and investigate it.


Sue (18:56)

Yeah, I think two simple takeaways for me are, yeah, just go take the course. Just don't even just go and go take it to start. And then two is, yeah, maybe put it upon yourself for kind of this annual digital checkup, as we were saying. Maybe the link that you're referencing is a good place to start for kind of understanding data literacy. And it may change every year, right? Everything's advancing so rapidly. So it's good to just get a checkup, see where you are.


And then from there, see what you can improve upon. So thank you, Raakhee. And yeah, I guess for all you guys that are out there watching and listening, also wondering how do you re-skill in your 40s? You know, it's just now more important than ever to get, start getting those credentials, start really thinking about maybe what are the next three to five kind of skills that you really need to see in a career that you maybe want to have more longevity in or transition to. There's so many resources out there and I'm sure this is just the beginning of us talking about this. So more to come. And if you like this episode, give us a like, give us a follow, leave us a review or comment. And thank you so much and we will see you next time.

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