It is interesting to watch the annual ritual of students returning to school and their studies – whether it be Kindergarten to college campuses. It is a reminder for all of us about the passing of time.

Another reminder of the passing of time for me this year was EXAIR hiring the first batch of new employees with their birth dates in the decade of the 1990s.
Our growing business required increasing the workforce. We brought on a group of new people over the summer, several of them whose ages are less than the length of service of some EXAIR employees. EXAIR is approaching its 27th anniversary later this year. Our employees represent a diverse group of people and generations. Every decade from the 1930’s to the 1990’s is represented by our employee’s birthdates.

This mixture makes for an amusing exchange of ideas and comments. Some of our “young” employees are now realizing that they are twice the age of their co-workers. Conversely, I just overheard a 20 year-old guy telling his co-worker –“I am just like a young puppy, running around, yapping at the legs of an old dog like you”. The old dog he was referring to is 28 years old.
We work to get our internal communications across to our employees as much as we have had to adapt our marketing messages to our broad range of customers.

We are all passing through this life at the same rate – minute by minute, hour by hour, and day by day. Some people seem in a hurry to end the journey – such as drunk drivers, texting while driving, hunting with John Cheney – while others seem determined to make it last as long as they can by being late for everything.

Everyone needs to try to enjoy the journey as much as they can, through their friends, hobbies and social activities, and work experiences. There is no rewind button on the life cycle.

Personally, I’m opting for the slow lane – I am having too much fun.

BTW –Next time you call in to talk to an Application Engineer – ask them how old they are in “Co-op years”. (“Co-op years” – one co-op year is equal to a 20 year-old engineering student from the University of Cincinnati)

Bob West
Chief Financial Officer
bobwest@exair.com