There has to be something appreciable about age polytheism (changing hive tasks based on chronological age). It’s not like that movie “Antz” from 1998. That’s just another example of Hollywood distorting the public perception of the insect order hymenoptera. But it’s also not like you have any means of ‘climbing the corporate ladder’ or ‘following your heart’ either. You don’t interview for new & exciting positions in different hives or have to make hard decisions about the direction you want to go. If you’re a honeybee, female, and not that particular 1 of 40,000 who has to squirt eggs out your ovipositor all day, you are “age-polytheistic” and your career path looks like this:
Day 1 – 3: Nest cleaner (you haven’t developed hypopharyngeal glands yet)
Day 2 – 12: Nurse bee (you secrete larval food & place it near larva. via hypopharyngeal & mandibular glands)
Day 12 – 17: Comb builder (as needed by colony, your wax glands now function), food processors (converting nectar to honey or pollen to bee bread)
Day 18 – 20: Guard bee (watch the entrance, chase away small hive beetles, mice, & other intruders… sometimes at cost of your life)
Day 20+: Forager (gather pollen, nectar, water, or propolis)
(There may be a few roles not covered there (ie. scouts, undertakers) but I think those might be related to genetics & response threshold more than chronological age.)
Now, I can’t really make my resumé that well-rounded in such a short time and I don’t get promoted at work because I developed a fancy new gland in my head. But I think there’s probably some value in learning to be satisfied to do your best at whatever task is at hand in whatever position at whatever company happens to employ you. Especially since it could always change in a matter of days. I did the ‘grass is greener’ thing and now it’s time to be quiet and ‘design some cool stuff’. For now.
Sounds like you’re getting older, wiser and more experienced.