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Ask HN: Developers aged 50, how have you gotten around age discrimination?

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Re: Ask HN: Developers aged 50, how have you gotten around age discrimination?

#121

Post by larrywright »

billwear wrote: post #42

I'm 60, and going strong. Most important is bring not only depth and breadth of knowledge but also wisdom to the work. As a graybeard, you're expected to add value because of your years. For example, when my office was going nuts about Kubernetes, devops, etc., it got me a raise to compare this new tech to the original Unix philosophy and point out some lessons learned in Unix design that would help with our containe…

The longer I'm in technology, the more I realize that there's a lot of value in just having been in the industry for a while and paying attention to what's going on. This is particularly relevant in troubleshooting. So much of being able to diagnose a problem quickly is just a result of having diagnosed a LOT of them before. Our brains are optimized for pattern matching, which is perfect for this - you start looking at something and go "You know, I've seen something like this before, where the server lost connectivity intermittently. I should look and see if the network drivers are out of date. Yep, that's the problem."

Re: Ask HN: Developers aged 50, how have you gotten around age discrimination?

#122

Post by ValleyOfTheMtns »

zepolen wrote: post #9
president wrote: post #7

Earlier quoted context omitted.

You're probably a young'n. This is what everybody thinks until they hit the point in their life where they realize there is more to life than just work (family, friends, hobbies, etc). You'll be complaining soon enough.

And you have demonstrated your attention to detail by not bothering to check that my hn account is older than yours.

Wow, account age dick measuring... didn't think I'd see this on HN.

Also, what does account age have to do with actual age (which is what we're talking about here)?

Re: Ask HN: Developers aged 50, how have you gotten around age discrimination?

#123

Post by robertAngst »

jaysonelliot wrote: post #100

I'm lucky enough to look young for my age, so I leave my early jobs off my resume, and don't put my graduation year on there. While I don't exactly hide the fact that I'm in my late 40s, I do find myself avoiding some discussions at work that would show my age, like talking about my older experiences or making pop culture references from the '80s or '90s. Yes, you can talk about making yourself so useful that age doe…

>How often have you assumed something about a person because they were older than you, and what can you do to overcome that and judge them on their merits instead?

I pretty much always think they are 'smarter' than me.

The only issue I've had with older folks is that they often say 'not my job'.

Re: Ask HN: Developers aged 50, how have you gotten around age discrimination?

#124

Post by [deleted] »

wedowhatwedo wrote: post #102

Age 53. At my last job, I was doing React front end work. When I argued against Redux, Coffeescript and Typescript because our app didn't need them, I was told I wasn't a team player and that I wouldn't succeed in that company. I now have a new job at much much less salary.

[deleted]

Re: Ask HN: Developers aged 50, how have you gotten around age discrimination?

#125

Post by BerislavLopac »

51 here. To be completely honest, I personally haven't (yet) really felt any effects of ageism when it comes to work. Both in the past two years as a contractor, and before that as a perm, I have had more job opportunities than I could handle.

Re: Ask HN: Developers aged 50, how have you gotten around age discrimination?

#127

Post by agumonkey »

buserror wrote: post #20

I'm 49! I've been working since I'm 17 as a developer -- I think the KEY thing is to be valuable, and be able to change quickly BUT not as quickly as the snowflakes. Ignore the fad tech, get a good, serious, bulletproof base in actual computer science -- I mean, LOW LEVEL stuff--, that will help you learn ANYTHING computer related quickly, and continue surfing that wave with whatever tech you fancy might actually be…

So, any suggestion for a COBOL book ? jk

what would you consider a solid, time-proof set of fundamentals ?

Re: Ask HN: Developers aged 50, how have you gotten around age discrimination?

#128

Post by charliebrownau »

It happens a lot in the TECH and IT field in Australia

They seem to not want to hire any qualifed male over 35 years old

Yet they expect and demand a 18-21 year old with 10-15 years of experience

Its been the case for the last 20+ years

Its one of the reasons so many Western Males in Australia are leading Computers and IT and looking :-

* Trades

* Courier Driving

* Truck Driving

* Wharehouse

* Retail

often in these 5 sectors you can get the same or MORE per hour in AUSTRALIA for less tasks, less stress, less responsibility

IT wages in Australia is a fucking joke , considering the amount of stuff we go thou

Re: Ask HN: Developers aged 50, how have you gotten around age discrimination?

#129

Post by larrywright »

simonsarris wrote: post #27
uptownfunk wrote: post #4

There is a technology called hair coloring, stack it with a hoodie and some well fitted slacks, roll up one of the ankle cuffs a bit. Talk like you've exited a startup and are just working for fun, or something to keep you interested, but not like you actually have to.

Agree 100%, it has blown me away my whole life how engineers downplay marketing and [product|personal] presentation in spite of the reams of data suggesting it has some of the best ROI possible of anything you can spend your time improving. Do you want to make more money, get more connections, have everyone like you more and treat you better? It's as simple as buying some nicer shirts, getting regular haircuts, and e…

I often tell people (particularly younger ones, college age-ish) that one of the best ways to stand out among their peers is to learn how to dress. You don't have to wear a three piece suit, but wear clothes that are clean, fit your body (and body type), and look nice. This applies regardless of company dress code. If it's jeans, then wear nice jeans that aren't wrinkly or full of holes. Pair it with a nice shirt and shoes, and you'll look better than 90% of the people around you. If your job calls for something dressier, buy the best quality stuff you can afford (it will last longer), and get it tailored so that it fits you.

This seems like a minor thing, but assuming you're not incompetent, someone who knows how to dress themselves will be perceived better by those whose opinions matter.

The key is to match the general attire of the people around you, but do it a bit nicer. If everyone is wearing shorts and jeans, don't wear a suit to work.

Edit: This advice isn't limited to young people, there are plenty of older people that need to learn how to dress themselves. As a general rule, though, the younger generation dresses a lot more casually than I did at their age, and many don't seem to have been taught when an occasion calls for dressing a little nicer.

Re: Ask HN: Developers aged 50, how have you gotten around age discrimination?

#130

Post by zenexer »

I'm relatively young, but it baffles me that there's age discrimination is an issue. Do companies think I won't like working with someone who's significantly older than me? What's the issue?

This is a bit of rhetorical question--I get that there are stereotypes and companies want to build young, hip teams, but personally I find it short-sighted and naive. I'd rather be on a diverse team, age included. If I go for an interview and see that everyone is a white male in the late twenties/early thirties, I'm going to be pretty disappointed no matter how many hipster toys they've got in the lobby. It's a sign that corporate politics and HR are going to be problematic.

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