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I think part of this is a control/power issue. Older people have more experience and hopefully more knowledge. They bring a lot to the table. Part of the issue

I think part of this is a control/power issue. Older people have more experience and hopefully more knowledge. They bring a lot to the table. Part of the issue is that this can intimidate the young 20-somethings you see taking on leadership roles with their cavalier elon-musk-type I-can-do-anything-from-first-principles attitude. Except that it doesn't always go down well that way and teams can benefit from elders with more experience. Obviously not trying to explain the entire picture here, but this is definitely something I've seen. Another thing I've noticed is that older people are harder to mold.. they do have their own set of ways, the cultures they've imbibed from the previous companies they've worked at, and sometimes it doesn't go well with the folks who've grown up entirely within the current company. I personally find the differences refreshing, but it takes some maturity to understand that I suppose.

eternalban 10y ago
And yet you don't see this in other fields. (Sports? Well, that's on the tin. You do see it in manual labor though :) Take science, for example. There, the older set suffocates the younger ones and they dream of regicide and paradigm shifts. So imo the underlying issue is that software work, unless it rakes in bags of cash, is not respected as a professional field. (Ever see anyone push to "teach kids how to argue a case in court!"? Coding is information age labor. Needs "young muscle" paraphrasing our absent host, Paul G.) Possibly something has gone wrong if you are chasing programming work after 40 -- channeling society here, relax -- and yet as an older gentleman coder :) I take quiet satisfaction at the self destructive behavior of the young filters poo pooing "experience". 40 rolls over before you know it. Ding.
- jkaptur 10y ago
  FYI, court cases are not a good example of this. Mock trial is quite popular.

eternalban 10y ago

And yet you don't see this in other fields. (Sports? Well, that's on the tin. You do see it in manual labor though :) Take science, for example. There, the older set suffocates the younger ones and they dream of regicide and paradigm shifts. So imo the underlying issue is that software work, unless it rakes in bags of cash, is not respected as a professional field. (Ever see anyone push to "teach kids how to argue a case in court!"? Coding is information age labor. Needs "young muscle" paraphrasing our absent host, Paul G.) Possibly something has gone wrong if you are chasing programming work after 40 -- channeling society here, relax -- and yet as an older gentleman coder :) I take quiet satisfaction at the self destructive behavior of the young filters poo pooing "experience". 40 rolls over before you know it. Ding.

jkaptur 10y ago
FYI, court cases are not a good example of this. Mock trial is quite popular.