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I'm not sure about others, but as a very young programmer I was lucky enough to be mentored by a succession of 60ish year old seasoned developers still writing

I'm not sure about others, but as a very young programmer I was lucky enough to be mentored by a succession of 60ish year old seasoned developers still writing code every day. It was very formative and helpful to have a guide who had seen the growth of the modern software industry from infancy forward. I now try to pay back that mentoring investment, and I encourage other people in the last half of their career to do the same - much of the challenge of software as an occupation and avocation is self-doubt and mentoring really helps provide objective feedback and perspective on what is truly important.

kjs3 4y ago
One of my first jobs was a consulting gig in the mid-80s with a Very Large Airline that had a strong, effective "train and promote from within" ethic. That meant a lot of people who 1) didn't start out it IT (or often in technology) and 2) lots of folks who had some amount of a career before getting into IT, so trended older. It was extremely formative. My 2 supervisors were in their 50s, and started out slinging bags on the tarmac. Knew their stuff cold...not just about the tech, but how to actually deal with and manage people. Lots of life experience shared with this very green kid who on paper was the technical 'expert'. And because they'd been there and seen waaay more than just the inside of an office, they understood the business we supported intimately. "Knew were all the bodies are buried" was the key phrase. I went on to consult with a Very Large Telco, which had a similar culture of valuing experience and worked with some of the most knowledgeable techs I ever met, most several decades older than me. Shoot...there was a lot of grey hair at IBM when I was there, before someone decided ageism as official corporate policy was a swell idea. And that has made all the difference.
JohnFen 4y ago
> I was lucky enough to be mentored by a succession of 60ish year old seasoned developers still writing code every day. I'm in my late 50s and have been programming professionally for 30 years or so. And, right now, I'm being mentored by 78 year old engineer still writing code every day!

kjs3 4y ago

One of my first jobs was a consulting gig in the mid-80s with a Very Large Airline that had a strong, effective "train and promote from within" ethic. That meant a lot of people who 1) didn't start out it IT (or often in technology) and 2) lots of folks who had some amount of a career before getting into IT, so trended older. It was extremely formative. My 2 supervisors were in their 50s, and started out slinging bags on the tarmac. Knew their stuff cold...not just about the tech, but how to actually deal with and manage people. Lots of life experience shared with this very green kid who on paper was the technical 'expert'. And because they'd been there and seen waaay more than just the inside of an office, they understood the business we supported intimately. "Knew were all the bodies are buried" was the key phrase. I went on to consult with a Very Large Telco, which had a similar culture of valuing experience and worked with some of the most knowledgeable techs I ever met, most several decades older than me. Shoot...there was a lot of grey hair at IBM when I was there, before someone decided ageism as official corporate policy was a swell idea. And that has made all the difference.

JohnFen 4y ago

> I was lucky enough to be mentored by a succession of 60ish year old seasoned developers still writing code every day. I'm in my late 50s and have been programming professionally for 30 years or so. And, right now, I'm being mentored by 78 year old engineer still writing code every day!