How to feel when you are the oldest person on your team? (employee, employer)

[unknown00]

Think I should clarify age does not equate to performance. Youngings can deliver just as well as people with experience. The age gap, to me, is nothing but awkward...

1. Different stages of life. Older ones have families, younger ones still like to party
2. Salary - the older you are the less job security you have because young talent is cheaper?
3. Feels weird performance expectations are the same between 2 people that have a 20year age gap
4. Less connection outside of work

Moderator note: Tread lightly, people. If anyone starts in with generation-bashing, the thread will be shut down.

[Thoreau424]

Originally Posted by unknown00

Think I should clarify age does not equate to performance. Youngings can deliver just as well as people with experience. The age gap, to me, is nothing but awkward...

1. Different stages of life. Older ones have families, younger ones still like to party
2. Salary - the older you are the less job security you have because young talent is cheaper?
3. Feels weird performance expectations are the same between 2 people that have a 20year age gap
4. Less connection outside of work

I've had no problem being the oldest person on the team, though others seem to get spooked by it (unnecessarily).

I disagree with and question your assumptions above:

1. Though I have a family, I like to party too. Why is it one or the other? Who says you can't stay 'young' throughout your entire life? It's an active attitude more than what some lifeless calendar says. I've encountered young workers more interested in being home with their baby than going out. So your theory is opposite of what I see.
2. What if you are paid the same as the "younger talent". Sometimes that's the reality in strained and oversaturated areas. Younger doesn't automatically equate to cheaper.
3. Why would it be weird for performance expectations to be the same? The job/position is what's relevant and standardized, not the ages of those involved.
4. Less connection outside of work? What does that mean?

[DorianRo]

I would be seriously worrying about when the employer is going to force me out and probably already be planning my exit. . Experience/Value/institutional knowledge is more expensive. Most employers loathe expense. Unless that expense is going to the executive level of course...

[unknown00]

Originally Posted by Thoreau424

1. Though I have a family, I like to party too. Why is it one or the other? Who says you can't stay 'young' throughout your entire life? It's an active attitude more than what some lifeless calendar says. I've encountered young workers more interested in being home with their baby than going out. So your theory is opposite of what I see.
2. What if you are paid the same as the "younger talent". Sometimes that's the reality in strained and oversaturated areas. Younger doesn't automatically equate to cheaper.
3. Why would it be weird for performance expectations to be the same? The job/position is what's relevant and standardized, not the ages of those involved.
4. Less connection outside of work? What does that mean?

1. Maybe I'm an outlier - My desire to party and stay out until midnight everyday is slim to 0 compared to 10 years ago. I rather by in bed by 9
2. Doubt it
3. You would think a person with more experience would have different responsibilities
4. The amount of topics to discuss outside of work is less. For example, youngings love to talk about dating drama

[Thoreau424]

Originally Posted by unknown00

1. Maybe I'm an outlier - My desire to party and stay out until midnight everyday is slim to 0 compared to 10 years ago. I rather by in bed by 9
2. Doubt it
3. You would think a person with more experience would have different responsibilities
4. The amount of topics to discuss outside of work is less. For example, youngings love to talk about dating drama

1. My interest in that area has never changed.
2. You can doubt it, but I'm experiencing that. I know it happens for a fact.
3. You mentioned an age difference (20 years), not experience difference. Stay on course, please.
4. If you're talking about selective years have similar interests, yes, but not when there's a variety of ages. Then the discussion outside of work will tend to feature common experiences regardless of age.

[goodlife36]

Originally Posted by unknown00

Think I should clarify age does not equate to performance. Youngings can deliver just as well as people with experience. The age gap, to me, is nothing but awkward...

1. Different stages of life. Older ones have families, younger ones still like to party
2. Salary - the older you are the less job security you have because young talent is cheaper?
3. Feels weird performance expectations are the same between 2 people that have a 20year age gap
4. Less connection outside of work

Yes, I am the second to the oldest and it is what it is. What bothers me is the salary.

[Parnassia]

Originally Posted by unknown00

Think I should clarify age does not equate to performance. Youngings can deliver just as well as people with experience. The age gap, to me, is nothing but awkward...

1. Different stages of life. Older ones have families, younger ones still like to party
2. Salary - the older you are the less job security you have because young talent is cheaper?
3. Feels weird performance expectations are the same between 2 people that have a 20year age gap
4. Less connection outside of work

Moderator note: Tread lightly, people. If anyone starts in with generation-bashing, the thread will be shut down.

Don't quite understand your premise. Is this hypothetical "team" made up of people who all do the same work? Many teams are made up of people who all do different tasks. Some tasks may be better suited to someone who is more of a mature coaching type, more experienced in the subject matter. Other tasks may be better suited to someone who is more of a energetic but inexperienced person who loves to dig in to research and then come back to the team with it. Some traits tend to relate to age but not always.

In all the performance evaluations I've done the age of the employee never played into it. Unless I was evaluating people doing a physically strenuous job and someone had continuing problems doing the work because of old injuries or an ongoing medical condition.

I don't agree with some of your "assumptions" at all. Stereotypical, and sort of dismissive lazy thinking. Personally I don't find age gaps awkward. You can learn from or appreciate someone of any age if you want to.

[MLSFan]

I'm one of the youngers one on the team

but I prefer to work with older people myself

I don't mind "running" around, and if they don't want to, I "run" their things too. In return, if I can't figure something out, they help me because they don't mind the complicated stuff either. So it's win-win. They don't get behind and I don't make "errors" due to something I didn't know. Yes, I make mistakes, everyone does. But it isn't because I didn't have anyone to help me. plus they look out for me and catch my mistakes, because I help them out too.

Plus, older people are more "stable" in the work force. At least for me, they want to ride out to retirement. So if they are in their 50s+, it's a good chance they aren't looking to job hop. With people my age/younger, they bounce around to grow/ladder climb. Nothing wrong with it, since I do that myself. But if I had to be in the employer's shoes, if it was a job that needed to be consistent and stable, hiring someone older who wants to ride it into retirement is the better deal than retraining a younger one every few years as they move out of the position.

and on the salary? Yes, they make more than me. so what? I make a whole lot more than them compared to when they were my age, so what's there to be jealous of? I'm not going to be jealous of their salary any more than they are jealous of my youth. They spent their "years" already, I haven't.

[MLSFan]

Originally Posted by louiloui

I experienced age discrimination from the young, more educated women I worked with. I don't think people realize the younger employees are under a lot of pressure to perform and even sabotage each other to get ahead. From what I experienced I can tell you some do not respect their elders or anyone that gets in their way. The kids did not discuss anything about their personal lives with me and I would say unless they needed me to do something, I was invisible. I was so happy to be able to retire early.

this makes no sense, the higher up the ladder you go, the more reliant you are on getting along with people, both your boss/peers/people you lead

how are they going to ladder climb by ignoring the people around them?

[unknown00]

Originally Posted by goodlife36

Yes, I am the second to the oldest and it is what it is. What bothers me is the salary.

Can you provide more details?

Originally Posted by Parnassia

Don't quite understand your premise. Is this hypothetical "team" made up of people who all do the same work? Many teams are made up of people who all do different tasks. Some tasks may be better suited to someone who is more of a mature coaching type, more experienced in the subject matter. Other tasks may be better suited to someone who is more of a energetic but inexperienced person who loves to dig in to research and then come back to the team with it. Some traits tend to relate to age but not always.

False. For example, a sales team. Everyone on the team (regardless of age/experience) has the same quota