Old People and New Technology
It’s probably a little different than what you thought
I am 23 years old, I just finished college, I have a job in the technology industry, and I work with older people everyday.
Every so often I seem to read an article about how my generation (Gen-Y) is the best at keeping up with new technology. They’re about how older people in the tech-scene can’t keep up with new technology; How they can’t adjust.
I would like to send a message to all the people who write these articles. It’s just not true.
How do I know anything about this since I’m a young professional? The workforce at ExactTarget (where I work) is roughly split 50/50; Between “young people,” under 30, and “old people.” On a daily basis I have the pleasure of interacting with a variety of people ranging in age. Sometimes I even get to help them!
We are on the bleeding-edge of technology at ExactTarget. Here, people constantly have to adjust to new technology and/or change their way of thinking (problem solving).
When I first started this job I thought I was going to be surrounded by people around my age. You know, because they are all up on that hip tech shit. Fortunately, I was wrong. Most people I work with daily are older than me, and let me tell you I am impressed by them everyday.
I was utterly surprised at how everyone, especially older programmers, keep up with technology. Many times when they were helping me with problems, they asked if I had used this? Or, if I had used that? Or, this will make everything so much better for you.
I recently asked one of my co-workers, who is approaching the early age of 60, “How do you stay up to date with all this technology?” The gist of his answer was, “I love doing it. Plain and simple. I could never imagine myself doing anything else. I love coming into work everyday, and I don’t want that to stop.”
None of those articles I’d read before even considered this point of view. I hope when I approach that age that I will feel the same way, not that I don’t feel that way right now!
