Aging With Grace

How old is too old to be a software developer? Isn’t it a young person’s job? These questions come up from time to time. The cultural expectation of software developers has been a basement dwelling, hoodie wearing, 20-something. While Hollywood has had a hand in perpetuating this stereotype the majority of developers are in their 20’s. This is likely due to the attrition rate of software developers. Most start in their early 20’s and will leave development for other areas of IT or other fields before the end of their 20’s. For the career programmer, though, ageism may become a real issue. Ageism is a form of discrimination based on a person’s age. While direct ageism may not be as present less obvious forms of institutional ageism may exist. A lot of the startup culture where mandatory overtime and death marches are forms of institutional ageism. Those things may seem fine when you are young and single but are not viable for a person with a family. As we age our bodies and our priorities change. We become no longer able or willing to do things that we did when we were younger. These changes can have a positive or negative effect on our careers as developers. If these changes are taken into account as we become older we are able to apply our hard earned knowledge and experience in ways that will better our careers. These are just a few things to help you in your career as a developer. Software development is more than just a job, but a lifestyle. As such it is one that can be lived for many years if done properly. Use the information here if you are new to the field to set yourself up for success later on. If you have been in development for a while these are here to help you be your best self and share your experiences with others. Episode Breakdown With age comes an understanding of your own limits. In college, and maybe a few years after, pulling all nighters was a regular occurance that you could easly snap back from. As you mature though, you get more responsibilities and you aren’t able to sleep in after a late night. Working within your own limits can accomplish more than pushing yourself too hard did when you were younger. There is a point of deminishing returns where you are no longer effective, as you get older you begin to learn where this limit is and stay within it. As fun as they can be, it may be time to leave the weekend hackathons to the developers trying to prove themselves. Focus instead on efficiency and getting more accomplished in less time. Make your phsysical, mental, and emotional health a priority. As you age you will want to start focusing on your health in ways that didn’t seem important when you were younger. If you start on this while you are younger you’ll be in a better position than most. Software development is not a physically demanding job, we sit at desks most of the day. That means it is important for you to take time in your day to get some physical activity. It is however a mentally demanding job at times. Just like you need to get your body out of a state of rest you’ll need to let your mind rest. This could be through any of a number of hobbies that are not mentally taxing. Finally, while the image of the grey beard curmudgeon is a fun trope you do not want to be the old angry developer. Find ways to address your emotional health through talking to friends or a counselor, meditation, even some forms of escapism like reading and music help with processing emotions. Expect technology to always going to be changing. A mistake a lot of older developers make is to assume that modern technology works the same as it did when they were junior developers first learning. While it’s not difficult to see patterns in how technology advances it is a mistake to assume that it will ever stay the same.