Does Age Matter?

Coffee shops are a great place for entrepreneurs to work. Besides the obvious perks (free internet and good coffee), it’s a fabulous place to eavesdrop and hear what people are thinking and talking about.

Today there is a group of about six older women (probably in their late 60’s/early 70’s) sitting near me who are hopping mad. They are having one of the most vigorous political discussions I have heard in quite some time. They are knowledgeable, articulate and passionate about their country and the issues we all face.

Their discussion is of particular interest to me because of recent experiences I have had working with a variety of people on both diversity training and job searches. On the one hand, a panel of human resources people assured the job hunters that their organization did not discriminate against older people. Yet in my diversity training sessions with a different group of people, all acknowledged that age discrimination (among other types of discrimination) is, unfortunately, alive and well. This isn’t to say it is always intentional. Many of our impressions, both positive and negative, are made in the first 30 seconds after meeting someone (when the only thing we have to base that opinion on is appearance/presentation). We combine those impressions with our beliefs about people who look like the person in front of us (which are usually stereotypes), and come to a conclusion, whether accurate or not. This often hurts older people searching for work.

We all know the stereotypes associated with older people; they don’t have as much energy, they’re just putting in their time until retirement, they’re not up-to-date on current issues, and they’re set in their ways. But I can’t help but think that if hiring managers could hear these women, those stereotypes would be blown out of the water in a heartbeat.