As the presidential election approaches, the question of age keeps coming up: how old is too old? Certainly we can point to public figures who should have retired sooner—and commend the few who bow out gracefully when it’s time. As we age, we may no longer have the physical stamina or mental acuity for the job. On the other hand, some qualities improve with age. We may gain maturity or wisdom from our experience, for example, or expand our networks for greater influence. How can we grow both older and wiser?
Career development
One piece of advice I heard as a young engineer was to get ten years of experience, not one year of experience repeated ten times over. That is, keep learning and growing by taking on new challenges—even if it means sometimes making mistakes.
We’ve all encountered people who fossilized at some point, as if they’d already learned everything they needed to know. In a previous job, one of my senior colleagues had never learned to use email. He got his messages when one of the admins printed them out for him. One of my predecessors at the same organization hadn’t kept up with the copyright laws. He—and they—were lucky that didn’t come back to bite them. Both men were highly respected, even revered, but older wasn’t necessarily wiser.
It seemed to me that that organization prized its senior people while neglecting the younger ones. My father used to say we should build on the past, but not dwell in it. The emphasis there seemed to be more on history than future.
To obtain a license as a Professional Engineer, one must document a work history of progressively increasing responsibility. And to maintain the license, continuing education is necessary. Both requirements encourage career development. That’s essential because codes and standards are always updating to incorporate new knowledge. New software gives us new capabilities. And social changes necessitate adaptation as well.
Diversity
[T]he future of American power depends far less on military might than on the demographic change taking place within the United States. In the next two decades America will evolve from a white-majority nation into a “plurality nation”: a country in which no one racial or ethnic group holds a majority. America must either figure out how to harness the enormous benefits of reflecting and connecting the world, or allow demographic tensions to tear it apart.—The Economist, 24 August 2021
To do that, we need to think differently about our changing demographics. Rather than cling too closely to the comfortable and familiar, we need to listen to new perspectives. Certainly it’s a lot easier to seek out people who think exactly like us. But it’s worth the effort to get to know others whose views and customs are new to us. That keeps us from getting too set in our ways. As circumstances change, we need to adapt. Some people may have already found good ways to do that. Better to learn from them than have to figure out everything from scratch.
The 20th century saw a shift from melting pot to multicultural mosaic, from e pluribus unum to plures… Americans can be plures et unum at the same time, many and one. That capacious concept of identity will allow us to connect to our roots around the world and celebrate our diverse cultures while simultaneously taking pride in a country big enough to hold us all.—The Economist, 24 August 2021
Mentoring the next generation
One of the best ways to grow both older and wiser is to develop relationships with younger people. That can take different forms, such as teaching classes or mentoring a junior colleague. While you may be imparting wisdom to someone younger, if you’re doing it right you’re also learning from them. It really helps if you’re willing to admit you don’t know something.
When I was doing research and development, I used to make a point of talking with graduate students more than their professors at conferences. The students were the ones actively doing the work, so they knew more about the nuts and bolts. That information was really helpful in my own investigations.
It can also help to get a fresh perspective on old habits. Some years ago I served as host mother to a series of Chinese graduate students at the University of Minnesota. It was always interesting to help them get acquainted with life in Minneapolis. Having lived overseas myself, I made a point of showing them how our appliances work and how to navigate the local bus system. I also hosted Thanksgiving dinners so they could experience some of our traditions.
But sometimes I’d get in over my head, as when one of the students asked me why we refer to adult animals as “girl” or “boy”. Seeing the generous gifts of mice, voles, and even full-grown rabbits from Fridtjof, my orange tabby, she noted, “He’s such a good provider you should call him a man.”