How Being “Old” Makes Me More Successful

When we were in our 20s and 30s we had many advantages in life. Do I need to list them all? I don’t think so. We are very aware of those advantages… both the real ones and the imagined.

But, as we age, we begin to realize (hopefully) that with all the disadvantages of growing older there are many, MANY advantages that come along with it as well.

When I was “let go” from my job at the age of 48, I was finding it hard to remember those supposed MANY advantages of getting older.

After all, I was a middle-aged, over-weight (not that THAT had anything to do with anything – just thought I’d add it here), unemployed secretary that had no idea of what the next step should be.

To say that I was scared and directionless would be an understatement.

Fortunately, I quickly found out about working as a Virtual Assistant, also known as V.A.

A Virtual Assistant is basically what I had been doing for over 20 years as an Administrative Assistant, but it’s done in a remote location (i.e., home office, while traveling, or maybe in a coffee shop somewhere) and normally as a freelancer.

And, even better, I found out about working as a Virtual Assistant when you’re a “more mature” person.

In the Physical Office

My age in the physical office was always evident. And, even though I take good care of my skin and am not overly concerned with the thought of my aging (in fact, I feel blessed to have lived to get to this age) – others do have perceptions about it.

My FACE told others that I may not be:

• As quick and efficient with social media.
• Very technologically savvy.
• Fast enough up and down the staircase.
• Using words that were considered “cool.”

Whether these things were true is not the point. It was the perception – at least in my mind.

In the Virtual Office

Working in a virtual world changed all of that.

• The skills I had gathered over the last 20+ years were the things that shined.
• I could predict patterns from my office experience and be proactive with those patterns instead of reactive.
• I could work faster than others and give input at the same time because I’d done it all before.

The look of my aging face meant nothing to my clients. It was all about how well I was performing the work.

Success

Working virtually actually evened the playing field for me.

Because I spoke as someone with wisdom, confidence, and knowledge, my rates were higher than those that weren’t able to speak of such experience.

My client connections were strong and long – because I knew the value of finding the right clients and working hard to keep them.

And, I loved every minute of my new job. That is a sure win-win.

What could be better than that?

Nothing.

Well… except… maybe the feeling that I now had an advantage over those “youngins” back in the office.

Want to learn to work this way too? Join me on this journey at stephaniebrodt.com

Let’s Have a Conversation:

What advantages do older people have in a work setting? Do you work with people younger than you? How do they look at you? How would you like them to look at you? Would you consider working remotely from a home office? Please share your thoughts with our sisters!