Senior management. Senior partner. Put the word “senior” in front of “judge” or “senator” and it conjures up an image of extensive experience, vast knowledge, and confident leadership. Now, place the word “senior” in front of domestic labels: senior care, senior portion and senior home. The image is one of fragility. Gone is the impact of years of experience, knowledge and leadership. How can we transfer some of that respect and power that “senior” implies in the work world to those who no longer work?
Senior Population Explosion
Demographically, the percent of seniors in the world population is growing quickly (10% now, 16% in 2050). Seniors themselves have strength in numbers to start societal change and challenge the ageist attitudes that society carries. These attitudes affect the way others interact with older adults but they also affect a senior’s perception of themselves.
Many older adults tend to internalize the negative stereotypes of ageism that continue to be perpetuated throughout society today and tend to confine themselves to age-related stereotypes, becoming weak, unhealthy, and even less able to accept new learning opportunities*
Older adults who have internalized ageist ideas, may avoid doing things that they don’t think are appropriate for seniors and therefore limit their own life experiences and curtail potential avenues of joy.
How do you challenge negative stereotypes of seniors?
1. Do the things. Start weight-training or flamenco dancing or marathon running if those things interest you. When seniors can be found in all areas of life, they no longer become a news story.
2. Call out ageism when you see it or hear it from yourself or others. “They’re too old to wear those fashionable clothes.” Wear the cool sneakers!
3. Expose yourself to positive messages about aging. In a 2016 study, they found “that exposing older adults to subliminal positive messages about aging several times over a month improved their mobility and balance — crucial measures of physical function.”*** Remind yourself and other seniors that they are capable, fit and experienced.
4. Stay focused on what’s going well in your life instead of what’s going wrong. *** Everyone has physical aliments from time to time but going to doctors’ appointments to deal with them doesn’t need to be the focus of your week.
“Nothing About Us Without Us”***
Over time as the senior population grows and demands a seat at the table, hopefully the word “senior” will become as strong and powerful as the word “person.”
What ageist attitudes have you come across lately? Comment below.
*https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/pmc/articles/PMC9008869/
**https://www.visualcapitalist.com/cp/charted-the-worlds-aging-population-1950-to-2100/
***For more ideas on how to combat ageism, click here.
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