A Time of Renaissance: The Truth About Women Over 50
One of my best friends recently celebrated her youngest child’s departure to college. She and her husband were the first of our friend group to experience an empty nest and based on what I had heard from media, I was expecting sadness to overwhelm her. But she called it “The Renaissance,” a time of rebirth.
She was working in a job that she loved and was being wooed by another job prospect. She had fewer responsibilities at home. She was happy and vital and feeling her best.
In fact, she was a typical woman over 50; experienced, smart, confident, working, and loving life.
We Represent
Over 30% of the US population is over 50 years of age. Over 53 million people working today (about 30%) are over 50.
And yet, in advertising, older adults appear in 15% of ad images and over 80% of the time, they are depicted at home or in medical situations.
And despite the fact that we hold trillions of dollars in wealth, as a demographic, we are “shunned and caricatured in marketing images, perpetuating unrealistic stereotypes and contributing to age discrimination.” [1]
As I have gotten older, I experienced this growing invisibility in the public eye. As a woman over 50, I was only trotted into the public arena when I was encouraged to try and appear much younger than 50.
I felt a huge disconnect. I had managed to get all four of my kids through school; three into college and one in his last years of high school. My relationship with my husband was stronger than ever. I was exploring new interests. I even completed my Master’s Degree.
I felt like I was the best me in my whole life.
I had to know why — had to reconcile how my age group could be invisible in ads and in news and yet so vitally alive in real life. I discovered five facts about women over 50 that ring true but that are rarely portrayed in media.
1. We are more experienced.
The popular images of women over 50 who are forgetful or out of touch with reality don’t fit. In fact, with our added years of experience, we are better equipped to lead. I was particularly intrigued by Darren Croft’s research findings on Orca whales who, just like humans, have older females in their pods who live long past their years of reproduction. He found that pods that were led by older females were able to survive longer and were healthier. The older females helped feed younger whales and in times of scarcity, they were able to find viable food sources. [2]
In fact, the research collected about the Orcas has helped women over 50 sift through their own worth in a westernized world that devalues women over a certain age. As Christa D’Souza, author of The Hot Topic : A Life-Changing Look at the Change of Life, said, “We complain, women of my age, of becoming invisible, and it’s true — you realise how very much you’re defined by sexuality. But I have a sense — galvanised by stories about the killer whales — that now is the time when you become the person you really want to be.”
2. We are smarter and far more adaptable.
While I was studying for my Master’s degree, I found myself comparing new information with the same points I had learned years prior. I could make the connection between original data that had been brand new when I was twenty years old and follow the ways that research had branched out from it. Those research paths that lead from each topic mirrored the links I was making to my old memories.
Even though I hadn’t been in a classic classroom for years, I was able to slip into the halls of academia quickly. When I compared notes with peers my age, we all had similar experiences. We were getting smarter as we got older; not losing brain capacity but gaining it.
And when I Googled it, I found the affirmation that what I was claiming was true. Women over 50 are making connections within their brain, using both hemispheres together to process more effectively. And on top of that, our brains keep growing and learning! [3]
In essence, our practical life experience has trained our brain to create pathways between the right and left hemispheres that younger adults simply cannot do.
3. We are more confident in ourselves.
After raising kids and supporting older parents, many women over 50 have been through it all, or at least, a lot. They know what life can be like and they have lived through it. Women over 50, “do a lot of this confidence building for our kids, for our families, for our friends,” and now we are looking in the mirror and reminding ourselves that we can add value, too. [4]
Our experience has made us stronger and more confident in our abilities. And every year, we grow in our confidence. According Zenger Folkman’s research in his article on Forbes.com, as women’s experience increases over time, so does their confidence. [5]
4. We are a force to be reckoned with in whatever work we choose.
Despite ageism, we aren’t invisible. We’re getting things done, in inventive ways that work around obstacles. As of 2019, “12 million women owned businesses in the US.” [6]
And according to the Harvard Business Review, the older the business owner, the more likely they will be successful in their endeavors. In fact, “when you look at most successful firms, the average founder age goes up, not down. Overall, the empirical evidence shows that successful entrepreneurs tend to be middle-aged, not young.” [7]
And for those large corporations that don’t agree, work trends are moving more and more towards “side hustles” — along with the female entrepreneurs who are running them. In a report by Business Wire, part-time entrepreneurship (or sidepreneurship) “is providing additional options to traditional employment and entrepreneurship for women.”
In fact, “over the last five years, growth in the number of women sidepreneurs has grown at a rate that is nearly twice as fast as the overall growth in female entrepreneurship: 39% compared to 21%, respectively.” [8]
5. We’re loving life.
Our responsibilities are decreasing. The time we can spend on ourselves and our passions is increasing. As I mentioned before, our brains are firing in new and different ways.
“Women in the over 55 demographic are in the prime of their lives and having the time of their lives — a force to be reckoned with and the glue that holds generations together.” [9]
Better Than Ever
Women over 50 have been vilified, mocked, and neglected for many years. But my experience, backed by my research, is telling me that when the going got tough, my peers and I didn’t give up. We got going.
Our life has given us experience and intelligence that leads to a more confident outlook in work and in life. We’re better than ever, whether the advertising agencies think so or not.
Young or old, 50 (and older) is something to look forward to as a time of growth and rebirth. Look at your own life and embrace your renaissance!
