Don’t let someone else dictate how you feel
Among the pieces of wise advice offered to older job seekers is to not try to hide your age. Put it out there and deal with it. That’s smart.
By the same token, however, don’t let someone else dictate to you how you feel about your age. Just because they have certain perceptions about age, don’t let that define you. You’re not old and decrepit just because they may think so.
When they make assumptions about you based on your age, that’s time to collect some saliva in your mouth so that you can spit in their eyes. “You don’t think that I can do that? Let me tell you that, not only can I do that, I can do it better, faster and more efficiently because I’ve done it before and I’m ready, willing and able to do it again.”
Just because they think that old people are sickly and that you’ll miss a lot of work because you’ll be out sick, you need to lean forward, look them in the eye and explain to them how healthy you are.
Just because they think that old people are technologically inept, make them understand that you’ve been working with technology for the past (number) of years and that you can learn something new and master it quickly.
Just because they think that old people need special considerations as part of their employment, assure them that you are on a par with people half your age.
There are all these misconceptions permeating through the workplace about people who have reached a certain age, well, guess what. They’re wrong. And you’re just one to prove it.