I can implement streaming architectures using the latest technologies that can handle throughputs of TB per hour. I can handle the architecture, security, infrastructure as code, and monitoring, as well as the development. I can also help with price vs feature analysis. I have demonstrable experience in doing so, with happy references. I can do it much faster and more successfully than a recent college grad.

Shouldn't minimize the reality of getting old.

Edit: Just in case this sounds snarky, it is a bit. But that first paragraph sells well. I am sure if I was making crud apps in Node I would be a much harder sell. A younger, recent grad can definitely out price me and do a wonderful job.

I was in agreement with you until you mentioned security. Peer review and avoiding your own bias is essential, you can’t do that alone.

Well, I didn't say I do security alone. The types of companies I work with other have an entire security group. But I can absolutely begin the architecture with proper security principles in mind and I can go through the review process with both peers and groups. I certainly know where to start with security and the security issues inherent with eventing and streaming. Which I guess is the point. I also don't often engineer the entire application from soup to nuts but I guess I technically could.

How does one get experience architecting stuff when most roles usually require experience?

If you have a role now, start working with the architects to gain experience. Become friends with all of the architects. Learn from them. Then ask your organization to move you to an architectural role. Maybe without any sort of pay increase. The point is to get the verifiable experience on your resume. Then you can move.

well in your 50s your kids are grown, in your 30s they were just born. So companies are better hiring 50 year olds?

That's quite an assumption to make about when someone had kids.

It's ballpark accurate though, right?

eh? not at all. the mean age for a first child is now 29.

https://www.cbs.nl/en-gb/news/2019/19/average-age-of-first-t...

and

https://www.cbs.nl/en-gb/figures/detail/37744eng

the latter has underlying data for which you can extract %ile parent age. To save you the time, by parent age 40 it's under 10%ile.