One of the most common things I hear during my senior tech tutoring sessions isn’t a technical question; it’s a self-deprecating comment.

Whether it’s “I’m just a tech dummy” or “My brain doesn’t work this way,” many seniors in Marin feel a sense of personal failure when they hit a digital wall.

I often remind my clients that this frustration is rarely about their ability to learn.

It’s a byproduct of a world that markets these devices as “so easy a child can do it.”

When a retired teacher, a doctor, or an artist struggles to navigate an Apple ID login or a FaceTime setup, they often blame themselves rather than a confusing interface.

The reality is that modern technology is a highly specific language.

Expecting someone to “just pick it up” without a foundation is like expecting to learn a second language just by looking at a dictionary.

When a feature is hidden behind a ‘long press’ or tucked away in a sub-menu, it isn’t necessarily intuitive, it’s just a new set of rules to learn.

In my work at Senior Tech Tutor Marin, the goal is to shift the focus from easy to learnable.

I want my neighbors to know that hitting a snag isn’t a sign that they’re behind the times; it’s often just a result of a design that doesn’t always account for every user’s experience.

Whether the goal is to watch a video sent by a grandchild or join a local Zoom book club, that desire to stay connected is what matters.

My job is simply to provide the patience and clear instruction needed to bridge that gap.

By breaking things down into manageable steps, we can move past the frustration and get back to the reason we use these tools in the first place: staying engaged with the people and activities we love and (hopefully) simplifying some aspects of life.