If you think you’re too old to become a business owner, think again

Small business doesn’t do “Ageism”

“Starting a small business is a young man’s game.”
“At my age, I couldn’t keep up with all those young entrepreneurs, I’m better off keeping my job.”

I used to think those thoughts myself… Getting a small Business off the ground is not for people over 30.

But it’s hogwash

Complete and utter nonsense.

The opposite is actually the case.

Believe me: If you’re in your fifties, the kids have finished school and are doing their own thing, you’ve largely paid off the mortgage and you’ve started noticing that you are being treated as a senior citizen at work… Tell ‘em all to take a running jump and start your own thing.

We all know how much harder it gets to land a new job after you turn fifty. Ageism… it sucks and it shouldn’t matter, but it just does. Successfully getting through a job application process after you’ve turned fifty is hard, much harder than when you were 35, no matter how good your CV is and how suited you are for a role. But in business, your own business, grey hairs are a benefit. Trust me, since turning fifty myself 8 years ago, I’ve noticed I am being taken much more seriously by all and sundry. It’s quite funny actually, by default people assume I am the wisest person in the room. I have a distinct competitive advantage these days because of my age and grey hair.

Sick of office politics

If you have the opportunity to take a redundancy; if you are simply sick to death of always having to dance to the tunes of your inept managers or if the organisational politics are causing you to wish you were dead sometimes: Get out there and do it for yourself.

Let me be clear: life of an entrepreneur is not always a bed of roses. You may have plenty of worries and frustrations, but they are your frustrations and your worries… No one else’s.

I honestly believe entrepreneurship, becoming a small business owner, is a wonderful way to spend your fifties and your sixties and beyond. I’m fifty eight and I can’t imagine myself ever retiring. Sure, I’ll slow down, but being my own boss, standing in the centre of my life and knowing that it’s all down to me; The fact that I don’t have to report on my ‘deliverables’ and ‘targets’ to anyone, gives me a sense of freedom I never want to lose again. And why wouldn’t I want to continue doing what I do in my business? As a business coach. I get to meet and work with people who grab life by the scruff of the neck and give it a good shake… Much more fun than lawn bowling… For me anyway.

21-year-old consultant

Of course, the business you start when you’re 55 is not the same business you start when you’re 21. After all these years of experience you have something special to offer as a consultant or adviser or counsellor. You can’t start a business on the basis of that when you’re 21, you simply don’t have that kind of credibility. I would never engage a 21-year-old consultant, just like I probably also wouldn’t engage a 65 year old gardener. There’s a time for gardening and there’s a time for consulting.

So ask yourself. If you were made redundant tomorrow, and that in today’s world of work, as a 55 or 60 or 65 year old you’re going to find it hard to find a suitable job … What would you love to go out and create? What are you good at and passionate about and experienced in that you can build a nice small business in?

Got it?

Ok… So why wait for that redundancy?

Back yourself and get out there… You’ll never regret you did… I promise you

And by the way, I recently came across a great article with advice for seniors when starting a new business, here is the link.

#Seniorbusiness #MatureEntrepreneur #OlderBusinessOwner #BusinessOverFifty #BusinessAfterRetirement #RetirementBusiness #BusinessCoach #FunInBusiness

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The post You’re Never Too Old to Become an Entrepreneur appeared first on New Perspectives.