Why Entrepreneurs Starting at 50+ Have a High Success Rate

Guest blogger P. Lorraine Wigglesworth, CSP, is an international entrepreneurship and marketing consultant and Managing Director of Experiential Hands-on Learning. She is also the author of The 50-60-Something Start-up Entrepreneur: How to Quickly Start and Run a Successful Small Business. In this second installment of her three-article series, she discusses why entrepreneurs age 50+ have a high success rate.

It may seem like starting young is the best way to build a successful business, today more than ever. After all, when you're young you have nothing to lose and a lot of energy to spend, and since your whole life is ahead of you, you can afford to make mistakes and learn from them. But starting older isn't bad either. In fact, it turns out that for many people, starting at 50+ years is even better than starting young. Yep, you read that correctly.

A Few Illustrious Examples

Some of the world's best-known and most profitable businesses were started by entrepreneurs past 50. Raymond Kroc was 52 and driving around the US selling milkshake machines when he started McDonald's. Pharmacist and physician John Pemberton was 55 when, in an effort to create an alternative to morphine, removed the "French Wine" from his French Wine Coca recipe and founded the famous Cola company. Colonel Harland David Sanders was 65 when he opened a small service station and started working with franchises, establishing what would later become one of the world's best-known brands: KFC.

You could say "that was then, but things have changed." To some extent things have changed, in that it's now easier than ever for anyone to become an entrepreneur and start a business, which is why so many entrepreneurs are starting young. But here are some present-day facts that can inspire anyone past 50 to start a business.

·        Entrepreneurs over 55 are almost twice as likely to build successful businesses than entrepreneurs aged 20 to 34. This is true even for the highly competitive tech industry, where young entrepreneurs are thought to have a head start because they grew up with the Internet and 21st century technology.

·        The highest rate of entrepreneurial activity in the United States in the last 10 years was dominated by entrepreneurs aged 55 to 64. There are many reasons for this, including a new approach to retirement that technology and modern life makes possible, strong professional connections, and the ease with each almost anyone can start a business.

·        Startups that survive are more likely to be led by owners over 45 years of age, according to a 2004 to 2008 study based on 5,000 startups carried out by the Kauffman Ewing Institute. No less than 64% of the surviving startups were headed by older entrepreneurs.

·        People over 50 years of age have a greater potential to create innovative companies, products, and solutions. This may sound a bit surprising, but innovators do get better with age. Whether you want to create a startup in an industry you've worked in before or start afresh pursuing a passion in a new industry, the experience that comes with being 50+ can be a big advantage.

·        People over 55 years are more likely to launch a high-growth startup than those under 35. What's more, this doesn't seem to be localized to specific industries, but can be noticed across the board. Older entrepreneurs have the experience, skills, and insight necessary for them to guide their venture to success. They can better manage fears and expectations and have the balance and determinate to persist in spite of obstacles.

When 50 Is Just Right

Put together all these interesting findings and the message is simple: age is not only not an obstacle to becoming an entrepreneur, but being 50 or older increases your chances of meeting with success. While this insight won't make the creation of your startup any less easy, nor will it eliminate challenges, it can be a wonderful incentive for you to finally create the business you always wanted to have.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/P_Lorraine_Wigglesworth/969794

How to Get Started with Social Media for the 50-60-Something Entrepreneur

The Advantages of the 50-60-Something Entrepreneur

Guest blogger P. Lorraine Wigglesworth, CSP, is an international entrepreneurship and marketing consultant and Managing Director of Experiential Hands-on Learning. She is also the author of

The 50-60-Something Start-up Entrepreneur: How to Quickly Start and Run a Successful Small Business. This 3-article series focuses on older entrepreneurs who want to start a business. 

Today, when younger entrepreneurs get so much media attention, it may seem that they have a head start, but in fact, there are twice as many successful entrepreneurs over 50 as under 25 (yeah baby). Apart from life experience, a 50 or 60-something entrepreneur has a couple of other advantages over a young entrepreneur, even if he or she is only starting their first venture. Listed below are just a few reasons why 50+ is a great age for anyone to make his or her dream of being an entrepreneur come true.

Richer Network Connections

By the time you reach 50 or 60, you've probably built at least a few strong professional connections, some of them perhaps even reinforced by strong friendships and other ties. This is especially true if you've been working in the corporate world. Knowing other people in an industry you are interested in, whether they are on the management ladder or not, can be a treasure trove of insight, advice, business opportunities, and perhaps even partners and staffing resources.

Stability and Endurance

Being an entrepreneur is rewarding, but it can also be demanding, especially with your time and money. By the time they turn 50, many aspiring entrepreneurs have a family, own a house, and are more secure financially than they were in their 20s or 30s. Many are even likely to be grandparents. Having a strong and stable personal and financial foundation gives entrepreneurs in their 50s and 60s the stability and endurance needed to steer a business on the path to success.

Clarity and Focus

Entrepreneurs over the age of 50 are more likely to invest their time in projects that have a social, cultural, or environmental impact that matters for future generations. By the time you're 50, time has likely helped you filter your passions and embrace those which are not only the most important for you, but which have the power to do good. From this understanding springs the clarity and focus of applying all your energy and resources on building something that matters, not just for you, but for others, too.

Patience

Patience is a virtue in the world of business. There are plenty of young entrepreneurs who have it, but it's one of those virtues that the years tend to polish and refine. An entrepreneur in his 50 or 60 has seen enough in his or her life to know that rushing things, making impulsive decisions, or acting on the spur of the moment is often bad for business.

With 50 or 60 of years of life experience behind you, you will be less likely to force the growth of your company, quit when the going gets tough, or go to market too early. You have the patience of experience.

Empathy

As we grow older, we tend to become increasingly aware of the problems and challenges those around us are facing. The same is true for entrepreneurs. After 50 or 60, entrepreneurs tend to have deeper reservoirs of empathy for those around them. This can translate into a more considerate approach to management that creates a pleasant workplace environment which naturally attracts people.

Better Fear Management Skills

Fear of failure, fear of stagnation, or fear of competitors getting ahead are only three of the fears entrepreneurs have to manage. All too often, these are background fears that can surge at any moment during challenging times. The 50 or 60-something entrepreneur knows fear and, like most people, has likely battled with his or her own fears during his life. He or she has developed a natural fear management and response mechanism that minimizes fear as a factor for their decisions.

As C.S. Lewis said, "You are never too old to set another goal or to dream a new dream." Being 50 or 60 years old is not only a great age for being a successful entrepreneur today, but it's actually good for business.

Article Source: http://EzineArticles.com/expert/P_Lorraine_Wigglesworth/969794

Book Review - The Great Alone

The Great Alone , by bestselling author Kristin Hannah, was the first selection in our new neighborhood book club. The Great Alone is a nickname for Alaska, and the novel's description intrigued me, so I eagerly started reading. 

Almost immediately, I had a hard time getting into the story. While the main character, Leni, a 13-year-old girl, is engaging, her parents are not. The dad, Ernt, scarred from being a POW during the Vietnam War, is abusive and anti-social and hates anyone with money.

His problems started before the war, though; at 25, he got involved with Leni’s mother, Cora, who was only 16. She got pregnant, and he should have been put in prison for statutory rape.

Cora is a simpering weakling who takes her abusive husband back time after time, naively believing his promises that he “will never do it again.” While this is an accurate portrayal of battered woman syndrome and younger readers will definitely be shocked by the lack of help the law offered women in the 1970s, it’s hard to have sympathy for Cora when her daughter suffers the consequences of her poor role modeling and this violent man.

When Ernt inherits a homestead in Alaska from a war buddy who was killed, he decides he wants to leave civilization and live off the grid. He drags his wife and daughter to a dilapidated cabin with no running water, heat, or electricity, and where Cora and Leni have to be constantly vigilant against attacks from bears and wolves.  

The nearby “town” has few people and a one-room schoolhouse. In Ernt’s zeal to be far

from society, the idea of there being a school for Leni to attend didn’t even cross his mind. Neither of these adults is likeable. While they can do what they want, they seem oblivious to the fact that they are condemning their child to live in a place where she has no opportunity or future.

If I hadn’t been reading this book for the book club, I would have quit after Chapter One. I had to force myself to plod on. Around page 250, I was surprised to see the plot finally kick in. Then I couldn’t put the book down. The first 250 pages could have been condensed into 50-75 to keep the story moving. The problem with the last 200, though, is that the real plot is rushed. What was in these pages should have been the entire book but stretched out and expanded. I’m not sure why the editors at St. Martin’s Press didn’t see this.

While the author’s writing is very visual, the descriptions of Alaska’s desolation are well done, and the state certainly seems to have unparalleled beauty, Hannah’s constant intrusion into the story was annoying. Her frequent asides in parentheses to the readers should have been edited out. Example: “Leni got out of the plane carefully (nothing was more dangerous up here than getting wet in the winter).”

Also, when reading the narrative portions, it often seemed we were in the author’s head and not in a character’s. The viewpoint of Leni as a 13-year-old is that of an adult—again, the author. Leni knows names of trees, plants, and places that are not yet part of her experience, and she can tell the ages of adults (that one looks 40 and that one looks 50), which no child that young could do. These adults would just be “old.”

Also, there was repeated dialogue—one character saying the exact same unusual phrasing of words that a previous character had said (again an editing problem)—and changes of viewpoint that appeared very late in the story and weren’t really necessary.

I do have to say that the ending is satisfying and worth getting to, but as I mentioned, the story moves in a slow, boring, and aggravating manner for those first 250 pages and then speeds through the real meat. If you are looking for a story that hooks you from the first page, this one falls far short of the mark.

Young Fashion Designer Achieves Great Success

When we think of entrepreneurs, most of us picture adults or college-age people like Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, and Mark Zuckerberg when they first started their companies. The Internet, however, has offered the opportunity for very young people to run companies and start their careers early in life. This article is the first in a new series on this blog featuring young entrepreneurs. 

Moziah Bridges, 15, the President and Creative Director of Mo’s Bows (mosbowsmemphis.com) is a real inspiration to kids who have dreams of running their own businesses. Several years ago, Mo wanted an accessory that would make him look sharp but couldn’t find anything that suited him. His grandmother helped him make bowties and Mo’s Bows was born. 

In 2014, when Mo was 12, he and his mother, Tramica, appeared on Shark Tank. Reminded of himself and his mother and his early endeavors and impressed by Mo’s diligence, fashion mogul and entrepreneur Daymond John invested in the fledgling Memphis, Tennessee-based company.

With John’s help and guidance, Mo’s Bows were soon on the shelves of stores like Bloomingdale's and Neiman Marcus. In 2025, Mo found himself on TIME Magazine's

Most Influential Teen List and invited to meet with President Obama at the White House. When “ESPN hired Mo as a fashion correspondent for their NBA Draft telecast, …his company hand-made bow ties for all of the draft picks” (Belzer, 2017). 

The partnership with the NBA has launched Mo's Bows to a new level and may earn the company over $6 billion this year. In addition to bowties, the company now offers neckties, pocket squares, and t-shirts. Says Mo, who is well on the way of achieving his dream of being a fashion mogul himself and who hopes to have a full line of  clothing by the time he graduates from college, "I never imagined the baby business I started at my grandmother's kitchen table would one day be an internationally recognized brand."

Sources:

www.mosbowsmemphis.com

Belzer, Jason. (2017, May 9). The Little Black Book of Billionaire Secrets: 15-year-old Mo’s Bows Founder Hustles His Way into NBA Partnership. Forbes. Retrieved from https://www.forbes.com/sites/jasonbelzer/2017/05/09/15-year-old-mos-bows-founder-hustles-his-way-into-nba-partnership/#54ed19104e87