Over 50? Start-Up Late? Be Seniorpreneur Great!

What are you planning to do when you retire? Can you even afford to retire? Most people I speak to cannot. Most are planning on staying in their jobs well into their 70’s and 80’s if the companies will let them.

But wouldn’t it be better to start your own business? Even if it takes the usual 3 to 5 years to become financially viable, you would still be better off than waiting for that final chop. Let’s look at why.

1) You have got ALL the life experience you need

The young entrepreneurs out there are making tons of money for sure. They are pretty stereotyped at this point - 20’s to mid 30’s, single, no responsibilities, white male, t-shirt, cap, millions of followers.

But what they don’t have, is the experience of the hard knocks of life. You do. For the most part, they don’t know what marriage, divorce, kids, retrenchments, bankruptcy, mortgages, pets, homes, farms, ailing parents, dead parents, supporting parents, ill health, climbing the corporate ladder, specialising in something for decades, long-term relationships, managing people, etc even feels like.

You have solved more problems for yourself and the companies you have worked for than they have been alive. You have all the information you need right in your head! You don’t need Artificial Intelligence (AI) to write content for you.

2) What else are you going to do?

I have a friend in his 80’s whose life partner was going overseas for a couple of months. I asked him what he was going to do in the meantime. “Wait to die” was his response. It broke my heart. It does not have to be that way!!

We are living so much longer than before. Being put out to pasture at 60 or 65 is ludicrous.

By the way, did you know there is no law in South Africa stating people need to retire by a certain age? It just be written into your employment contract and ‘agreed to’. Makes you think…

If you’ve made enough money to travel until you die, well done. Have a good trip. But can you really just travel for another 20 years? The time will come when that gets boring too.

You need a purpose in life to truly thrive! Sharing your knowledge on your own terms can be a hugely fulfilling purpose.

3) You are probably a grown up now able to make rational decisions

I generalise of course. I’m 55 and only feel like I’m just starting to grow up! That hot-headedness of my youth is being replaced with seeing things from a more balanced perspective. The point being; you are far less likely to fly off the handle at challenges that arise. This is vital for running a business, dealing with suppliers and managing people.

The 20 and 30 somethings are still half baked. You don’t think you are of course. I clearly remember being super opinionated in those years when I actually had no clue about the world. It took another 30 years of experience to get perspective to understand that.

4) You can manage money and risk

Even if you haven’t made enough to retire, it’s likely you’re making enough to live a comfortable life - if you didn’t spend it all on sex, drugs and rock ‘n roll of course. You know how to save, invest and spend wisely. This means you will make smarter financial decisions in your business which will be critical for getting over the first 5-year mark.

If you’re lucky and you do have a nest egg, you are in the prime position to start any business you like. Your past experience will help you assess risk with no effort at all. You’ll know when and what to buy for your business without putting yourself in financial trouble.

5) You know lots of people

Word of mouth business is pure gold. You’ve had decades to build up a network of people that can support you in your business. Use it!

6) The world desperately needs you

It doesn’t take a rocket scientist to see that the world has gone a little insane the past decade. When we have people “identifying” as teaspoons and horses or Heaven only know what, we have a serious leadership problem on this planet.

When you look at the current leaders in the media and on social media, do you see anything that the youth can look up to and learn the skills they need to thrive on this planet? Do you see any wholesome family values being taught? Any skills that teach people to grow their own food, manage their emotions, manage businesses, build relationships, sell, connect to their inner voices, meditate?

None in the mainstream. By design.

Celebrated industry tycoons are littered with scandals of corruption, trafficking underage kids for sport, using child labour to dodge production costs, destroying the environment for profit, or harvesting our souls via social media.

Is this the world we want to leave behind?

I firmly believe it is you and I; Jane and Joe Public who have the power to change this. We don’t need to fight the old. We just need to build the new.

If you take all that knowledge and sensibility with you when you die, what was the point of gathering it in the first place?

Teach it, please. There are so many ways you can do this now.

What Can Hold You Back?

We live in the Digital Information Age. It’s just not the same ballgame anymore. Tech giants have designed algorithms to enslave us in unprecedented ways. Technology of all types has exploded into a dizzying number of tools. Access to the internet has levelled the playing field. AI has disrupted everything and created a fake reality 100 times up from the fake social media reality we live in.

How I started my business 15 years ago, is not how I am starting my Seniorpreneur business.

We grew up in the area of trust, handshake agreements, face to face meetings, honour. Of kids leaving the house at dawn and coming home when the lights went on. We grew and cooked our own food. Pitched up at friends’ houses without calling first. We spent time together laughing and talking, not a phone in sight. We sent letters and cards via the postal service. Started our careers on typewriters with carbon paper and Tippex.

That era has passed.

Now we need to learn the technology to play the game

Unless you have kept your lifelong career network of people in place, you are going to need technology to be able to compete and be seen.

This is the biggest stumbling block to the older generation wanting to start a business. There is just SO much tech now, for so many things, that it becomes impossible to get a handle on it or stay ahead of it. I don’t think anyone of any age can stay ahead of technology anymore.

But there are basics you will need to learn to have a thriving business in the digital age - smart phones, social media, forums, websites, e-commerce engines, email automations, and yes, AI, (for the boring stuff at least).

It would be easier to properly define your business and its goals, and just outsource it. The time and sanity you will save will be worth every cent. But you still need to learn your smartphone and your laptop. Do courses on the basics.

People don’t take you seriously because you are “old”

I went to a conference 10 years ago, where a speaker promptly announced that anyone over the age of 40 had nothing left to offer the world. Being 45 at the time, I flew into a rage and took him on then and there! I was FURIOUS! And proved him wrong. My award-winning business is now 15 years old and I just got a million views on my blog.

People will have a perception of you no matter what. It’s up to you to change it. You can build a brand that leaves no doubt in anyone’s mind of your expertise. Start by writing newsletters like this. It’s free. It’s a no-risk way of putting yourself out there, seeing what it is you want to specialise in, and building your expertise at the same time. Plus you get to instantly share your knowledge and leave a legacy.

Just remember - 99% of people don’t know who you are. You can rebrand yourself no matter what’s gone on in your life.

What sort of thing can you do?

How long is a piece of string? If you have focused your attention on something for 10 years or more, you are considered an expert in it. Whether you were a Personal Assistant all your life, or the CEO, you have endless knowledge at your fingertips.

There is always going to be a market for the following:

• Critical thinking

• Problem solving

• Written and verbal communication

• Leadership and how to manage people

• Collaboration and teamwork

• How to sell

• Lifelong and lifewide learning

• Adaptability and resilience

• Emotional intelligence

• Prioritizing tasks

• Set and achieve goals

• Stress management and wellbeing

• Financial literacy and how money works

• Digital literacy and how to use it to empower you

• Basic business management

• The basics of home life - cooking, baking, laundry, repairs, owning pets, gardening, servicing a car, changing a wheel, using a drill

• Understanding different cultures

• Environmental management and care

• Empathy

• Integrity

• Love

• Meditation

• How to share your knowledge

This is apart from the big stuff like astrophysics, engineering, medical, legal etc. All those fields have endless opportunity for consulting and education businesses.

Age is truly just a number

Your body might be 75, but I’ll bet your mind is somewhere in its earlier 30’s. Put it to good use while you still can. Write a book, write a blog, write a newsletter. Something.

The world needs your brain. And you are just getting started.