Is 40 too old to start a business?

PAOLO KERNAHAN

FORTY, 50, 60 and beyond; how old is too old to start a business? Lots of mature folks want to pursue building a business later in life. They have fears, though, of chasing such entrepreneurial ambitions. Too old to fail is a mantra that springs to mind.

Some studies suggest, however, that older entrepreneurs often achieve the same or even greater success than younger folks. In some instances, it's estimated you're twice as likely to thrive in entrepreneurship over the age of 50 than someone half your age.

Still, starting a business in what some consider the twilight of life can be seen as a needless risk, like skydiving or starting in on a Netflix film.

I can certainly relate to the fear. At the age of 39, I left the media to start my own video production company. At the time, leaving a job I'd held for most of my adult life simply felt like an organic progression. At the start, there was some nail-biting but not quite bed-wetting. Admittedly a degree of ignorance about what I was getting myself into prevented my fears from graduating to paralysis.

Furthermore, at the ripe old age of 48, I changed course dramatically, starting an online business teaching executives and entrepreneurs how to communicate effectively in the digital age and how to resonate in media interviews.

There are mileposts along the way where I certainly felt the teeth marks of entrepreneurship – the periodic slumps, lost time and ground, low mood, and the Herculean effort needed to stay on top of things. Running a business, however, is defined by ups and downs. No one is immune to its capricious nature. No one needs to be enslaved by it either.

There's a potent factor many people who've been around the block a few times take for granted – the immense value of what they offer. There are millions of consumers moving into the mature phase of life. They represent a sprawling market for products and services such as financial management and investing, leisure and tourism, 50 and over fitness, health, and wellness for seniors. The list is exhaustive. Who better to serve that demographic than mature entrepreneurs living that experience with the expertise to meet those needs?

There's a growing number of more seasoned types joining social media and other online platforms searching for advice and wisdom from vanguards of their generation. If you're a more mature individual exploring entrepreneurship, there is a market for what you have to offer.

Another advantage older folks have is accumulated experience and wisdom. You may have heard it said or perhaps said it yourself – if you could just put what you know now into a younger body. This mindset tricks you into focusing on age rather than the archive of knowledge gathered across your working life.

There are obvious advantages to youth, none that need to be itemised here. However, older people can leverage their wealth of experience to achieve business success.

People with more years on them have weathered varied challenges. They've sharpened their problem-solving skills and have a crucial pragmatism towards investing, time management and goal setting that's sometimes less prevalent among youth-powered start-ups. Older entrepreneurs also have a firmer financial footing given their years of earning. Depending on the size of the business they're contemplating, there's less reliance on external funding to bring ideas to market.

Senior entrepreneurs also wield powerful networks and contacts cultivated over a considerable period. They have contacts, connections and, most importantly, the trust factor that comes with age. Veteran professionals can also benefit from an era that makes it easier than ever to transition from employee to entrepreneur.

Online platforms offer communities where older entrepreneurs can share knowledge, get advice and evolve in a non-judgmental space. I've joined a growing community of ex-journos who are repackaging their expertise to meet the needs of executives and entrepreneurs looking for training and guidance on communicating in a video-driven digital landscape.

So, not only is there room for older entrepreneurs in the business world, there's considerable potential for success. As such, increasing numbers of people are beginning “second lives” as authors, creative writing instructors, health and wellness coaches, accounting consultants – every discipline or field of expertise you can imagine.

There will, of course, be other considerations such as health, family commitments, financial encumbrances, etc. Fortunately, with age often comes the innate wisdom, fortitude of mind, and the considered decisiveness that are DNA markers in accomplished people.