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Congratulations! You have reached your 65th year and are now
eligible for retirement. Or maybe you are 50 years old who opted
for early retirement. Do you shout for joy that your days as
part of the labor force are officially over? Or do you ask
yourself, "What do I do now?"
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For many seniors, sitting in the sun in Florida or a hammock
in Hawaii is not part of their lives. While the world is aging
and the number of elderly people is increasing, the present crop
of older people is in better health, lead longer and active
lives than their parents. They want action! Retirement is just
too dreary to think, and many remain emotionally unprepared to
throw their working life to the wind. Some can also make use of
the income they can still earn working.
In lieu of retirement, many seniors are turning to
entrepreneurship. With their immensely valuable business skills
acquired through years of experience, many retirees are
seriously considering launching their own business.
But hold your horses … are you really prepared to start
your business?
Many seniors believe that they still have what it takes and
are highly motivated to reach the top of their profession and
succeed on their own. However, a 25 year old starting a business
will face different sets of challenges from a 50 or 60 year old
venturing on their own commercial enterprise. It is not the
same, and here are the advantages of starting a business at a
relatively older age:
1. Prosperous and affluent.
Retirement
and old age often means that their children are all grown up and
through college. Their mortgage may have been paid off, and they
may have substantial financial resources from their savings and
investment to support them in their old age. Economists are
saying that the present crop of the retiring baby boomers are
economically secure and enjoy higher income than past
generations. If you are one of the lucky ones, then starting a
business may be the best road for you.
2. Minimal financial risks.
Older people are not as impatient or impetuous as the younger
generation. With ample time on their hands, seniors can take as
much time as needed to properly develop their business concept,
analyze market opportunities, develop their products, test a new
service, and prepare a high-quality business plan. They can even
bring into their venture business contacts they have made in the
past to provide them with complementary expertise they need. As
a result, they can minimize their financial risks.
3. Wealth of experience.
For
many seniors with entrepreneurial fervor, it makes sense to
start a new business in an area related in some way with your
previous job. If you were in the military, maybe you can look
for ventures as a supplier of military equipment. Or if you
worked as the marketing man of your company, you can write
e-books on the topic or lecture at conventions. By doing so, you
are able to take maximum advantage of knowledge and experience
that took years to acquire. Plus, you can harness the industry
contacts, associates and friends you have made through the
years.
However, starting a business at a late age has its drawbacks.
1. Your Health.
Health is
an important issue that you need to consider if you want to
forego the sedentary life of retirement. Entrepreneurship is a
rigorous activity, not only physically but mentally as well.
Make sure that your health can cope up with the demands and
challenges of starting and running a business.
2. Physical readiness.
Even
though you may be in good health, starting a business can be a
very demanding activity. A start-up needs careful nurturing that
may require you to work long hours. Moreover, you will be
subjected to a lot of pressures as you lead your business to
every level of profitability and growth. Are you up to the
physical demands of running a business?
3. The capacity for risks.
Are you prepared to gamble? Starting a business means taking
risks. Risk may sometimes mean losing money and burning yourself
in the process. Many seniors starting a business have neither
the financial security of an annuity nor access to personal
financial resources in the six-figure range that can sustain
them for the rest of their lives. With the little money you
have, are you prepared to risk it in a business venture with
uncertain financial outcome? Unlike a 25-year old who fails, a
60-year-old person will have few opportunities to get gainful
employment and start saving for their retirement nest egg.
Retirement is already staring at your face. If you do not have
investments to fall back on even if you fail, then you had
better think twice about starting your own business. Or at
least, use only a small part of your nest egg. Putting your
entire old-age savings for a business is too great a risk.
4. Capacity and willingness to learn
new things.
As an entrepreneur, you must be able to
quickly grasp and understand new ways of doing things.
Technology is changing the way business is done. You may not
want to learn the new technology, but you need to understand how
it can improve your business operations. You also need to learn
how to deal with younger people - who will be, in most
likelihood, the people you will be negotiating and cutting deals
with.
Many people are starting their own businesses at a late age -
and still succeed. Barbara Miller (read
her story) opened her own paper distribution company at age
62, and she has been able to transform it into a multi-million
dollar company in less than five years. She is now 67, yet she
is still working as hard as before. If you think this is the
path for you, be sure to understand what you are getting into.
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