Healthy Living, Lifelong Learning

Google Founders Over 50 Breed Golden Entrepreneurs

Lifelong Learning
Published on July 20, 2015

FOUNDERS OVER 50 AND LIFELONG LEARNING

To Milleniums, the image that springs to mind when considering today's entrepreneurs is a group of twenty somethings sitting around a table quaffing RedBull and tapping ideas for new apps into their smartphones. A successful entrepreneur in their twenties is the exception rather than the rule. The reality is the average successful business start up is actually launched by people in their mid-thirties. People with at least 10 years in the work force have a greater ease with people, more contacts and a greater ability to sell their ideas and thereby generate capital to get the start up started. People with more than 30 years experience make even smarter entrepreneurs. Experience breeds knowledge, ideas and natural leadership ability. Retiring from work doesn't mean sitting on the couch for the rest of our life. Why not take our passion and turn it into a profit? 

Google, has been on the cutting edge of think tank type entrepreneurship since its inception has realized the potential of people over 50 starting a new business and recently launched a pilot program named Founders Over 50 in England, headquarted at Campus London. Founders Over 50 selected a group of mature start up companies to shepherd into a real business using Google's resources.  Part of Google's goal is to provide diversity in thinking about technology, given the 30 plus years of experience many of the owners of the new business start ups have, diversity of opinion is pretty much guaranteed. Coaching is provided in sales skills, design and business planning and communication. Maybe Google will come to the United States with another Founders Over 50 program to help people who are intimidated by the idea of starting a business later in life.

Baby Boomers approaching retirement are also discovering the reality of non-retirement. Many are refitting and redefining what 'work' is. Many times retiring isn't about quitting work, it's about quitting a job we're bored with. When an occupation becomes a dream, the happiest business entrepreneur is born. Boomers are natural generators of ideas having changed the world via music, information, technology and they were certainly the driving force behind the integration of computers into everyday life. Much of this transformation of the way the world does business was achieved by Boomers while working for other folks.

Refining our concept of work can be as simple as continuing to work part time jobs for retired persons with the intention of using retirement funds to start a business. For others lifelong learning classes are enough work for retirement. Many Boomers take up an artistic or craftsman business, the work they enjoy that wouldn't have generated enough cash to fund life prior to retiring. One former architect we know builds electric guitars in his backyard. Another former corporate accounting manager retired, wrote a novel in her home office and is now an Amazon best seller. Talk about great part time jobs for retired persons.

Lifelong learning is continued ambition. Research into relocation may be necessary to tap into the best places to live with programs directed at retired persons. Many liberal arts colleges are taking advantage of educated retirees fueling the market for greater educational opportunities for alternative students. Lifelong learning programs are easily available in the Asheville, North Carolina area, Charleston, South Carolina and many coastal areas of the Southeast. Savannah, Georgia has a particularly large selection of subjects. If attending classes in a classroom setting is boring, many museums and public gardens offer free or low cost classes.

Using retirement funds to start a business is risky therefore it is imperative to find expert assistance to ensure the viability of the enterprise. For many Boomers retirement is just a career refinement. Having years of experience in our field and insider knowledge of a potential new product or service is invaluable. 

We think an incubator for older entrepreneurs to gain business skills and knowledge is a great idea. Perhaps located in the Southeastern United States in one of our coastal cities where many of our more brilliant professionals are retiring and finding life a bit too slow. Who knows, maybe a new Google would be founded. We are guessing the name GooglePlex is already taken.

Please let us know your thoughts by leaving comment. Would you be willing to risk your retirement savings on a start up business if Google was behind you?