What’s the Best Age to Become an Entrepreneur

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Whats the Best Age to Become an Entrepreneur?
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• I often get asked by aspiring entrepreneurs am
  I too old or too young to become a successful
  entrepreneur? The simple answer is no. Starting a
  business requires a shrewdness and resilience
  that you are either born with or develop with age
  and experience.

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• There are certain things that you can achieve
  with youthful energy and optimism that you cant
  with an older experienced attitude, and
  vice-versa.

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• It is often said that younger business owners
  channel their passion through innovative thinking
  and thrive in the face of adversity, while older
  entrepreneurs rely on experience to triumph
  during difficult times.

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• So what is the best age to start a business in
  Nigeria, or anywhere else in the world? That
  question is up for debate, and has been
  extensively researched.

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• In an age of young millions, we expect the
  headlines to be dominated by young successful
  entrepreneurs such as Mark Zuckerberg, Daniel
  Ek, Mark Shuttleworth and Daniel Karp to name a
  few. This is not the reality of the majority.

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• The middle-aged professional with experience,
  knowledge and vision makes up the silent majority
  of the typical entrepreneur of the high growth
  business startup.

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Nothing to Lose

• Brocke Blakes article in Forbes, Why
  20-Somethings Are the Most Successful Entrepreneur
  s, suggests that your 20s are the best time to
  start a company due to having nothing to lose and
  no responsibilities. Please approach articles
  like this with caution.

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• As Brocke mentions in this article the grand
  slams of entrepreneurship come from the young and
  ill-experienced 20-somethings. This suggests
  that young entrepreneurs are likely to approach
  the business world as if it is a game of poker or
  a roulette wheel.

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• This can lead to risky gambles that can be boom
  or bust for the company. This strategy is not
  advisable if youre planning to create a steadily
  growing, sustainable business, which is often
  what older entrepreneurs aim to achieve.

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• But contrary to my previous point, I believe that
  the energy, fresh and uninhibited mindset that
  someone in there 20s brings is invaluable. They
  arent bound by workplace or boardroom culture
  that they have picked up during their
  professional career.

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• Free from the ways things should be, they
  unknowingly challenge the norm and can produce
  innovative and groundbreaking solutions to
  problems that in turn create businesses, and
  occasionally market altogether i.e. Facebook,
  Google, Apple, Twitter and Microsoft. This is the
  theory of disruptive innovation.

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Age Over Youth

• Whitney Johnsons article in Harvard Business
  Review, Entrepreneurs Get Better with Age
  references work carried out by Duke University
  scholar Vivek Wadhwa, who studied 549 successful
  technology ventures. His work concludes, The
  average age of a successful entrepreneur in
  high-growth industries such as computers, health
  care, and aerospace is 40.

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• Twice as many successful entrepreneurs are over
  50 as under 25. The vast majority 75 percent
  have more than six years of industry experience
  and half have more than 10 years when they create
  their startup.

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• This success may be attributed to older
  entrepreneurs taking fewer risks, and carrying
  out extensive research to ensure that their new
  business ventures are viable. They will ensure
  that there is minimal risks and impact on their
  financial security, and personal commitments such
  as family. The more you have to lose, the more
  likely you are to rigorously plan, and think
  things through.

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Age is not the Factor

• Empirical data leans strongly towards the
  advantages of age and experience. But any
  experienced entrepreneur knows that age is not
  the determining factor. A good business idea can
  come about at any stage of life, and age will not
  determine whether or not your idea is successful.

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• Success depends on a range of factors the idea,
  industry, timing, talent, drive, commitment,
  finance, location, networking, social, legal and
  economic factors.

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• An ideal scenario would be for a young and hungry
  up-starter to co-find a business with an
  experienced individual, or find a valuable mentor
  whose experience and knowledge can be beneficial.

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• But even in this idealist scenario success is not
  guaranteed if luck is not on your side. The only
  way to find out is to stop procrastinating, start
  the planning, and go for it.

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