Starting A Business At 40, 50, 60 Years Old?
February 6, 2026
This week I'm taking a few days off while we resurrect an unused YouTube channel. The article below is one that I wrote originally at the end of 2023. It's hard to believe it's been that long. Unless you have gone back and read my previous articles (which you can do here), most of you have not seen this one. I'll be back next week with something new. I hope you enjoy this article and if you have your own experience with today's topic please reply to this email. I would love to hear about it!
A New Start
I know that many of you out there dream of owning your own business. You want to escape a job or a career you really don’t like. Or you just like the idea of being your own boss. You know there has to be something better. But the truth is most of you will never make the leap from employee to entrepreneur.
There are many reasons why it never happens for most. One of the most frequent reasons (maybe I should say excuses) I hear is “I waited too long. I’m too old to quit my job and start something new.”
It's The Perfect Time
If that’s your excuse for not starting a business you are wrong. In 5 years you’ll look back to today and think “Damn it I wish I had started 5 years ago. I could have been so much further along than I am now.” You would not be alone. So many people miss out on the opportunity to do great things because they think they’re too old.
The truth is if you are in your 40’s, 50’s, 60’s or older it’s the perfect time to start a business. You’ve collected decades of knowledge and experience that other people need, you are mentally mature (hopefully), and have developed a certain amount of wisdom.
You might think you have nothing to offer that is marketable. But trust me, you know how to do something and there are people who will pay you for it.
Real Life Example
My wife is a good example. She was an oncology nurse for 24 years. During that time she became a nurse manager of 2 cancer clinics simultaneously. Later she became the practice director of the same 2 clinics. During that time we decided to get training under John Maxwell in his leadership training and coaching organization.
She realized that there are a lot of executives and business owners and entrepreneurs out there who are put into leadership positions with little to no leadership training or experience. She left her medical career at the age of 50 and began coaching and training on leadership and personal development.
Accumulated Knowledge
This was all because she had accumulated the knowledge and experience that she would not have had in her 30’s. Now in her 50’s she has a successful business. I see this scenario play out over and over.
She took the knowledge and experience she gained in her 30’s and 40’s and put that together with what she learned from coaching and leadership training in her late 40’s and early 50’s and turned it into a business. The interesting thing is she never thought she would ever own a business. She used to think it just wasn’t for her.
Time For A Mindset Shift
If you’re in that mindset of thinking you don’t have anything to offer or that you’re too old to start a business, please think again. Think about your life and what you’ve done and what you can do for other people.
Here are 3 steps you can take to get yourself out of that mindset:
- Take an inventory of all the experience you have had in your life. Big, small, and in between. Hobbies, work experience, education. Sounds a lot like a resume doesn’t it? Write it all down. Did you obtain a professional license or get professional certifications that required testing? Write it down.
- Take your list and go to YouTube and do a search for each item. You will likely see several results of videos teaching about it, talking about it, and interviews with people who do it. You’ll see people offering services and products related to the topic. That means there’s a market for it.
- Follow the trail. Pick some of the people providing content and see if they have links in their descriptions below the video. Look for their websites. If there is a link to a website or landing page offering something free then there will be a product for sale somewhere down the road. That means they’ve created a business. You will see courses, books, consultants, coaches, mentors and many other products and services I haven’t thought of. You can do the same thing with your knowledge and experience.
Your knowledge and experience are valuable! Don't let it be wasted by keeping it locked inside you. Share it with the world! And of course make some money doing it.
