Millennials tremble: in the world of entrepreneurship, 40 are the new 20.
While public opinion is convinced that the world of innovation and business are in the hands of very young daring and full of ideas, reality tells another story: when it comes to doing business, 40-year-olds know their business.
And if courage and intuition can move young minds, it is concreteness and experience that boost revenues.
This is taught by Steve Jobs and Bill Gates – just to cite two famous examples – that despite having founded the two respective giants at the age of 20, they only achieved real success once they passed the 40, with a record turnover and major product launches. Think, for example, of the Apple iMac, introduced on the market in 1998 when Jobs had already blown out 43 candles.
A case? Not at all.
The numbers of the sector confirm the hypothesis: the Census Bureau and the IRS (Internal Revenue Service) have analyzed the trends of the US market, examining the data relating to almost 3 million entrepreneurs, company founders in the period between 2007 and 2014, and with at least one employee.
What emerged from it? That the companies with the strongest growth were those led by entrepreneurs over 40.
Experience and resources: these are the two aces up the sleeve of senior entrepreneurs
Until a few years ago, crossing the 40 mark meant starting the – long – countdown towards retirement.
Today, however, 40 years can mark a new beginning: those who are afraid of job insecurity and flexibility should find comfort in knowing that a senior entrepreneur has a much better chance of success than a young one.
Because a senior professional is more experienced, first of all: research shows that companies founded by startuppers no longer very young have a 125% better chance of establishing themselves on the market. The killer application that pushes them to victory? In many cases, the founder’s experience alone gained in different working environments and which helped him develop concrete and very specific skills.
An entrepreneur over 40 also has a greater economic solidity: with very few exceptions, young startuppers have to deal with few resources available and with a lot of experimentation. A senior entrepreneur, on the other hand, can field a more substantial capital, to start with more strength and support ideas consistently, having economic reserves to face even the inevitable moments of crisis.
And then there are relationships: networking, so important to bring a professional to the top, is an art that is woven over time. It is contacts, knowledge, human references in other sectors, built over years of work, which become solid pins to support the entrepreneur’s climb to success.
And in this, alas, there is no competition for business novices.
In short, turning into entrepreneurs at 40 is an opportunity not to be underestimated.