Wiser | The Definitive Guide to Starting a Business After the Age of 50

By Wendy Mayhew

Ready for midlife excellence? Cut out the crisis and discover the essential resource for creating booming enterprises.

 

Does your looming retirement leave you wondering what's next? Has this newest stage of life been a big letdown? Chomping at the bit for something to keep you busy? With over forty years of expertise in the field, Wendy Mayhew has already built her own multi-million-dollar business and written the definitive textbook on entrepreneurship. And now she's here to share her hard-won secrets of the trade so you can avoid falling into the red while finding new fulfillment.

 

WIser: The Definitive Guide to Starting a Business After the Age of 50 is an all-encompassing exploration of the unique challenges and rewards surrounding later-years ventures. Through her seasoned guidance (and twenty-nine inspirational accompanying audio interviews), Mayhew provides all the tools and information needed to join this fastest-growing group of budding entrepreneurs. And by following her easy-to-read manual, you'll soon be turning your lifetime of wisdom into the most gratifying decision for your future.

 

In Wiser, you'll discover:

• The ways stepping outside your comfort zone can take you straight into the strongest payoffs
• How to build confidence for networking, so you always have the best contacts in your back pocket
• Strategies to get the most out of a coach, mentor, or advisor and turn their knowledge into income
• Methods for paving well-polished golden years and ensuring everything survives after you walk away
• Ownership alternatives, invaluable expert perspectives for every chapter, and much, much more!

 

Wiser: The Definitive Guide to Starting a Business After the Age of 50 is your fundamental handbook for entering the field of the new wave of school-of-life entrepreneurs. If you like friendly but factual inspiration, direct but digestible advice, and walkthroughs for each step of the process, then you'll love Wendy Mayhew's well-versed reference.

 

• Language: English
• Publisher: Wendy Mayhew
• Release date: Oct 1, 2020
• ISBN: 9780988100022

Book preview

WISER | The Definitive Guide to Starting a Business After the Age of 50

Wendy Mayhew

Published by Wendy Mayhew, 2020.

While every precaution has been taken in the preparation of this book, the publisher assumes no responsibility for errors or omissions, or for damages resulting from the use of the information contained herein.

WISER | THE DEFINITIVE GUIDE TO STARTING A BUSINESS AFTER THE AGE OF 50

First edition. October 1, 2020.

Copyright © 2020 Wendy Mayhew.

ISBN: 978-0988100022

Written by Wendy Mayhew.

Wiser is dedicated t anyone and everyone who has started a business or is considering starting a business after the age of 50.

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Copyright © 2019 Business Launch Solutions

ISBN: 978-0-9881000-1-5 (book)

ISBN: 978-0-9881000-2-2 (electronic book)

All rights reserved. This book or any portion thereof may not be reproduced or used in any manner whatsoever without the express written permission of the copyright owner except for the use of brief quotations in a book review.

Every effort has been made to ensure that the content provided in this book and the additional resources are accurate and helpful for our readers at the time of publication. However, this is not an exhaustive treatment of the subjects. No liability is assumed for losses or damages due to the information provided.

Cover design and book layout by Melanie Vandergaast, Initiate Marketing Inc.

Book formatting by Goran Tovilovic, BookClaw

Editing by Maeve O’Connell, Book Magic

Proofreading by Sigrid Macdonald and Dahlia Liwsze, Book Magic 

www.businesslaunchsolutions.ca

This book is dedicated to anyone and everyone who has started a business or is considering starting a business after the age of 50.

CONTENTS

FOREWORD

INTRODUCTION

ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS

GETTING STARTED

Chapter 1: Transitioning from Employee to Entrepreneur

Chapter 2: Stepping Out of Your Comfort Zone

Chapter 3: Consulting, Coaching,  Advising, and Mentoring

Chapter 4: Business Planning

Lean Canvas

Business Model Canvas

Chapter 5: Legal Requirements

Chapter 6: Customer Experience

MONEY MATTERS

Chapter 7: Accounting Practices

Working with an Accountant

Record Keeping

Chapter 8: Financing Your Business

CUSTOMER CONTACT

Chapter 9: Marketing

Reaching Your Customers

Content Marketing for the Social Era

Branding: Brands that Go Deep Often Go Far

Websites: Everyone Needs a Website

Driving Traffic to Your Website

Social Marketing

LinkedIn

Facebook

Twitter

Instagram

Pinterest

Networking

Building Relationships

Networking for Introverts

Networking at Events

UP AND RUNNING

Chapter 10: Sales

It’s Not about You, It’s about the Buyer

Smart Calling, Not Cold Calling

EXITING THE BUSINESS

Chapter 11: Succession Planning

ALTERNATIVES TO STARTING A BUSINESS

Chapter 12: Ownership Options

Buying a Business

Buying a Franchise

Intergenerational Business

ABOUT THE AUTHOR

LETTER TO READERS

FOREWORD

When you think of an entrepreneur, what do you picture? Is it a young, tech-savvy 20-something-year-old with a hot,new idea that is going to revolutionize the world?

Unfortunately, we’ve all been trained to think that entrepreneurship is a young person’s game, but older entrepreneurs are showing that this is not at all the case. In fact, older entrepreneurs are proving that they are truly a force to be reckoned with.

For example, did you know that 30% of Canadian start-ups are run by people aged 50 and older, and more than half (54%) of America’s small business owners are over 50? Or that more than two-thirds (67%) of business owners over 50 say their companies are currently profitable?

Entrepreneurship is not only something older people are embracing—they are succeeding at it. They are leveraging their years of experience and expertise and developing and launching new businesses every day.

Years ago, Wendy Mayhew recognized this trend. She also realized that older entrepreneurs were one of the most under-supported groups of businesspeople. To help remedy this situation, Wendy began to share her own 40 years of entrepreneurship experience and personally support and coach older entrepreneurs. In addition, Wendy also wanted to raise the visibility and value of older entrepreneurs. To do this, she created and launched the WISE 50 over 50 Awards to officially recognize and celebrate 50 entrepreneurs over the age of 50 and their achievements.

I first met Wendy at a conference on aging, where she was presenting on activities and opportunities for older entrepreneurs. We became acquainted and quickly realized that we were both working toward similar goals—to promote and support the value that older people provide. We worked together when Booming Encore became a media partner in promoting the 50 over 50 Awards. Working alongside Wendy, I couldn’t help but be impressed with her enthusiasm and undying dedication to helping and supporting mature entrepreneurs.

This book is a continuation of the dedication that Wendy has to entrepreneurs. By sharing her own experience and knowledge, combined with the voices of business leaders from across the globe, Wendy has compiled some of the best thinking and advice for any entrepreneur—older or younger—who may be considering starting or has already started a business.

This practical guide easily takes a new entrepreneur through the many different phases in developing and launching a business. From transitioning from being an employee to an entrepreneur, to the planning stages, to the financial and legal requirements, and even to managing social media, Wendy has each area covered.

So, if you are an older, budding entrepreneur or even just interested in knowing what may be involved in starting a business, this book was written especially for you. May it help you to move forward with confidence as you join the many other mature entrepreneurs who have taken the leap before you. After all—as I so often ask—if we don’t do it now, then when?

Wishing you much success in whatever new business venture you may take.

Susan Williams

Founder, Booming Encore

www.boomingencore.com

INTRODUCTION

Many people can’t wait to retire and stay retired. Others try retirement and find it’s not for them. Some people have been forced into retirement—sometimes positions become redundant, and people struggle to be rehired because of their age.

Whatever the reason, if you are facing retirement, it’s important not to dwell on the past but to think about what the future may have to offer.

Almost everyone, at some point in their life, has either wanted to be a business owner or has had an idea about a solution to make an existing product or service better. Perhaps you want to do both of these things. These two things have one thing in common: you haven’t done anything to realize your dream yet.

Regardless of age, entrepreneurship isn’t for everyone. It takes time, patience, perseverance, and money to start and run a business. It is a full-time commitment. However, if you decide to start your own business once you’ve retired, you will be joining the fastest growing group of new entrepreneurs in the world.

The internet is full of articles and stories about people who started their first business after the age of 50; however, currently, there aren’t any books which focus on helping you understand what is needed as you consider starting your first business. Is starting a business later in life different than for a younger person starting a business? The answer is both yes and no. The fundamentals are the same; however, there are many issues that older entrepreneurs face that their younger counterparts don’t. One significant difference is the transformation from employee to entrepreneur. Another is that millennials have grown up with the internet and have many skills that older people don’t possess. But older businesspeople also have years of experience to offer that younger people don’t have.

Having been an entrepreneur for 40 years, I started exploring and researching issues and concerns regarding older entrepreneurship several years ago. I knew there was a need for a book on starting a business and WISER: The Definitive Guide to Starting a Business after the Age of 50 was born.

I’m a firm believer