The Post Retirement Entrepreneur

January 31, 2019 by Cindy Donaldson in Entrepreneur, Featured, Fun Stuff, Marketing, Must Read Blogs, Small Business

“I’m ready to retire, but not ready to stop working, stop using my brain, stop… doing.”

When you have spent most of your life in Corporate America – leading teams, driving change, mentoring generations – retiring to Boca or moving to the Villages isn’t always an easy transition for some.

In fact, many recent retired execs I speak with feel lost but, more importantly, feel the need to take what they’ve learned and do something meaningful with it – they want to leave a legacy, they want to make a difference.  This mindset often results in joining a board, volunteering, or even opening their own company and working as a consultant or coach OR all the above.

It all makes sense.  Many retirees live 20-30 years post retirement and if they truly loved their career why not continue working and giving back, sharing knowledge, and padding the “fun fund” while they’re at it.

Here are some interesting facts I’ve discovered about my fellow Boomers who are opting to be entrepreneurs for the first time. (note this is based on my personal connections – not some deep market research!)

1. It’s not about the money – it’s about the meaning, the mission, and the legacy.
2. Speaking of money – most don’t NEED to match their corporate salary, in fact, most shoot for 50-100K per year.
3. Most opt for service-based industries – such as coaches or consultants because the startup cost is not huge and the transition is seamless. They aren’t learning new skill sets.  YET – some opt to go in a completely NEW direction including retail.
4. More often than not – they prefer to go solo. No employees but bringing in contract workers if needed since many managed large teams for decades.  “Been there done that” is the mantra.
5. Flexibility is important. They don’t want stress, they want to work when they want and vacation when they want.  They are “retired” after all.
6. If they are consultants – they are insanely picky about who they will work with. It goes back to enjoying the journey not building an empire.

If you are approaching the magical sixties and aren’t really ready for retirement, but are ready to exit your current job – perhaps entrepreneur life is for you.