You’ve Earned a Small Business Opportunity: Entrepreneurship at 50+

Life after 50 opens the door to many opportunities and new interests, and being retired or near retirement may give you the time, resources and experience that will allow you to be more passionate about these than you have ever been before. It may be time to find the answer to the “what’s next” question you’ve been pondering.

In fact, we’re seeing a growing number of people over the age of 50 – we call them encore entrepreneurs – look to small business ownership as their next big opportunity. Think of it as a great concert. What’s the best part? The encore!

I’m pleased to share today that SBA has launched our initial Encore Entrepreneurship course, an easy-to-use guide on the ins and outs of starting and running a small business, financing, identifying hot industries and more.

The self-paced course is a great first step to entrepreneurship learning, and is designed for individuals planning to start a business after earlier career endeavors. It is practical with real life examples and helpful tips.

The Encore Entrepreneurship course will help you to:

• Discover how to turn your entrepreneurial idea into a business reality, and
• Define and describe components to forming a new business

SBA is committed to helping encore entrepreneurs in their journey to entrepreneurship. We know it can be a challenge to figure out what to do and where to go for business assistance. There is a ton of information available on how to start and run a business, but not all of it is the right information.

Whether you want to pursue a hobby or start the business you’ve always dreamed of, the new course can help you to:

• Choose your Business Idea
• Determine if it has Income Potential
• Develop a Flexible Business Plan that Steers the Business
• Decide on a Business Model, and
• Take the Necessary Legal and Regulatory Steps to Get Started

Our partners at AARP impressed upon us that people who are 50+ are digitally savvy and enjoy using engaging, interactive resources. Along those lines, we’re introducing a virtual concierge (her name is Jean). Virtual Jean will serve as our help desk resource for encore entrepreneurs, available anytime and anywhere, on desktops, laptops and tablets.

Jean’s important responsibility is pointing you to the right courses, tools and mentors, and gathering your feedback on what’s useful to you. Jean will introduce a series of “webisodes,” with topics ranging widely from freelancing, programs for veterans, disaster planning, green businesses and more.

Jean will also connect you with SBA’s 1,400+ mentors across the country. Perhaps you’ve heard that there is an opportunity to meet our small business mentors on National Encore Entrepreneur Mentor Day next month on Oct. 2, a joint effort of SBA and AARP. You’ll get a chance to interact with small business mentors, and learn more about resources available at Small Business Development Centers, Women’s Business Centers and SCORE chapters.

I encourage you to stay tuned for more resources and tools that we’re developing to keep encore entrepreneurs well equipped for small business success. Meanwhile, check out our virtual concierge Jean and let us know what you think.