Business Change Management

You've probably noticed them. Very likely, you're one of them yourself...a baby boomer who is approaching retirement age (or is even well past it). But if you're like many over the age of 50, you may be feeling the itch to start a business and go looking for new opportunities and untapped markets.

And why not? People over 50 have a host of things working in their favor, from decades of work experience to a valuable network of connections to the financial resources needed to start and run a new business successfully. All of these combine to make this a great time to take the leap and try turning your big idea into something big.

Here are two more reasons why the "over 50" age set is an opportune time to start a business: the internet revolution and the explosive growth of technology, both of which have generated important new tools for older entrepreneurs to consider. Running a thriving, modern company today depends on advanced technology capabilities and extensive internet knowledge, both of which you and your company need to have. Here are 5 things to consider as you start to develop a business strategy for these fast-changing times, which I'd like to share here:

5 tips for starting a business over 50

Last month I wrote a blog entitled: "Starting a Business While Working at Another." I received a terrific response with a large number of reads and "shares," which prompted me to write this one, offering top tips I would share with anyone trying to start a new business, particularly after retiring. 

So if you are thinking about un-retiring and might be in the start-up mode, here are some critical do's and don'ts to think about before launching yourself (again).

Four things To Do when you are thinking about going into business again

I can’t tell you why but somehow I found myself on Fortune.com (December 28, 2015) and found an article entitled “The Best Way to Run a Startup With a Full-Time Job” by Belma McCaffrey, co-founder and CEO of Bould.

Something caught my eye several weeks ago! I was thumbing through google.com/finance and an October 26, 2016 Fortune.com article came across my iPhone entitled: “Forget the corner office. Some CEOs are discovering they get more from their troops when they have no office.”

For awhile now, Simon Associates has blogged extensively about the use of Inbound Marketing. We also have a webinar series called Healthcare Innovation.

Running a successful business of your own requires many talents and a great work ethic, says Andrew (Andy) Simon, Partner at Simon Associates Management Consultants and highly-experienced entrepreneur. But without the right forms of measurement and a lot of attention to the numbers, he warns, it will be difficult to succeed.

Andrew (Andy) Simon, Partner at Simon Associates Management Consultants and highly-experienced entrepreneur, knows what he’s talking about in his recent article in ExpertBeacon, "Skills and techniques that will help you be successful at work." With several decades of accomplishments to draw upon, in both the corporate and start-up worlds, Andy has some sage advice worth noting for anyone embarking on a professional career.

“Diving into the business world is something that many people do at some point when they’re young and then their careers take them down a variety of paths,” Andy explains. "But there are some solid pieces of advice that can be helpful to almost any 20-something or 30-something that should make any career easier and more rewarding." Want to know the keys to success?

Here they are, from a successful entrepreneur and businessman who's been there:

"Launching your own start-up company at any age can be a time consuming, difficult, and stressful thing to do," says Andrew (Andy) Simon, Partner at Simon Associates Management Consultants and expert start-up business consultant, "but yes, you can successfully leave retirement and do it."

Andrew (Andy) Simon, Partner at Simon Associates Management Consultants, member of the SAMC consulting staff, serial entrepreneur and expert start-up business consultant, has recently been published in Becker's Hospital Review. Andrew's article, "Sometimes You are Ahead of the Curve: 4 Lessons From a Failed Price Transparency Venture," examines why a groundbreaking, timely start-up idea ultimately failed. He also gives practical advice on how others can avoid similar roadblocks in their own entrepreneurial endeavors.

Last week while Hurricane Sandy was raging, I was sitting around the house with the fireplace glowing (a little like Lincoln) thinking about what I was going to blog about.