But, let me ask you a question; between a twenty something and a middle aged person, who has the greater chance at genuine success…? The answer might surprise you.

The most successful business startup age group –

The most successful start-up businesses are built by people in Mid-Life. Based on research from the U.S. Census Bureau and the Kaufmann Foundation the facts are the facts – people between the ages of 45-64 have the greatest success when starting a business. There’s no reason why you can’t be one of them too! It is my contention that this is driven by their Maturity of Thought… Does that seem accurate?

Why they are more successful –

Maturity of thought comes from developing greater ‘Emotional Intelligence’ – one of the critical differences between younger and older people when discussing business success is emotional intelligence (EI) aka. Emotional Quotient or EQ. It is highly probable that a person with more life experience, who has lived through some good times and some bad will have a higher EI than a younger person. This is not about IQ, so please do not confuse the two. Rather, read on to help discover why they are very different.

Emotional Intelligence in your twenties –

There are 5 components to EI; they are 1. Self-awareness 2. Self-regulation 3. Motivation 4. Empathy and 5. Social skills.

If you are middle aged think back to when you were in your twenties… just how self-aware were you?

Could you regulate yourself well in all situations?

Were you truly motivated to achieve a goal – or if faced with an obstacle did you waver in your commitment? Be honest, did you even know what empathy was?

And finally, just how good were your social skills in all environments?

Middle aged people are typically more serious, focused and practiced people. They know exactly what they have to lose – usually, much more than a person in their twenties, and they know they do not have as much time to make mistakes – their runway is shorter and they know it. In short, they have a greater emotional intelligence.

Boring Academic Stuff –

Research from the University of California Berkeley (http://news.berkeley.edu/2010/12/16/agingemotion/) supports the theory that emotional intelligence and cognitive skills can actually sharpen as people enter their 60’s, giving older people an advantage in the workplace and in personal relationships.

Emotional Intelligence Can Be Developed.

The communication between your emotional and rational “brains” is the physical source of emotional intelligence. “. . .  Emotional intelligence requires effective communication between the rational and emotional centers of the brain. . . .  ‘Plasticity’ is the term neurologists use to describe the brain’s ability to change. Your brain grows new connections as you learn new skills. The change is gradual as your brain cells develop new connections to speed the efficiency of new skills acquired.” (http://www.talentsmart.com/about/emotional-intelligence.php)

Both the young and the old can successfully start businesses –

Don’t get me wrong, there are many serious-minded young people out there and they can also be successful at starting a business. It’s just that the odds of starting a successful business lie in favor of the older folks – so that’s who my book and program are tailored for.

This blog post is not written for any specific individuals, but rather for the masses and to help the interested parties (you) determine if they have what it takes to start and run a successful business – right out of the gate. Are you one of them…?

Here’s a great way to start figuring it out, and it’s free….

Please leave your info so we can stay in touch and so I can get the free 5 Things You Don’t Know You Need to Know report to you…