I think it has less to do with age, and more to do with family status. Being 23 and a family is just as bad as 40 with a family. A 22 year old with no family is as good as a 45 year old without a family. Once kids and a wife/husband enters the picture, things change greatly. If you really want to take a crack at being a entrepreneur, do it before 'settling down'.
Is 31 too old for startup?
11–20 of 30 posts
Re: Is 31 too old for startup?
#12I was a moderately successful founder at 27 ... Now I'm 39 and while I'm much more experienced, I have also become a little impatient, something I consider very dangerous for a startup. Are you impatient too?
Re: Is 31 too old for startup?
#13Being over 31 just means you didn't win the lottery.
The vast majority of us are simply going to make a living, a DAMN good living, but still something small where we own a house, have a family and maybe a vacation home in Arizona.
Startups aren't just for young people because they can (apparently) work 24-hour-days. That's a failed assumption and part of the Silicon Valley Echo Chamber.
You want to create a startup? Go for it. If you are an experienced professional then being in your 30's means you'll have more 'adults' willing to listen to you, you'll have more contacts in the industry willing to sign up to your product, and you'll have a larger spectrum of knowledge to know when to cut your losses or when to quit your dayjob and go all in.
Re: Is 31 too old for startup?
#14Don't let the press fool you: there are plenty of founders aged 30+ building innovative businesses. The average age of a startup founder is 40:
http://www.thedailybeast.com/newsweek/2010/08/20/innovation-...
Also, YC has plenty of founders over 30: http://blog.zencoder.com/2010/09/21/doing-y-combinator-in-yo...
Personally, I founded my first company in YC when I was 30 (Parse).
Re: Is 31 too old for startup?
#1531 is a perfect age. But so is 18, 24 and 42.
Side discussion - "And I want to be the next Steve Jobs."
These type of statements always irk me. I have no evidence to support my claim but I suspect that Bill Gates, Steve Jobs, Mark Zuckerberg, etc. rarely publicly stated they want to "be the next XYZ". Rather they had a vision to _do_ something bigger. For example, Gates' vision was to "put a computer in every home". These types of realities take decades, not just years. Most people can't think this far ahead.
Re: Is 31 too old for startup?
#16I have almost 10 years on you. I started my first business at 23, and sold my 5th 4 years ago before starting this one.
In my 20's, I was smart enough to know everything, and it cost me a lot of learning. Those entrepreneurs have advantages, mind you. A single minded purpose, a refusal to accept the status quo, and the notion (by investors) that you can be trained, molded, and focused.
In my 30's, I was smart, and chasing validation, victories, crushing competition of all shapes and sizes, and basking in the glory of success. I achieved some cool things, I spent a boat load of money on stupid stuff, and I started to learn how to be an adult.
I'm now at the beginning of my 40's. I understand far more. I piss off far fewer people, and I have a wisdom that propels me towards happiness and fulfilment, but I still have a fierce hunger for success, crushing competition, and tearing a hole in the status quo.
Now, however, I know exactly how to do it. I make far fewer mistakes, build bridges instead of walls, and have a rolodex filled with decision makers, allies, and mentors.
I work, constantly. Booze, women of questionable morals, and flashy toys don't have the allure they once had. I get shit done, and leave the chest thumping to the kids.
The spin on young founders comes from a different world, and it's not altogether wrong, but it requires a 500 Startups approach (invest in a bunch and hope a few make it).
Older founders have a much higher rate of success, if they can handle the psychological pressures that come with it.
If you're doing it to get rich, you'll most likely fail. If you're doing it for a lifestyle, the odds are stacked against you. If you're doing it to be cool, well, save yourself some money and buy a Mazerati.
If you're doing it because you have an obsession with the problem, and you can't sleep because you need to see it solved, and you can enlist others to be soldiers in your army to fight this obvious injustice/inefficiency, then you have a very strong chance of success.
Don't be a founder just to check it off your bucket list, do it because you have no choice but to follow/create your destiny.
Best of luck.
Re: Is 31 too old for startup?
#17Do a startup, see if it works. If you're doing anything else, or thinking of doing anything else, then no matter what age you are, it's probably wrong for you.
Re: Is 31 too old for startup?
#18Yes, you're too old. You should just find some comfy corner, curl up, and die.
Now that the pity-party is over, let's focus on reality. One is NEVER too old to found a startup. And the fact of the matter is, there are many more startup founders (both technical and non-technical) over 30 than under.
Take a look at these links, and ask yourself again if you're too old:
http://www.quora.com/What-is-the-average-age-of-founders#
http://techcrunch.com/2011/05/28/peak-age-entrepreneurship/
TL;DR:
Ev Williams, Twitter: 35 in 2007
Jeff Bezos, Amazon: 30 in 1994
Reid Hoffman, LinkedIn: 35 in 2002
Elon Musk, SpaceX: 39
Quite moping around and build something.
Re: Is 31 too old for startup?
#19Yes, you're too old. You should just find some comfy corner, curl up, and die. Now that the pity-party is over, let's focus on reality. One is NEVER too old to found a startup. And the fact of the matter is, there are many more startup founders (both technical and non-technical) over 30 than under. Take a look at these links, and ask yourself again if you're too old: http://www.quora.com/What-is-the-average-age-of-fo…
Wasn't pg 31 when they built ViaWeb?
Re: Is 31 too old for startup?
#20The desire to want to just "make it" seems deeply wrong-headed to me. Granted, I don't own a company so this may be one of the many times that I am wrong, but it seems like a pretty important characteristic would be having a particular product or vision you are passionate about.
And deeply wanting to be a "reluctant billionaire" seems contradictory. All that said, good luck to the guy. I sincerely hope I'll get the chance to eat crow on this one.