CEO Brandon Frere: Middle Age the Right Age to Be a Successful Business Founder

A Modern Business Owner

What is the average age of the most successful entrepreneurs? A recent study yielded surprising results. For the top 0.1 percent of fast-growing, new ventures, the mean age of the founders is 45 years old, which means that half the entrepreneurs were older and half of them were younger than 45. These findings are similar across all sectors of technology, entrepreneurial hubs and firm exits. Despite assumptions that the most original innovations come from young minds, prior experience is much more predictive of greater rates of entrepreneurial success. Brandon Frere, CEO of Frere Enterprises and other ventures, is not surprised that experience determines success.

"Of course, younger minds come up with brilliant innovations," said Frere. "But it takes wisdom born of experience, success, failure and resilience to really lead an organization in which clients and employees are depending on you to build solutions and systems that add value to their everyday lives. And that wisdom takes some years to accumulate."

But it takes wisdom born of experience, success, failure and resilience to really lead an organization in which clients and employees are depending on you to build solutions and systems that add value to their everyday lives. And that wisdom takes some years to accumulate.

Brandon Frere, CEO of Frere Enterprises

The study contradicts the common theory that younger people are less beholden to existing models of thought, not distracted by family obligation and more capable of transformative ideas, as evidenced in entrepreneurial mythology by young founders such as Bill Gates, Steve Jobs and Mark Zuckerberg. Despite these significant exceptions, younger founders lack access to human, social and financial capital. In terms of human and social capital, an older founder is more experienced and effective at running a company, including management of operations and human resources, and more aware of customer needs and regulatory constraints. Financial capital allows older entrepreneurs, who more fully understand their strengths and weakness, to effectively build a dynamic team to accentuate their strengths and compensate for their weaknesses.

According to the study, age increases the batting average of a founder's entrepreneurial success. A 50-year-old founder is nearly twice as likely to realize high-tier growth in their organization than a 30-year-old founder. While founders in their early 20s have the lowest likelihood of successful exit or creating a one in a thousand top growth firm.

"I speak from experience on this subject," said Frere. "Though entrepreneurs in their twenties and thirties are full of confidence, energy, drive and original ideas, they often just don't have the experience or social and financial networks to build dynamic, thriving organizations. Though there are notable exceptions, my experience is that an older founder is more likely to efficiently, dynamically guide a venture from seed to scale."

About Frere Enterprises

Brandon Frere is an entrepreneur and businessman who lives in Sonoma County, California. He has designed and created multiple companies to meet the ever-demanding needs of businesses and consumers. His company website, www.FrereEnterprises.com, is used as a means to communicate many of the lessons, fundamentals and information that he has learned throughout his extensive business and personal endeavors. Most recently, Frere has focused on advocating on behalf of student loan borrowers nationwide.

As he experienced during his own student loan repayment, Mr. Frere found out how difficult it can be to work with federally contracted student loan servicers and understand the repayment programs designed to help borrowers. This firsthand knowledge has helped him gain an insider's look into the repayment process and the motivations behind the inflating student loan debt bubble. His knowledge of the confusing landscape of student loan repayment became a vital theme in his endeavors and he now uses those experiences to help guide others through the daunting process of applying for federal repayment and loan forgiveness programs.

FrereEnterprises.com

Source: Frere Enterprises

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Tags: entrepreneurship, experience, middle age, small business owner, starting a business, wisdom


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