Does Capitalism Favor The Young?

Am I too old to achieve my dreams?

I saw a statement about capitalism favoring the young many years ago.

I think it was in a British newspaper.

Or was it a TV program?

Perhaps it is even more so with millennials, despite the current pandemic and the accompanying economic situation.

Late news coming in…

I was preparing an article for the mini-series on freelancing, and came across a case study on Lurn™ featuring a 23 year old named Andy Brackpool, of The Copy Butler, England.

The guy is – as they are using the phrase now – “crushing it”.

Started his business at age 16, I think…

An older person might be feeling that these young folks are just leaving them behind.

We must remember that success doesn’t happen overnight.

It sometimes takes a while before we realize that something is missing…

…that those disappointments or failures are lessons to be learnt.

Anyway, what was your dream?

Many of us wanted to be and do amazing things when we were younger.

What was your thing that you dreamed about?

• being an astronaut?
• rock star?
• mayor?
• novelist?
• powerlifter?

Maybe you dreamed of owning your own business.

Then you reached your twenties and realized that achieving those dreams was harder than you thought and that you needed money faster.

So you started working a regular job in the meantime.

It was the safe thing to do.

Then you reached 30, had a spouse and kids.

Then you reached 40 and realized you’re old and tired.

And, oh dear, you realized that you were never going to be that thing you always wanted to be.

After all, dreams are for younger people, right?

Why Dreams Get Easier, the Older You Get

As long as you hold on to those dreams, they actually often become more attainable the older you get.

Why?

For starters, being older gives you more experience and means you’re going to have a better idea of how to go after what you want.

You’ve had time to fine-tune your goals.

Then there’s the fact that you’ll have had longer to accumulate useful assets.

Assuming you started early in life.

That includes money – you’ll have more funds to put behind you – but also other intangible and tangible assets such as a property, contacts, a better resume, etc.

And, if you’re retired, or if your children have moved away from home, then you’ll have more time for yourself as well.

If you combine all that with a savvy knowledge of how to leverage your age, there’s no reason that you can’t get things done even when you’re older.

Here are some tips…

Many people want to be actors for example but never get around to it when they’re younger. When you’re older, however, you have the option of applying to appear as an extra in films or drama series and to play bit parts. You have the time now to attend and the older you are, the more in-demand you’ll find you become for smaller roles. Build up an acting resume and who knows!

Of course, watch for Covid…

Or you could start a YouTube™ channel. “Silver surfers” make up a significant proportion of the web and there doesn’t seem to be as much really meaningful content there for them.

Have you noticed that most TV advertisements targeting older people are mostly insurance, healthcare and retirement homes?

At least, that is the case in the US.

You could make a fitness YouTube™ channel for over 50s, for example.

It might even be a huge hit.

Folks are actually getting qualified as fitness instructors to better serve older populations.

And what about having more time to write books and more time to pursue hobbies.

Did you know there is a course on writing fiction by Jessica Brody on LinkedIn.com?

And if you can’t become an astronaut, then how about signing up for a Virgin Galactic flight?

If you can’t be a football or soccer player, you could be a coach, or join an older team.

Ahem…COVID???

How about this for inspiration?

Even if sky-diving is not one of your dreams?

Technology the great leveler?

This post isn’t just for people over 50.

It applies to those in their 40s too.

Did you know that the average age for successful startup founders is 45?

We are surrounded by digital technology which makes setting up a business so much easier.

Technology does not respect age.

So, which side of it are you on?

Do you still think capitalism favors (only) the young?

It is not too late. I taught myself to code – and I’m close to 60.

PS: Take another look at the word “invalid”. Are you?

PPS: Daniel Constable and Andrew Lantz of Lurn.com offer a free course called Freelance Bootcamp which is the entry level program to their Freelance Blueprint which costs $397. You can find out more about Andy on this course.

I do not get any compensation for mentioning courses offered at Lurn.com

Sources:

Research: The Average Age of a Successful Startup Founder is 45. Located at Harvard Business Review (online). https://hbr.org/2018/07/research-the-average-age-of-a-successful-startup-founder-is-45 [Accessed November 14, 2020].

Image by Gerd Altmann from Pixabay