Is It Time to Go Solo?

It’s a tale of two very different career paths at midlife.

On one hand, most people at 50+ are head down on the job and putting away as much as they can into retirement accounts. But what really matters is that they keep their jobs until they decide to retire of their own volition.

We know that that once you’re over 50, though, odds are the decision to leave your job won’t be yours due to disguised forms of age discrimination. This amounts to more than a lack of control; it’s a lack of respect.

On the other hand, people over the age of 50 are starting businesses at an accelerated rate:

According to figures compiled by the Kauffman Foundation, about one-quarter of new entrepreneurs were ages 55 to 64 compared to nearly 15% in 1996.

These are mostly self-funded solo or small businesses, not venture-backed startups. These businesses are about midlife founders not only taking back control of their destinies, but also earning respect and an income from satisfied customers and clients, not callous employers.

One way or another, it’s all about contemplating contingencies. No matter how hard you work, things often don’t go as planned with the so-called “safe” route:

Many Americans are surprised to find themselves having to leave full-time work sooner than they expected. Age discrimination, health problems, disability and job loss, or the need to care for a loved one, can intervene.

Whether you decide to go out on your own is up to you, until it’s not. And the worst time to start thinking about creating your own income stream is when you’re under stress after being laid off.

If you’re thinking of going solo or are at least willing to start making a contingency plan, we can help. Over in Well + Wealthy, our three hour mini-course on the Mentor Method for building an expertise-based business are available on demand.

To make the decision even easier, we’re cutting the annual admission fee to Well + Wealthy in half for the next week. This gets you the 3 hours of training on starting your own solo business, plus monthly webinars, the entire education library, health and fitness challenges, and community interaction – at nearly 50% off the regular membership fee.

Get all the details and join us here.

Further reading:

How a Solo Gig Can Give You a Stronger Retirement (New York Times)

Keep going-

Brian Clark

P.S. New to Further? Join us here.

Brain Gains

Exercise stimulates neurogenesis – the creation of new neurons – primarily in the hippocampus, influencing memory and learning while increasing key mood-regulating neurotransmitters. It also enhances brain plasticity, essential for recovery from injury and aging, and improves cognitive functions such as attention and memory.

Exercise and the Brain: The Neuroscience of Fitness Explored (Neuroscience News)

Step to the Med

For many people getting enough “steps in” has become part of a daily fitness goal. But new research is suggesting that what we eat can also help contribute to our daily step goals by as much as 4,000 additional steps.

Switching to Healthier, Mediterranean-Style Diet May Be Equal to Taking 4,000 More Steps (Healthline)

Money On Your Mind

A recent study found that 52% of U.S. adults — 10% more than last year — claimed that money had a negative impact on their mental health. The survey also found that 60% of Gen X (ages 43 to 58) say money negatively impacts their mental health, while only 45% of baby boomers (ages 59 to 77) claimed the same.

Don’t Let Your Finances Control Your Mental Wellbeing — Here’s How (Kiplinger)

It’s the Wronged Way

We’ve found out a lot about forgiveness in the last 25 years, and how to help people who want to forgive to do so more efficiently and effectively. We also know that forgiveness alone does not have to do all of the work in dealing with injustices.

Six Ways to Deal With Someone Who Wronged You

The Write Path to Better Thinking

By Trudi Roth

As someone who makes her living by writing, you might think I’m petrified that AI will decimate my career.

Honestly, machines don’t scare me. It’s the foolish humans who are okay with completely abdicating their ability to think, communicate, and solve problems that I find alarming.

Sure, AI can pump out emails, articles, and even full-on books for you, saving you time and effort, but there’s a significant trade-off. Learning becomes harder as your literacy fades, focus diminishes, and memory is weakened.

So, as we stand at the crossroads of machine-driven progress, don’t write off the benefit of penning your own work.

Stay Composed

First, let’s be clear about what AI is: it’s a tool. Using it to enhance and support your productivity and creativity is fine — after all, we saw firsthand the benefits of the personal computer revolution. (Hullo, Apple 1984… which continues to be the perfect metaphor for today’s digital landscape.)

But tools aren’t a replacement for your brain. The act of writing isn’t just about stringing together words — it’s about putting together your thoughts and making meaning.

Writing about something teaches you about what you know, what you don’t know, and how to think. Writing about something is one of the best ways to learn about it. Writing is not just a vehicle to share ideas with others but also a way to understand them better yourself.

Cranking out information isn’t a problem. The challenge is that it’s becoming harder for people to parse out the signal from the noise. By keeping your writing skills sharp, you’ll be an invaluable thinker who can deeply understand a problem and help others gain insight and clarity.

Don’t Forget to Write

Writing regularly, whether for business or pleasure (or both), has been shown to strengthen your ability to communicate complex ideas clearly. This involves both executive function and emotional IQ, enabling you to express your thoughts in well-organized, unique, and engaging ways.

If you really want to stimulate your brain, write by hand. Research shows it improves your memory as you age, helps you focus, and supports comprehension and retention of new information. Kick it up a notch by journaling, which acts as a mindfulness tool, reducing anxiety and stress and increasing your creativity, resilience, and ability to achieve your goals.

AI implies intelligence, but using it in place of your own brain isn’t a smart idea. So, go ahead and let robot-led tools help you craft your work, but do yourself a favor: never let them have the final word. It just ain’t write.

Why Write? (Farnam Street)