Save a Buck: Are You Ready to Start a Business?

If you’re an enterprising, can-do kind of person who’s contemplating a new career or a side venture, why not consider starting your own small business? In today’s discouraging job market, plenty of boomers are doing just that, and the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) is ready to help. The SBA is offering a new website, specifically for 50-plus entrepreneurs, to help determine whether starting a business is the right move for you and, if so, how to make it happen. The site’s interactive information and links provide a detailed road map for a start-up, showing you how to assess your ability and readiness, evaluate the risks and benefits involved, learn your financing options, estimate your costs, find your niche, get advice and support from other people’s experience, and set up a step-by-step plan to help you navigate your way to being your own boss.

Joan Rattner Heilman is the author of Unbelievably Good Deals and Great Adventures that You Absolutely Can’t Get Unless You’re Over 50 (McGraw-Hill, 2009).