Successful != typical, or even average in this context when referring to folks that start.
If you’re looking at starting, it’s helpful, but it’s important to not delude ourselves either.
Having more life experience helps, but when the funnel has a > 90% overall attrition rate, it’s still far from a sure bet.
Part of the reason why the older folks tend to do better IMO, is it’s more likely at that age that they know their own capabilities better and are less likely to launch down a path they’ll definitely not succeed on, and the numbers reflect that more.
It doesn’t mean automatically everyone once they hit that age will have those odds.
Possibly some but not that much. The linked research states that the age is still up at 42 when you remove "successful", and still 40 if you then add "software".
I'm not sure I understand. But I think my answer is, "yes, I would!"
By that point, hopefully I have enough self knowledge to understand what motivates me and what my true competitive advantages are. I also hopefully have a strong network I can leverage to help me with any blind spots I may still carry. And to spend 5-10 years working on something that I truly am passionate about, which I've worked hard to have the resources to do without encumbering others, sounds rather nice!
As someone close to 50 in this boat it a great question.
The fact is I wanted to build a startup to get rich. That's it really. Now that I am much more finically secure (but not rich by a long shot) I'm not sure I will want to roll the dice or just keep my job as an IC.
This underestimates longevity a bit: a 55-year-old in the US has a life expectancy of ~26-29 years (male and female, respectively).[1] Granted, this may hinge on what you mean by "active" years.
Then figure you have 10-20 active years left, and do you really want to spend 5-10 of them on a startup?