Thoughts About Age and the Entrepreneur

Recently I read an interesting blog by Paul Kedrosky (Age and the Entrepreneur).

I have a theory that there are 3 time frames to start/join a start up:

Age 22:
Just finish army service (I am from Israel..). Young and Naive. Following some crazy ideas with some friends. Work hard and play harder.

After you spend some time in a start up, your spouse (which somehow you manage to find while working 16 hours a day) is fed up with your schedule and "ask" you to "find a real job". Or in my case, the start up is closed and/or acquired by a bigger company.

Age 35:
So you spent some time in a big company and learn how to do things, or how not to do things, you feel it is time to do something yourself. You pick up to phone and call your friends. If you are lucky / got smarter - there are not the same from the first start up... And you start your own or join a start up you believe in and know why you should be there.

(Let's hope your spouse is OK with you following this path again...)

Age 50:
Either you spent more than 20 year in a big company or worked for 10 start ups by now, you are ready to lead or support a new idea. You are a domain expert (or at least, other think you are) with no interest to work in the same domain... So you start, join or consult to a start up.

Does this theory work for you?

E.T.