Divorce or Double Down - Build or Burn

Divorce or double down. Build or burn.

This is the choice that faces many couples and individuals as they head past 50.

It's a choice that you may currently be facing in your marriage or your relationship, in the business you're building and in the friendships that you have held.?

One of the pieces of research/commentary that came our way this week is the way in which Generation X and Boomers are enjoying what's being termed a Gerontolescence, which is, effectively a later life adolescence.

The concept is that people of Generation X age are looking to find themselves once more, as we first do in our late teens and twenties, seeking now to reimagine and redefine what life after 50 may be.

Here at Greater Life, we’ve been exploring this in great detail, and have been taking a stand for why entrepreneurs over 50 should be appreciated, should be recognised and supported not just for the incredible value that they add, but also for the challenges they face as they add that value.

There is no other demographic trying to build businesses, create jobs and contribute to the economy, alongside facing menopause, caring for elderly relatives, dealing with empty nest syndrome bereavements of family and friends, and so on.?

Now, of course, some of these elements may be present for others, but they certainly gather in clusters as you hit 50+?

Indeed this is very real for us right now, with loved ones close to Greater Life at the moment being in and out of ICU, caring for family members and close friends.?

And of course, what this frequent brush with mortality brings is a question of what kind of life I want to be living. What kind of relationship and partnership do I want to be in? What kind of friends do I want to be associated with and what kind of business do I want to build?

And as these questions get pondered, then of course, the real question arises: divorce or double down, build or burn??

Do you divorce yourself from your romantic partner or your spouse? Do you divorce yourself from a group of friends who you may have had simply because they just happened to be parents with your kids at the same school, but actually you now realise, as you ponder what you want from this next phase of your life, that you have very little in common with them.

Do you want to actually put in the hard yards to find new common ground, new shared interests and excitement? Or is it more sensible to just walk away and cultivate something new??

The same questions apply to your business. You may have been serving a group of customers because either that was the person you were and you were able to serve them as your ideal customer, or you just fell into a business that paid the bills, but now you’re asking if it’s really true to who you are now.

The question becomes, do you let go of the business as it is, to pursue something that is more aligned with you??

Within Greater Life, we’ve begun to call this conundrum ‘starting up or stepping out’ - starting up something new with all the experience and networks that you've accumulated or stepping out, stepping out from your current way of doing things and stepping into connection with a new ideal customer, a new way of doing business, perhaps a new but related product or service.

So today these are the tough questions we pose. This article is much more an attempt to meet you where you may be right now, to acknowledge that very deep and sometimes troubling question: do you build or do you burn??

Divorce or double down??

This is not about having answers. It’s about acknowledging the likelihood of such a potent question.?

Whether it’s something you’re personally experiencing right now or is utterly present for one of your over 50 entrepreneurial peers who are considering this question in one area or more of their life.

And when we allow this question to be here, to not shame you or your peers for thinking it, but just to acknowledge that it is a vital part of choosing and building the greater life for yourself and those you love.?

When we give this question the time and attention it needs…well then, once that honesty and clarity is there, then it opens the possibility for something new.

So where are you at as you read this??

If you knew it would work, would you double down? Would you choose to invest time effort, energy money in building the relationship of your dreams with the person you’re already with and/or building the business of your dreams based on everything you now have?

Or…if you knew it would work…would you choose to let go of everything and start again?

There's no right or wrong answer. There’s just whatever answer is the right answer for you, in your heart of hearts.?

So that’s the question we leave you today:?

If you knew it would work, what would you do? Divorce or double down, build or burn?

The home life you create and the business you build will be defined by the answer you choose, so honour the question well.?

It’s an act of love for you and those you care about. See you tomorrow.

Spotify

YouTube

#greaterlife #helptheageless #over50 #50plus #entrepreneur