What Business Should a 50+ Year-Old Christian Woman Start?

When I decided to start my business, I only knew that I wanted to do something new. I didn’t have a clue exactly what that would look like. You may also be in this same space. 

What I DID know is that I had lived more years than I had left, and I wanted the final third 1/3 or fourth ¼ of my life to be lived following Jesus into whatever He was calling me. 

My previous entrepreneurial experience allowed me to learn every facet of business life from the perspective of the CFO. We had 32 employees at one time, and let me tell you, there were days I caught myself coming and going. As I look back at that experience, I don’t have to wonder why I am sporting gray hair and more wrinkles than I care to see in the mirror. 

One of the frequent conversations Ron (my sweet hubby) and I would have was how badly we would love to have a ‘formula’ for all of the challenges we faced. Because we were forced to face them all head-on, I learned a ton about everything from marketing to money and human resources to humility. I had to learn how to be a boss while at the same time having the heart of Christ. 

When I began my own solopreneur journey, what I realized was that I wanted to provide my seasoned knowledge and experience to others to help them weather the storms. 

And this is where my solopreneur story began…

The very tactile solution to the question ”What business should a 50+ year old Christian woman start?” begins with index cards. 

Yes, for me it was index cards.

I began writing down every imaginable thing I wanted to do, one card at a time. Each thought got its own card.

I did this for about a week and then sat down to review them.

This process worked for me because I think better when I have things I can move around like a puzzle board, placing them in categories and then re-shuffling until it feels right. 

My puzzle pieces were index cards.

The first obvious answer: I want to help people.

Next, I had to determine the ‘how’. 

It began by offering vision board workshops, which followed a Biblical journey. I offered them to anyone and everyone who was interested. I realized quickly how difficult marketing and booking were for this endeavor.  

Also, what I learned from most people’s boards was that they wanted to travel more, and they loved their dogs a lot!

The folks who put business goals on their boards typically want to do something with purpose.

I realized from these repeated patterns that my clients wanted to have a robust personal life with a business/profession that brought value to the world. Most people wanted their business life to be the means, not the end. 

I facilitated this process for hundreds of people, and the results were consistent. 

They wanted their life to mean something. 

They wanted their work life to fund their personal goals, not the other way around.

This is when I began morphing my vision board business into business consulting and focusing on Christian business owners. 

A few years into this journey, I felt a clear calling to 50+ year-old Christian female business owners. The Lord gave me a very specific concept for Mastermind Groups, and I ran with it. It was a difficult row to hoe.  

It seems He starts me off doing something which is new and unheard of, and I spend most of my time educating on what I offer. 

When I started Vision Board Workshops in 2017, hardly anyone had any idea what a vision board was, and if they did, they thought it was something they created on Pinterest. The process God has me walk my clients through is far quieter, more spiritual, and contemplative. 

When the concept for Mastermind Groups was dropping in my heart, again…I had to spend an enormous amount of time educating. Now, I think they’re becoming more commonplace. 

I’m telling you this journey because where you start may not be where you land. 

Looping back around to the title of this blog…What Business Should a 50+ year-old Woman Start? 

I know you probably came here because you were looking for names of professions.  But honestly, if you’re asking that question…it’s not about a specific title. 

It’s about aligning who YOU HAVE BEEN BUILT TO BE with the people who need you most. 

Read that last sentence again…..

One way of knowing this is spending some time answering these questions. I feel certain that just like my index card process, once you can answer the majority of these questions, you’ll have a fairly good idea of God’s next step for you.

Happy journaling.

• Describe your life experiences both professionally and personally.
• Which struggles or season of your life prepared you to guide someone else now?
• What do people consistently come to you for advice about?
• Who might need the ‘seasoned wisdom’ you didn’t have in your 30’s or 40’s?
• How has this season changed what you value most?
• What’s your level of knowledge in your field or industry?
• Where do you feel the most peace and clarity when you think about building something new?
• What is God asking you to do?
• Who is He asking you to serve?
• Where have you seen God use you most fruitfully in the past?
• What assistance or knowledge do you wish you’d had when you started? 
• Can you build a business based on what your needs were back then?
• What skills feel effortless to you but valuable to others?
• What meaningful problem have you already solved in your own life that someone else is struggling with today?
• What conversations light you up and make time disappear?
• What kind of work allows you to honor the pace and wisdom of this season of life?
• Which people or communities are already drawn to you naturally?
• If you could help someone avoid a pain or mistake you lived through, what would that be?
• What part of your story would you be willing to share so someone else doesn’t feel alone?
• What matters more to you at this age? Profit, purpose, freedom, ministry, or all of the above?
• What spiritual gifts are most active when you’re working?
• What do you want the next decade of your life to stand for?

Once you finish these, consider visiting my website to learn how to get the community support you will need and crave as you begin your journey into entrepreneurship.

“For we are God’s handiwork, created in Christ Jesus to do good works, which God prepared in advance for us to do.”

Ephesians‬ 2‬:10‬ NIV‬‬