Encore Tampa Bay Founder Guides Positive Aging Conference

While many people have a mental picture of an entrepreneur as a hip twenty-something working on the next billion dollar tech company, the fact is that entrepreneurial activity is growing fastest among Americans aged 55 – 64, and people over the age of 65 have the highest rate of self-employment in the country. The factors influencing Baby Boomers and seniors to consider launching their own enterprises vary from economic necessity to pursuit of a lifelong dream. Discovering exactly which path to take in becoming an entrepreneur or changing a career later in life, however, can be daunting. So as part of the 7th International Conference on Positive Aging, the founders of Encore Tampa Bay and SeniorEntrepreneurshipWorks will explore how seniors are becoming new engines for today’s economy and what steps they can take to re-imagine their lives and maintain their prosperity.

“Today’s Boomer and senior entrepreneurs are creating a whole new paradigm for aging,” said Bevan Rogel, founder and president of Encore Tampa Bay.

“Fewer people are retiring at age 65. According to Encore.org, over 9 million Americans between the ages of 44 – 70 are currently in encore careers, and 31 million more are searching for one. These numbers will only go up over time. Tapping into the windfall of talent of this older generation can provide a significant impact on our businesses, community organizations and economy.”

In their workshop, “Senior Entrepreneurs: New Engines for a New Economy,” Rogel and Elizabeth Isele, co-founder and CEO of SeniorEntrepreneurshipWorks, will help people over 50 to discover what has purpose and meaning for them at this stage of their lives, how they can retool for a new career path, and how they can connect to opportunities that await them in their encore life.

The workshop will take place from 2 – 4 p.m. on Tuesday, February 11 at The HuB at 1680 Fruitville Road in Sarasota, Florida. The session is open to attendees of the 2014 International Conference on Positive Aging. The Conference, hosted by The Institute for the Ages, is being held from February 9 – 12. With the exception of the February 11 afternoon breakout sessions, all other Conference programs will take place at the Hyatt Regency Sarasota.

Tickets for the 2014 International Conference on Positive Aging may be purchased online at Positive Aging Conference.

Elizabeth Isele co-founded SeniorEntrepreneurshipWorks to help people aged 50+ build sustainable businesses, create jobs, and stimulate economic self-reliance for themselves, their communities and the nation.

Rogel launched Encore Tampa Bay in 2012 after losing interest in her own career. After more than 30 years in her profession, she felt burnt out and had lost her passion. Reading the work of Marc Freedman, founder of Encore.org, she discovered there were many people just like her who were struggling with the same loss of their sense of purpose. She rediscovered hers in helping others to identify, retool, and connect to their own encore careers – and launched Encore Tampa Bay at The Greenhouse in partnership with the St. Petersburg Chamber of Commerce and the City of St. Petersburg, Florida to foster and nurture older entrepreneurs. She hosts a series of workshops that assist encore careerists to manage transitions, discover their strengths, navigate multigenerational workforce settings, tap into the power of social media, remove psychological barriers, and customize their own path toward entrepreneurship.

“Our goal is to build interest among Tampa Bay businesses, educational institutions and community organizations to support Boomers and seniors as they launch their encore careers as volunteers, part time employees, and/or entrepreneurs,” Rogel continued. “In so doing, our region can build an entrepreneurial ecosystem and a vibrant, diverse workforce that draws upon the talents of workers of all ages.”

Learn more about upcoming Encore Academy programs.

About Encore Tampa Bay

Encore Tampa Bay helps Baby Boomers understand this exciting new stage of life development where anything is possible- all we need to do is be open and find our passion and purpose for the greater good. Our goal is to build an interest by Tampa Bay businesses, educational institutions and community organizations to support baby boomers as they launch their “Encore” careers as volunteers, part time employees, and/or entrepreneurs.

Encore Tampa Bay is making a difference in the Tampa Bay community by connecting passionate, experienced, talented older adults to organizations that are in need of this level of expertise and experience.