Boomers starting own businesses for encore careers

Unemployment may still be hovering around a stubborn 9.1 percent, but that has not stopped some baby boomers from enjoying working in retirement. A growing number of adults are taking matters into their own hands and starting their own businesses as encore careers, the Atlanta Journal-Constitution reports.

The number of people between 55 and 64 who have started their own company over the last several years as grown considerably. In fact, between 2007 and 2010, the figure has grown by 25 percent and older entrepreneurs make up about 23 percent of new businesses.

Among those who decided to start an independent business in retirement was Dan Meehan, who suffered when the recession struck in 2008. Despite the bleak outlook, Meehan decided to take matters into his own hands and launched a pool-cleaning business in 2009.

"We don't get to pick the times we live in," Meehan told the Journal-Constitution. "If I had decided to wait until things got better, I'd still be waiting."

Still, experts warn that retirees should not take the thought of starting their own business lightly. There are a number of things that can and often do go wrong and you have to be willing to work long hours and do the jobs that sometimes others are unwilling to do.

Despite the hardships that the process entails, there are some boomers who decided to start a business as a way to stay active. Entrepreneur expert Bob Gemmell told the publication that many over-50 businesspeople turn hobbies into so-called "lifestyle businesses."

Homeowners at Del Webb Celebrate hoping to start their own business can take classes at The University of Mary Washington Center for Graduate and Professional Studies. Located just a short distance from the community, the school offers classes on a wide range of subjects that will help entrepreneurial residents.