Originally published in Entrepreneur Magazine

By Jeff Harbach

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Despite the popular perception of entrepreneurs as hoodie-wearing 20-somethings, mid-life founders are far more common, and more successful, than many people realize.

In fact, according to research out of the Kauffman Foundation, the average age of a successful entrepreneur today is 39 years old, with at least six to 10 years of industry experience. And there are twice as many successful founders over 50 than there are under 25.

This should not be surprising. Innovation is hard. Leadership and corporate growth take skills and experiences that many young CEOs simply don’t have yet. True, a 25-year-old founder is going to be more plugged into the wants and needs of customers in her age range, but the fact is not every technology customer today is under 30, and many entrepreneurs are now working on products intended for vastly different audiences than their counterparts were just a few years ago.

Jeff Harbach is President and CEO of Kauffman Fellows.