Who Are Better Entrepreneurs: Gen Y or Boomers?

Which demographic group has a lock on entrepreneurship? Is it the Gen-Y/Millennials, which has grown up with social media, group dating and an ability to leverage technology and get products launched fast? Or it the Baby Boomers, who are graduating for corporate life and taking the lessons of decades as they invest their equity in themselves? The answer is "Yes."

The New York Times today checked in on Ernie and Maggie Doud, a middle-aged Missouri couple it had profile about two years ago. A decade ago, the Douds started a company to cure dog breath (in dogs, not people) so they could live more happily with their own mutt. They came up with a kind of doggie Altoid called "Greenies" (maybe Major League Baseball could be a customer?) and sold it to Mars Inc. in 2006 for "a small fortune." Since then they've started 12 other companies. Judging from the photo of them in the Times, I'd say they're in their mid-60s. And they look very, very happy.

Then there are the youngsters. I just finished reading a fascinating book called Upstarts: How GenY Entrepreneurs Are Rocking the World of Business and 8 Ways You Can Profit from Their Success, by Donna Fenn (McGraw-Hill, 2009) She profiles scores of Upstarts, some as young as 14 when they launched their businesses. If you are not a child, you should read the book so you can convince yourself that if a child can start a business and succeed, so can you. And if you're a kid, what are you waiting for -- stop playing Warhammer just for fun and figure out a way to make it pay off.

Fenn identifies common threads of success that are emblematic of her young upstarts, but I found them to be much more universal. For example, she notes that Upstarts have "a healthy disrespect for the status quo" that keeps them "constantly questioning how things are done and why." Well, that is true for any entrepreneur. No one ever got rich by doing something the same way everyone else does it. By definition, entrepreneurs cause market disruptions.

She also notes that Upstarts build their brand by gathering communities who will champion their products. Here again, that's what all entrepreneurs do regardless of their generation. The days are long gone where businesses can spend $100 million+ to launch a brand. Social media entrepreneur Seth Godin has been talking for a long time about Tribes (in his book and elsewhere) and how great entrepreneurs make it a point to connect with "sneezers" -- those people who love their product and are dying to tell other people.

Fenn further notes that Upstarts are maturing in an era where traditional corporate environments have morphed tremendously. There are no longer any safe havens, loyalty to employees, or predictable hierarchies. Older entrepreneurs may be burdened by a sense of the unfairness of having to say goodbye to all that. But Gen Y never had it and doesn't miss it. They know from their disillusioned moms and dads that they are free agents now and forever.

Fenn has a couple of other hallmarks of Upstarts' best practices, which are important for any entrepreneurs to heed:

• Collaboration

Having productive partnerships is important, because entrepreneurial companies can't afford to vertically integrate and do everything in-house. By the same token, reaching out to constituencies of potential customers and partners to ask for advice -- before launching -- can be a lifesaver.

• Technology's Role

There is no entrepreneurship without a social networking strategy. Don't bother launching without thinking about how Facebook and similar platforms fit into the picture.

• Be Socially Aware

Upstarts, Fenn says, are more socially and environmentally conscious (whether that can be proved is another matter). Nevertheless, there is nothing wrong with this Mom-and-apple-pie suggestion that entrepreneurs thinks about doing well by doing good.

• Change the Game

You don't have to invent the next rocket to be successful. Look for underserved niches in existing industries that are too small for big players to care about; and professionalize low-tech businesses (moving household goods, junk removal).

Fenn adds a delightful appendix to her book in which she asks some of the sages of entrepreneurship for advice to give GenY. There are some real pearls here, again relevant to entrepreneurs of all ages. Guy Kawasaki, founder of Alltop and author of Reality Check, says "never ask your customers do to something you wouldn't do." And, "do not listen to naysayers and bozos -- no matter how successful or famous they are -- when they tell you that 'this can't be done.' " And Bo Peabody, a venture capitalist, notes, "Being too early and being wrong are indistinguishable...And technology does less in two years and more in 10 years than you think it's going to." The message: timing is everything.