Anna Vital's Infographics on Later Starts and Indirect Career Paths

Originally published 2015-04-23. Events, ages and announcements in this article refer to April 2015.

Mark Zuckerberg and the current lot of 20-something CEOs are ruining it for people like us who’re facing a mid-life crisis. This infographic, by information designer Anna Vital, gets back at those young people and shows why you can always start your own business no matter how old you are. Check it out below.

Some details you may not have heard...

• Ray Kroc, who expanded McDonald’s through franchising, sold paper cups and milkshake mixers until the age of 52
• Before writing Harry Potter, J.K.Rowling was a single mom on welfare
• Harrison Ford was a carpenter until he turned 30
• Zara founder Amancio Ortega was a shirt shop helper until the age of 30 too
• Evan Williams co-founded Twitter at the age of 35
• Niklas Zennström was 37 when he created Skype
• Arianna Huffington started Huffington Post at the age of 54

And some more...

Funders and Founders


Funders and Founders


Funders and Founders

Using an example without copying a biography

These career stories can loosen the idea that everyone must succeed on the same timetable. They are starting points for reflection, not evidence that leaving a job or launching a business will work for everyone. Write down the skills, contacts and practical experience you already have, then identify one small way to test an idea before making a larger commitment.

A later milestone does not erase the experience before it

The examples compress long careers into an age and a recognizable achievement. The work, contacts and resources accumulated beforehand may be essential to understanding the transition. That makes the infographic more useful as a challenge to a rigid timetable than as proof that a particular age guarantees a successful new venture.