I see a lot of you in here grinding through job applications. Tailoring resumes. Writing cover letters. Following up on interviews that go nowhere. And I get it. I've been there. Hell, I'm still there sometimes. But here's what I've been thinking about lately. What if we're asking the wrong question? We keep asking "How do I get hired?" when maybe we should be asking "How do I stop needing to get hired?" Nobody wants to hire people over 40. We all know this. The algorithms filter us out. The hiring managers see our experience as "overqualified." The salary expectations don't match their budgets. We can keep banging our heads against that wall. Or we can build our own door. I'm not talking about some massive startup with investors and employees. I'm talking about something that's yours. Freelancing. Consulting. Coaching. A service business. A digital product. Something you control. Because here's what I've learned after months of building my own thing while freelancing on the side: The traditional path is broken. But there are other paths. The data actually supports this. People are starting businesses in record numbers right now. Over 5 million new business applications in 2024. That's 50% more than in 2019. And here's the kicker: 64% of entrepreneurs in the US are over 40. We're not too old for this. We're actually in the sweet spot.Most entrepreneurs don't even launch their businesses until they're 42. But I'm not going to lie to you. It's scary as hell. I've failed at business before. Multiple times. And starting again at 57, broke, with decades of failure behind me? That takes everything I've got. But I've never been this far along. I've never had this much momentum. I've never felt this certain that I'm onto something. Here's what's different this time. I'm not choosing between a job and a business. I'm doing both. I'm taking freelance work to keep money coming in. And I'm building my own platforms, my own products, my own audience at the same time.

I was going to start charging $9 a month once we hit a certain number. Lock in the free members, then monetize the growth. That was the plan. But here's the thing: we're all here for the same reason. We're broke. We're struggling. We're trying to rebuild while the system tells us we're too old, too expensive, too whatever. Charging you to be part of a community where we're all fighting the same fight feels wrong. So I'm not doing it. This group stays free. Period. Everyone who's here now has lifetime access. Everyone who joins later gets the same deal. No bait and switch. No "limited time offer" bullshit. Maybe down the road I'll add a premium tier with personal coaching or 1-on-1 calls for people who want that. But the core community? Always free. Now here's what I need from you: What would make this group actually worth your time? What would help you the most right now? - More structure? Weekly challenges? Frameworks? - Specific guides on freelancing, consulting, starting a business? - Job leads and opportunities we can share? - Resume reviews and interview prep? - Accountability groups? - Guest speakers who've been through this? - Something else I'm not thinking of? I built this place because I was tired of being invisible. Tired of watching people like us get rejected, ghosted, and told we don't matter. But this only works if it's actually useful. If it helps you get somewhere. So tell me: what do you need? Drop a comment. Be honest. Be specific. We're building this together. Let's make it something that actually moves the needle.