; Your Money
Your Resource Center
; The federal government’s Small
Business Administration, at www.sba
.gov/50plusentrepreneur, provides
links to programs for women and vets.
; The SBA’s Small Business Develop-
ment Centers at www.sba.gov/sbdc
offer free advice in every state.
; SCORE, www.score.org, a nonprofit
known as “counselors to America’s
small business,” is a nationwide
network of volunteers with business
backgrounds who offer workshops
and free online and face-to-face
counseling.
; The Kauffman Foundation’s Fast-
Trac business development programs
are offered around the country for
new and established entrepreneurs.
Go to www.fasttrac.org.
; AARP Worksearch website at www
. aarpworksearch.org/pages/ offers a
broad array of services for older job
seekers.
; Check local colleges and universities
and their business schools for entre-
preneurship workshops and courses.
CONTRACTOR
Richard Wendel, urologist
turned homebuilder, adviser
Start with enough capital—profit takes time.
Small-business experts agree, and advise
against financing a venture with credit cards
or retirement savings—it’s just too risky.
After Cincinnati urologist Richard Wendel retired in 1997, he launched a construction firm
and employed vocational education students,
hoping to give them a leg up. But faced with
unanticipated zoning issues, he could complete
only five of the eight homes that he’d planned.
“I lost about $125,000,” says Wendel, who now
is a volunteer counselor
with the nonprofit group
SCORE. He uses his own
business failure as a cau-
tionary tale for others.
