In partnership with
OK - Maybe You Don’t Look Quite Ad Good On Camera As You Used To…or Maybe You Look Better?
I don't know about you, but my face is maybe a little fuller than it used to be, my hair is a little thinner, and those tired lines near my eyes, they don't ever go away anymore.
But I'll tell you something that happened to me a few months ago. I generate a lot of content on LinkedIn, and most of it is just to establish my own expertise. So when people are looking for the services I provide, they have a corpus of content to look at and think, "Oh holy guacamole, Tim is pretty f*cking smart."
A few months ago, a pretty large company reached out to me and asked if I would make some content for them. We talked about what they wanted, and low and behold it's something that I could do. It involves text and video, so I had to put this fat, balding, tired-looking face on camera representing somebody else’s company.
And guess what? They paid me. They turned me into a "creator."
I think I'm pretty charming, often funny, and I know my business, but I never thought that I would be part of a promotional opportunity for somebody else. Now listen, I'm not quite at the Ben Affleck, Matt Damon, and DunKIngs level, but it was a reasonable amount of money.
So that got me thinking about becoming a creator on the north side of 50. Does it happen? Is it possible? Can you do it?
Let’s Find Out…
It Wasn't Very Hard to Find Lists Creators in their 50s.
Some of these folks had big followings before, like Paulina Porizkova and Julia Louis-Dreyfus. They were already famous and after 50, they decided to step outside their spheres of influence—fashion and comedy, respectively.
Porizkova started talking about beauty standards, grief (after the divorce from and death of her husband, Cars frontman Ric Ocasek) and her subsequent travels and romance. Louis Dreyfus Started a podcast, that while funny, isn’t comedy.
But here are some creators that STARTED in their 50s (or later) who made real impact - just by being themselves:
Iris Apfel: Iris was always part of the elite. Her husband was a textile merchant and restorer, and worked on incredible interior design projects like Jackie Kennedy's White House. But Iris herself was always part of the business, yet she was never the face of it. It wasn't until the early 2000s that Iris became a fashion icon just by dressing like herself. She had quite the second career as a model, an influencer, and being Iris.
Baddie Winkle: In 2014, Helen Van Winkle’s granddaughter posted pictures of herself wearing Baddie's clothes and gained some notoriety. Shortly thereafter, Baddie joined the fun & after Rhianna took note of her style, Baddie became an overnight sensation - at the age of 85! Until her passing, Baddie was proud of "Stealin' yo man since 1928”.
Joan McDonald: Starting a weight loss journey at the age of 70, Joan became a training phenomenon, losing pounds, gaining muscle, becoming absolutely jacked and shredded in her 70s. Joan has turned her personal weight loss journey into a very successful fitness coaching business. She's appeared on Good Morning America, in Vogue, in People magazine, and it's all because she decided to make a change in her 70s. Good for you, JoanQ
Lili Hayes: Kevin Hayes always found his mother to be a little embarrassing, a little outspoken, and maybe a little cringe. He decided to turn her into a social media phenomenon. Lily Hayes bills herself as the angriest Jewish mother on the internet. She is super funny, she's always pissed about something, and she tells it exactly like it is all the time. Oh, and she started this when she was 74. Now she is a cultural icon with over 10 million followers across all channels
The headlines that actually moves markets
Tired of missing the trades that actually move markets?
Every weekday, you’ll get a 5-minute Elite Trade Club newsletter covering the top stories, market-moving headlines, and the hottest stocks — delivered before the opening bell.
Whether you’re a casual trader or a serious investor, it’s everything you need to know before making your next move.
Join 200K+ traders who read our 5-minute premarket report to see which stocks are setting up for the day, what news is breaking, and where the smart money’s moving.
By joining, you’ll receive Elite Trade Club emails and select partner insights. See Privacy Policy.
Do I Have To Be Funny, Or Stylish, or Totally Jacked?
Of course not! The thing that helped these people become creators later in their lives is the fact that they had exactly zero fucks to give. I think if you look at any of the really successful creators over 50, you're going to find people who are enthusiastic, optimistic, funny, irreverent, and adventurous. The reason why they've become successful creators because they are just themselves.
From Hot Flashes & Cool Topics - a podcast focused on women’s experiences as they age, to #MrStealYourGrandma - late in life style icon Irvin Randle, becoming a creator comes down to being comfortable in your own skin, being who you are and letting that shine.
Listen, you can’t make yourself “go viral”, or sustain any real attention by being someone you aren’t. And of course, all of the folks I’ve listed above are exceptions rather than the rule. But like that joker at the very beginning of the email, talking authentically about things I know, being myself and being comfortable expressing my opinion lead to someone reaching out to me saying “We’d like to pay you money to say stuff that you would probably say anyway, but include us in the content & we will throw some dollars your way”.
So, am I a “creator”…no. I mean maybe, but it’s not like I’m Mr Beast. I’ve found creators that talk about gardening, woodworking tools, cow hoof repair & AI. So my hypothesis for becoming a creator is this:
Do the thing you do.
Share it.
Exercise all of your IDGAF (I don’t give a f*ck) muscles.
Stick with it - and I bet opportunities come your way.
The Secret to a 7-Figure Coaching Program? Kajabi!
See how Julie Ciardi scaled her coaching business to $3M by connecting her courses, community, coaching, and digital products in one seamless system. Learn how to retain, upsell, and scale.
chapter neXt is a newsletter/community/guide for entrepreneurial folks in their 50s and beyond. It is published by Julia Kelahan (check her out on LinkedIn, her amazing strength-based learning center & her ADHD & Executive Function coaching business) and Tim Kilroy (check him out on LinkedIn & his agency growth business & his agency-focused newsletter). They are the proud parents to 5 kids, they live near Boston.