Why start a business in this economy? No boss to answer to.
A new study shows that small business owners highly value "being their own boss."
Barry Faught, owner of SOHO Coffee Company, makes a list of items he needs to restock at his store in Seattle, Wednesday, April 21. A new study shows that people decide to start their own small businesses for the opportunity to "be their own boss," but the venture is harder than many expected.
Ted S. Warren/AP/File
A new survey of 511 entrepreneurs with 2-100 employees from SnagAJob.com offers some interesting insights into the journey of entrepreneurship. Almost two-thirds (63%) say that starting their own business has been more personally fulfilling than they ever thought it would be.
Among the primary reasons they cited for becoming entrepreneurs -- 91% said "being their own boss" was a top motivating factor and 72% said earning a higher income was an important driving force.
The results from this survey suggest that growth brings financial rewards. Even in these challenging economic times 40% of small business owners with 11 to 100 employees say starting a small business has been more financially rewarding than they expected, compared to only 21% of those entrepreneurs with 10 or fewer employees.
But, growth comes with a personal cost. Small business owners with 11 to 100 employees report spending an average of 69 hours a week working on and in their business, versus 58 hours a week at smaller firms. Most of the entrepreneurs surveyed reported running their business was more difficult than they had imagined before starting the venture.
Think you want to join these folks in being your own boss? While I am generally not a big fan of "entrepreneurship quizzes", Belmont alum Joe Ormont passed along a quiz from bnet.com that actually captures important aspects of entrepreneurial thinking. You can take the quiz here.
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