Despite the hardships and the hard work, most small-business owners say they would start other companies if given the chance.
In mid-August, the Gallup Organization, a national polling company based in Princeton, N.J., in conjunction with Wells Fargo, asked small-business owners a simple question: Would you do it all over again?
The answers surprised Dennis Jacobe, Gallup’s chief economist, because overwhelmingly and enthusiastically business owners said yes.
More than eight in 10 small-business owners (81 percent) said they would start another company, according to the survey’s results, released in late October. More than half, or 56 percent, said they are very satisfied with owning a small business, and 30 percent are somewhat satisfied.
Given the harsh economic conditions of the last few years, Jacobe thought more business owners would be disgruntled, or at least discouraged.
“In a sense it shows the resiliency of the small-business owner,” he said. “A lot of things in the business climate put pressure on small-business owners. Energy costs and other everyday costs have gone up, but owners can’t raise their prices. So their margins are squeezed. This affects not only how much business owners make, [but also] how much work they have to do and how many people they can hire to help them.”
Indeed, an earlier Gallup survey, released in September, showed that revenues at many small businesses have shrunk. Nearly half, 44 percent, said revenues fell in the last 12 months. And 26 percent said cash flow was poor.
But the situation is not as dire as it could be because interest rates are low and banks and other financial institutions are making credit available.
In the recent Gallup survey of companies with sales of less than $20 million, 42 percent said credit was easy and 28 percent said it was above average.
“If credit is available,” Jacobe said, “you can survive.”
And surviving they are. Gallup found that nearly all small-business owners believe they are at least somewhat successful. More than four in 10 think they are very or extremely successful. A mere 3 percent think they are not too successful or not successful at all.
And 74 percent think that they are financially better off than they would have been if they had worked for someone else.
That financial success appears to come at a price–48 percent think they log longer hours than they would if they worked for someone else.
The survey results bode well for the economy, Jacobe says. When the economy starts to pick up, he expects more people will want to start their own ventures. And that, Jacobe believes, will be the nation’s economic salvation.