U.S. Workers Aspire To Be Entrepreneurs, Freelancers: Survey Says

U.S. workers still want to be successful, and some even want to be the boss one day. What they overwhelmingly don't want to be are corporate executives. In a survey of more than 1,000 people, Intelligent Office found that not a single respondent aspired to be a "corporate executive." In fact, not even the people who are already in middle management said they want to be there.

So what do they want? Nearly 65 percent of respondents to the first "Work IQ" survey said they aspire to be an entrepreneur or independent worker. Why was "corporate executive" such an undesirable role? Freedom is a big part of it, with 61 percent of people in search of more flexible work hours than the traditional 9-to-5.

Why it matters to your business: Small businesses have long had trouble competing for employees with bigger companies, offering better perks and higher salaries. This survey suggests that if you can offer employees what they want -- work-life balance, flexibility and mobility, and the tools to help them work from home or on the go (tablets, laptops and smartphones), you've got a good chance of winning the best and the brightest away from the corporate giants.

Comments

[Nathan Jansch]

05:14 PM on 03/23/2012

You have to consider the source of this survey. "The Intelligent Office" is a virtual office provider that works primarily with small business owners - I should know, I'm in the same industry and they are a competitor ours. Of course their survey results are going to indicate that workers want to be entrepreneurs and free lancers... that's the population segment that they are surveying. duh!

[StartMyConsultingBusines]

09:49 AM on 03/21/2012

Businesses failures are typically due to 3 things:
-->failure to do due diligence (Is there a market of customers willing to pay for what you offer?)
-->starting a business with high overhead and low margins (e.g., retail)
-->lack of basic business skills
Those are all things that can be overcome.

As for freedom & financial security, I started my consulting business in January 2007, and have MORE flexibility and financial security than I ever had at a day job. I'm actually MUCH more secure being self-employed and having lots of clients than I was by having a single employer.

Since I started my consulting business, I've QUADRUPLED my former day-job salary--even during the Great Recession.

Would I ever go back to a "real" job? Hell no!

There are tons of businesses you can start, but freelancing/consulting is one of the easiest and least costly businesses to start, since it has:
   -->very low start-up costs,
   -->flexible hours,
   -->a high hourly pay rate, and
   -->you already have the expertise to get started.

Start a side business while keeping your day job, then grow your business to the point you can ditch your day job.

You can check out an interview I recently did where I talk about how I made the switch from employee to consultant, and give actual income & rate numbers:
http://www.startmyconsultingbusiness.com/how-i-made-the-switch-from-employee-to-consultant

Greg Miliates
http://www.StartMyConsultingBusiness.com/start-here/

[HomeGigz]

07:32 AM on 03/21/2012

Time is a valued treasure. Quality time with family is priceless. I completely agree with the 65% surveyed that a work-life balance, flexibility and mobility with on-to-go tools are definite perks for employees to choosing to remain within the typical workforce. As community manager of http://homegigz.com, I work to inform and educate our readers of the various ways to work from your home. My hope is that they can identify with a few ideas that sync their passions, interests and skills in order to test the waters with work from home that has the potential offer of a work-life balance and flexibility they desire.

Thank you for posting the information within your article, which I just shared with my online community.
All the best!
Rodney

[frank1946]

07:29 AM on 03/21/2012

80 % of small businesses fail in the first five years.

Dreams make you feel better, however !

Where did the $$$ go ?