#1 top problem: cost of health insurance. It seems Obama’s health policy has bad influence towards them
http://www.ImmixProductions.com ImmixJoe
Nice work. The data is interesting. I especially liked the stat about the birth order. How about acquiring top talent? Sales? I would love to see you expand on this and discuss the % of each of those that succeed, fail, etc. Perhaps a breakdown of the INC 5000?
Arin
Interesting, however I don’t like statistics and how much of this is really true. I believe their are far to many variables applied that make this inaccurate. :/
katie
yes more 1st borns are more successful then the 5th born because how many people do you know have 5 children? Of course more middle class will be entrepreneurs because the amount of people in the middle class vs upper class is significantly greater.
there are way to many variables for this to be reliable information.
http://www.myhydroponicgardening.com LED Grow Lights
Sad to see that at least 7 of the 10 “Top Problems Facing Small Business” are all related to the bloated government.
Kagnu
Gender section seems to have no gender information, but rather be about employment prior to startup.
Drsebby
yeah right…because he’s been the emperor for what, 15 yrs now? appoint blame where deserved please.
Anonymous
Some very worthwhile information regarding “averages.” Let us not forget, though, that averages are made up of the overs/unders and exceptions.
This is nice information to know, but it should never influence anyone’s actions nor alter their dreams/goals.
Marc LeVine
Director of Social Media
RiaEnjolie, Inc. http://www.riaenjolie.com
Follow on Twitter @RiaEnjolie
http://www.mba.co.uk/interestingness/2011/01/18/indexing-your-data-to-provide-context/ Leon
The birth order stat is very interesting. I’m a third child so was thinking I’m less likely than my older siblings to start my own business (though I’m more hungry for it, I’m sure).
Being a stats person though, I thought indexing the number against a national average would give a better relative number than straight percentages.
So I did.
And the results are (100 being the national average):
104 – First born;
87 – Second;
92 – Third;
107 – Foruth;
201 – Fifth;
184 – Sixth and later.
So, if you are the 6th or later child of the family, you are more than twice as likely to become an entrepreneur than a first born. Though you’ll find fewer 6th or later children in the entrepreneur population because there simply isn’t that many of them to start of with.
Hard working people who work harder. They went to school, struggled with finances and had to deal with all the younger brothers and sisters who don’t own their own business. Pretty much the story of my life.
Ajwren
95% have bachelors degrees? I don’t know about that one, sounds a little fishy.
http://twitter.com/tzubytheriver Sun Tzu
Perhaps I should move to the United States……seems ite easier there to break through and have success.
Kfreeman
I agree— most business owners I deal with do not have a college degree. This included many that are very successful. So is interesting to see this figure.
Isabel
Come on over!
Isabel
The SBA’s numbers include small businesses that are actually pretty medium-sized, so maybe that’s why the figure seems high?
Isabel
Yes! Glad you enjoyed it. You can always feel free to share our materials.
http://eisbrener.info/blog Michael Eisbrener
I wonder if the data would be different if it was collected by anyone outside the USA? Seems rather skewed. Who collected the info? What was their intent or what were they out to prove? The data is interesting in it offers questions and potential problems. I can’t say it rings ‘true.’
http://www.superledgrowlights.com Spencer Jan
The stats seem fishy
http://www.growlitestore.com LED Grow Lights
If you start young, many of the problems entrepreneurs face will not be in front of you. Imagine being 22 years old, living with your parents, have no rent to pay for, no kids nothing! Just you, your ideas, your vision, and your passion!
http://www.superledgrowlights.com Super Led Grow Lights
It’s interesting that the average age is 40. I would imagine that the average age would go down with the rise of technology and the internet. It’s so much easier to start a profitable website or online business today and costs so little. It’s a great opportunity.
http://twitter.com/KcJames55 Kc
It’s really sad that the top 7 problems that small businesses face are all government related. It’s not until number 8 that they say anything not having to do with health care, taxes, or some sort of government regulations, and finally have a “business – startup” related problem. As time goes on, the government is going to make it harder, and harder, and harder for small businesses to operate. Until the day comes that it’s basically impossible.
http://www.growlights4u.net/ Grow Lights
All entrepreneurs face many obstacles and give up. you must overcome them and move forward.
http://www.facebook.com/joel007Enterprises Joel Kaben
Pingback: Supporting a Big Day for Small Business