Which
group of entrepreneurs is geared up to lead us out of the recession? According to the
a survey from American Express OPEN Small Business Monitor, it is the Entrepreneurial Generation (a.k.a Gen Y, or the Millennials). The survey found that Gen Y is the most optimistic group of entrepreneurs when
compared to other age groups and to the overall sample of business owners. More
than three-quarters (80%) of these entrepreneurs have a significantly more
positive outlook on business prospects versus Gen X and business owners overall
(each 55%), and Baby Boomers (52%).
The
optimism of Gen Y entrepreneurs extends across a number of areas:
- They're most likely to hire (36%, vs. 25% of Gen X and
20% of Boomers )
- They're most likely to have capital investment plans
(58%, vs. 41% of Gen X and 39% of Boomers)
- They're most willing to take a financial risk (67%, vs.
52% of Gen X and 47% of Boomers)
- They're least likely to have cash flow issues (53%
versus 59% for Gen X and 64% of Baby Boomers)
- They're least stressed out by the economy (57% versus
72% of Gen X'ers and 71% of Boomers)
- They're most likely to implement employee-friendly policies to battle the recession. Gen Y will allow employees to maintain a flexible schedule (44%), Baby Boomers will institute a hiring freeze (41%) and Gen X entrepreneurs will institute a salary freeze (39%)
This is consistent with the attitudes I am seeing among our Gen Y students this semester. I am handing back the first installment of business plans to my seniors this week. They are much more serious about trying to figure out a way to make their ventures work, as fewer believe that there will be jobs waiting for them when they graduate.
That’s an interesting survey. It correlates to the views that Gen Y is an optimistic generation in general. It’s been said that as Gen Y has grown up, they’ve faced less fierce competition than previous generations. In Gen Y, more focus was put on everyone is a winner and losing still gets a runner up prize. Under these conditions, the risk of failure becomes less of an issue than people who were taught to fear failure.
Great things can happen when people reach for the stars, but know landing on the moon is pretty good too.