In cleaning out the hundreds of e-mails that amassed during my recent vacation that took me off the grid I came across an interesting study. (By the way, I highly recommend a complete break from email, voice mail, etc. at least once a year — you will be amazed at how calming it can be).
In the 2008 American Express OPEN Spring Monitor, they found a sharp contrast between business owners over sixty and the small business population at large as they manage their way through the current economic uncertainty.
The over sixty age group holds the most optimistic outlook among entrepreneurs surveyed, perhaps due to having endured downturns in the past. For these business owners the biggest challenge to growth is not an uncertain economy, cited by nearly one third of small business owners overall (30%), but the rising costs of doing business cited by 27% of over sixty year olds. Those of us over 50 (Let’s be clear — I am not yet in the over 60 crowd) have been through many economic ups and downs. We also remember the frustration and challenges that come with prolonged inflation. Younger entrepreneurs have no frame of reference for what inflation can do to small businesses.
Entrepreneurs over sixty are taking actions that show they learned from their past experiences with inflation. Although they are generally more optimistic, they are nonetheless being more cautious in their business decisions:
– 27% of business owners over sixty report plans to hire over the next six
months vs. 38% of small business owners overall; 58% of business owners aged 18-34 report plans to hire
– 42% of business owners over sixty report plans to make capital investments over the next six months vs. 53% of entrepreneurs overall
– 43% of entrepreneurs over sixty are willing to take on a financial risk to grow their business vs. 51% of small business owners overall