The American Dream. Each individual has their own vision to associate with those words. Traditionally, the phrase is associated with opportunity.
What is opportunity?
Opportunity is a noun, meaning a set of circumstances that makes it possible to do something. The word also functions like a verb when we see a path, then take action.
Record numbers of individuals are becoming entrepreneurs.
In fact, USA Today reported these small business statistics in an Oct 16 report:
Small businesses make up 99.9% of all U.S. firms, with around 33.3 million of these businesses in total across the country. They’re also responsible for almost two-thirds of newly created jobs in the U.S. between 1995 and 2021.
Small businesses also comprise 99.7% of firms with paid employees and 97.3% of exporters while contributing 43.5% of the country’s total gross domestic product
Self-employed small business owners in the U.S. earn an average of $51,816 per year. However, for unincorporated businesses, this decreases to an average of $26,084 per year.
Small businesses that have one employee typically bring home around $44,000 per year, according to Fora Financial.
Around 18% of small businesses will fail within a year of opening, while half fail after five years and approximately 65% after operating for up to 10 years.
Women own around 26% of all small businesses in the U.S., while just under half are owned by Generation X, and only 14% of small business owners are Black, Hispanic or Asian.
Almost four-fifths of small business owners were self-financed when launching, while 16% were funded by bank loans. Loans from family and friends made up the remaining 2% to 6%.
Jumping into the world of being an entrepreneur means embracing a mindset of staying curious, adapting & innovating and being resistant. There will be set backs, but we grow from those failures to learn more. Each new step provides us new opportunities. Each step moves us forward to thrive.
So, who's minding the store in the USA? The answer is probably a small business owner, who's an entrepreneur with a vision. These individuals are clearly not making millions, but continue to be invested in their community. American entrepreneurs are the heart & soul of community by creating jobs, innovating, investing in themself & others while that forge ahead to pursue their American Dream.
This month, we challenge you to be bold, experiment, ask questions, remain curious and chase your dreams!
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