The annual national holiday of Thanksgiving for many businesses is the official start of the holiday shopping season. For some businesses, this period represents their peak sales for the year. But there are many reasons why I’m grateful to be a small business owner in the U.S. (The following is adapted from an earlier blog.)
Freedom
In the U.S. just about anyone can become an entrepreneur. You don’t need a college degree or a pedigree. All it takes to get started is an idea, some capital, and grit. In other countries, students are pigeon-holed early in their lives and may become locked into careers that don’t support entrepreneurship.
Statistics in the U.S. show that whether you’re a woman, minority group member, veteran, foreign born, or any other so-called minority, you can become a business owner. For example, women own 42% of nonemployee businesses (10% of employee firms). Nearly one in five businesses (18%) have been started by foreign-born individuals, but some industries have high representation (e.g., 37% of food services; 24% of retail trade).
Opportunities
Entrepreneurship is celebrated and supported in many quarters. Some examples:
- Entrepreneurship programs in colleges and universities. For many years, I taught an undergraduate class in Principles of Entrepreneurship. There are more than 200 undergraduate programs in entrepreneurship and small business in the U.S.; there are also dozens of graduate-level programs in entrepreneurship.
- Business plan competitions. There are monetary prizes for the best plans (e.g., Rice Business Plan Competition on April 7-9, 2022, for graduate-level plans). Check the Business Plan Contest Directory for worldwide competitions.
Doing good
Small business owners contribute substantially to the economy and their communities in a number of ways, including:
- Employing workers. Small businesses employ nearly half of all workers (46.8%) in the U.S., according to the SBA.
- Creating jobs for others. Small businesses help create jobs in other companies by utilizing their goods and services. The existence of small businesses in a community helps improve the local economy and, thus, jobs there.
- Doing charitable work. Small businesses contribute cash, property, and time to help various charities. It’s estimated that about 75% of small businesses donate to charity, with the average donation of about 6% of profits.
Final thoughts
Thanksgiving is a time to express thanks to those around us—family and friends as well as employees, customers, and vendors. Can’t think of what to say? Hallmark has cards that businesses can send to customers expressing their thanks and gratitude.
As President John F. Kennedy said: “As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words but to live by them.”
