Life American Dream still alive, for now.

BIG_DADDY · 11-20-2013, 12:32 PM

Thought this was a great read and wanted to share.

http://www.docstoc.com/article/16317...m_content=6281

American entrepreneurs have historically come from all walks of life. From odd jobs to old money, company founders have similarly left their marks on American business despite their diverse backgrounds.

As the age of the internet has changed the world of startups, the profiles of American entrepreneurs have also changed. And while there will always be averages and majorities, a recent Kauffman Foundation study has shown that the new American entrepreneur has its roots in many different grounds.

Economic Background: Upper Class Takes Backseat to Lower and Middle Classes

While entrepreneurship may seem like a rich man’s game, the study shows that company founders come from a wide range of economic backgrounds. For example, a very small minority came from “old money” and upper-class backgrounds:
•Only 0.6% of respondents were born into and raised with wealth, while just 5.4% came from “new money” families that became rich within their own lifetimes.

By far the largest economic category of entrepreneurs came from middle-class backgrounds, with the majority coming from families with lower-paid white-collar workers as heads of households:
•71.5% came from middle-class backgrounds.
•The study broke “middle class” into two categories: 36.9% were born into white-collar households, and 34.6% were classified as “upper-middle class” and raised by professionals often holding postgraduate degrees like MBAs, PhDs, MDs, JDs, etc.

While the stat above may not seem too surprising, what is surprising is the surge of entrepreneurs from lower-class backgrounds:
•21.8% of respondents came from “working class” households supported by blue-collar workers and manual laborers, nearly four times more than those from wealthy families.

Educational Background: College Still Path to Success

Although the need for a wealthy background is becoming less and less of a factor in American entrepreneurship, what won’t change is the need to be educated. While college debt is rising throughout the country, the study shows that college accessibility has hit entrepreneurs of all walks of life:
•95.1% of respondents have earned at least a bachelor’s degree, while 47% had more advanced degrees.

Life Stages: Experience Trumps Youth

While the vast majority of company founders are college-educated, only about half had hopes of entrepreneurship at a younger age or during their schooling:
•52% percent said they were either “somewhat” or “extremely interested” in entrepreneurship during their youth.
•Only 13.3% said they were “not interested” in becoming entrepreneurs when they were younger; the rest (34.7%) “didn’t think about it.”

As such, the profiled entrepreneurs were in relatively later stages in life when they started up and had acquired years of industry experience before opening up their own shops:
•The average and median age of the study’s respondents was 40.
•69.9% said they were married when they launched their first business.
•75.5% had at least 6 years of experience at prior employers before starting their own businesses, while 47.9% had at least 10 years of experience.

Motivation: Money and Independence as Entrepreneurial Drivers

Not surprisingly, the desires to build wealth and to stop working for others were among the highest factors that motivated entrepreneurs:
•74.8% cited building wealth as a motivator to found a new company; 60.3% cited the desire to work for themselves.

While many (68.1%) cited a main motivator in entrepreneurship as wanting to capitalize on a new business idea, the majority apparently had many ideas to work with and classified themselves as serial entrepreneurs:
•The average number of businesses launched by all respondents was approximately 2.3.
•Only 41.4% were starting their first business.

**Nzoner** · 11-20-2013, 12:48 PM

Good read.

My only disagreement would be the part about college still path to success and that's totally based on my own experience.I guess it all depends on what they consider success too as I started my first business at 27 and second business at 46 and had very little college.

I won't go as far to say I've lived the American Dream but it's been good to me although these last few years in my first business has been quite a challenge as Corporate America is making it harder by the day so the "for now" part is dead on.

WhawhaWhat · 11-20-2013, 01:01 PM

He is still alive.

**ptlyon** · 11-20-2013, 01:17 PM

To life, liberty, and the pursuit of Cheetos!

BlackHelicopters · 11-20-2013, 01:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by ptlyon

To life, liberty, and the pursuit of Cheetos!

Crunchy of course.

BIG_DADDY · 11-20-2013, 02:36 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Nzoner

Good read.

My only disagreement would be the part about college still path to success and that's totally based on my own experience.I guess it all depends on what they consider success too as I started my first business at 27 and second business at 46 and had very little college.

I won't go as far to say I've lived the American Dream but it's been good to me although these last few years in my first business has been quite a challenge as Corporate America is making it harder by the day so the "for now" part is dead on.

I think what is cool is that we still live in a country where you can still move yourself into the upper class. I don't even think people can relate to countries where it is really hard to do that or see that the path we are currently on leads there.

vailpass · 11-20-2013, 03:58 PM

Amen. I grew up with a buddy whose dad was an engineer at the local shop in Iowa. One day he quit his job to start a software business that put the bible on floppy discs. He sold that business for a profit then risked everything he had to move to Arizona and start another business from scratch. He is now a billionaire.
You may have heard of GoDaddy.

stonedstooge · 11-20-2013, 04:01 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by vailpass

Amen. I grew up with a buddy whose dad was an engineer at the local shop in Iowa. One day he quit his job to start a software business that put the bible on floppy discs. He sold that business for a profit then risked everything he had to move to Arizona and start another business from scratch. He is now a billionaire.
You may have heard of GoDaddy.

Who?

vailpass · 11-20-2013, 04:05 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by stonedstooge

Who?

Proper response when it looks like someone is trying to big league. I wasn't though, it just seemed to fit the op pretty well.

Bump · 11-20-2013, 04:18 PM

solid read, but your birth certificate is still the most important thing you can possibly have. My friend for example, got out of prison a few years ago and as soon as he gets out, his rich daddy had a fantastic job lining up for him, allowing him to earn $100K+ by working 20 hours per week. He brags constantly about his new life and how he earned it with skill, has no education either. Some people are born on 3rd base and go through life thinking they hit a triple. While yes, in this country, it is possible to get wealthy. But let's face it, the odds are still pretty low for the common man no matter how much work and time they put into whatever it is they do.

BlackHelicopters · 11-20-2013, 04:22 PM

Unicorns and rainbows.

**Buehler445** · 11-21-2013, 09:55 AM

Decent article.

Although IMO, capitalization is still huge to success. It is right there with knowing the business and management capacity/drive.

If a guy can start with a little money it is most certainly a leg up on guys that have to borrow the first dollar.

11-20-2013, 12:32 PM
BIG_DADDY THE RED MENACE Join Date: Aug 2000 Location: Texas Casino cash: $2568410	American Dream still alive, for now. Thought this was a great read and wanted to share. http://www.docstoc.com/article/16317...m_content=6281 American entrepreneurs have historically come from all walks of life. From odd jobs to old money, company founders have similarly left their marks on American business despite their diverse backgrounds. As the age of the internet has changed the world of startups, the profiles of American entrepreneurs have also changed. And while there will always be averages and majorities, a recent Kauffman Foundation study has shown that the new American entrepreneur has its roots in many different grounds. Economic Background: Upper Class Takes Backseat to Lower and Middle Classes While entrepreneurship may seem like a rich man’s game, the study shows that company founders come from a wide range of economic backgrounds. For example, a very small minority came from “old money” and upper-class backgrounds: •Only 0.6% of respondents were born into and raised with wealth, while just 5.4% came from “new money” families that became rich within their own lifetimes. By far the largest economic category of entrepreneurs came from middle-class backgrounds, with the majority coming from families with lower-paid white-collar workers as heads of households: •71.5% came from middle-class backgrounds. •The study broke “middle class” into two categories: 36.9% were born into white-collar households, and 34.6% were classified as “upper-middle class” and raised by professionals often holding postgraduate degrees like MBAs, PhDs, MDs, JDs, etc. While the stat above may not seem too surprising, what is surprising is the surge of entrepreneurs from lower-class backgrounds: •21.8% of respondents came from “working class” households supported by blue-collar workers and manual laborers, nearly four times more than those from wealthy families. Educational Background: College Still Path to Success Although the need for a wealthy background is becoming less and less of a factor in American entrepreneurship, what won’t change is the need to be educated. While college debt is rising throughout the country, the study shows that college accessibility has hit entrepreneurs of all walks of life: •95.1% of respondents have earned at least a bachelor’s degree, while 47% had more advanced degrees. Life Stages: Experience Trumps Youth While the vast majority of company founders are college-educated, only about half had hopes of entrepreneurship at a younger age or during their schooling: •52% percent said they were either “somewhat” or “extremely interested” in entrepreneurship during their youth. •Only 13.3% said they were “not interested” in becoming entrepreneurs when they were younger; the rest (34.7%) “didn’t think about it.” As such, the profiled entrepreneurs were in relatively later stages in life when they started up and had acquired years of industry experience before opening up their own shops: •The average and median age of the study’s respondents was 40. •69.9% said they were married when they launched their first business. •75.5% had at least 6 years of experience at prior employers before starting their own businesses, while 47.9% had at least 10 years of experience. Motivation: Money and Independence as Entrepreneurial Drivers Not surprisingly, the desires to build wealth and to stop working for others were among the highest factors that motivated entrepreneurs: •74.8% cited building wealth as a motivator to found a new company; 60.3% cited the desire to work for themselves. While many (68.1%) cited a main motivator in entrepreneurship as wanting to capitalize on a new business idea, the majority apparently had many ideas to work with and classified themselves as serial entrepreneurs: •The average number of businesses launched by all respondents was approximately 2.3. •Only 41.4% were starting their first business.
Posts: 32,522

11-20-2013, 12:48 PM	#2
Nzoner a haw haw haw Join Date: Jan 2004 Location: MIZZOU Casino cash: $26365802	Good read. My only disagreement would be the part about college still path to success and that's totally based on my own experience.I guess it all depends on what they consider success too as I started my first business at 27 and second business at 46 and had very little college. I won't go as far to say I've lived the American Dream but it's been good to me although these last few years in my first business has been quite a challenge as Corporate America is making it harder by the day so the "for now" part is dead on. __________________ *Therefore, if anyone is in Christ, he is a new creation; old things have passed away; behold, all things have become new.*
Posts: 27,111

11-20-2013, 01:01 PM	#3
WhawhaWhat MVP Join Date: Feb 2013 Casino cash: $-678884	He is still alive.
Posts: 18,321

11-20-2013, 01:17 PM	#4
ptlyon Bono & Grbac wasn't enough Join Date: Oct 2000 Location: Sioux City, IA Casino cash: $9413829	To life, liberty, and the pursuit of Cheetos! __________________ ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Advertise here: $19.99 a month
Posts: 40,704

11-20-2013, 03:58 PM	#7
vailpass Psycho Bag Of Squanch Join Date: Sep 2001 Casino cash: $9594244	Amen. I grew up with a buddy whose dad was an engineer at the local shop in Iowa. One day he quit his job to start a software business that put the bible on floppy discs. He sold that business for a profit then risked everything he had to move to Arizona and start another business from scratch. He is now a billionaire. You may have heard of GoDaddy. __________________ “Education is a weapon whose effect depends on who holds it in his hands and at whom it is aimed.” Joseph Stalin
Posts: 69,591

11-20-2013, 04:18 PM	#10
Bump YOU take YOUR seat Join Date: Nov 2007 Casino cash: $-1484895	solid read, but your birth certificate is still the most important thing you can possibly have. My friend for example, got out of prison a few years ago and as soon as he gets out, his rich daddy had a fantastic job lining up for him, allowing him to earn $100K+ by working 20 hours per week. He brags constantly about his new life and how he earned it with skill, has no education either. Some people are born on 3rd base and go through life thinking they hit a triple. While yes, in this country, it is possible to get wealthy. But let's face it, the odds are still pretty low for the common man no matter how much work and time they put into whatever it is they do.
Posts: 38,106

11-20-2013, 04:22 PM	#11
BlackHelicopters Spiraling down the Drain Join Date: Oct 2012 Location: Dante's Ninth Circle Casino cash: $-729412	Unicorns and rainbows. __________________ "We're both part of the same hypocrisy, Senator, but never think it applies to my family." "Fredo. You are my brother, and I love you. But never take sides against the Family again. Ever." 2019 Adopt a Chief - Travis Kelce #87
Posts: 33,289

11-21-2013, 09:55 AM	#12
Buehler445 Supporter Join Date: Apr 2007 Location: Scott City KS Casino cash: $-1415266	Decent article. Although IMO, capitalization is still huge to success. It is right there with knowing the business and management capacity/drive. If a guy can start with a little money it is most certainly a leg up on guys that have to borrow the first dollar.
Posts: 59,942