The entrepreneurial spirit is on the decline, and has been for quite a while.
What was once the dream of millions of Americans to own and operate their own business has now essentially become a burden to business owners. With the astronomical amount of payroll taxes, rules, regulations and other costly headaches, those with the entrepreneurial spirit are asking themselves: what’s the point?
Indeed, let someone else have the headache.
This chart from the Federal Reserve shows that the number of self-employed professionals has been steadily falling over the past decade. And after small boost soon after the economic collapse, it’s once again dropping.
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No surprise here, the cost of rents, utilities, supplies have gone up so much it is too hard for most self employed to make it.
In 1996 I did the taxes for my Dad’s business, a one man auto repair, paint shop, in Great Falls, MT. He had died in an auto accident and my Mom did not have the money to pay someone to do the taxes. After everything was said and done the parts suppliers grossed three times more than my Dad did from his business in1995. I am sure it has only gotten worse.
He had told me the sand paper that he used to pay 5 cents per sheet in 1980 cost 50 cents per sheet in 1995. Big business has priced the small guy out of business .