Self-Employment on the Rise
If you've been on the internet much at all lately you may have seen the numerous people starting online businesses. There's been an obsession with sites like Etsy or ecommerce-website making Shopify. What's up with this rise in self employment? Much of it lies in the pandemic of 2020. However, it's also likely it simply comes from the surge of accessibility in the entreprenuership world. This makes it easy for just anyone, no degree or prior experience, to jump straight into their own business. "A growing number of skilled trades and licensed professions let individuals embark on a surprisingly wide range of careers without needing a four-year college degree," Nadar Qaimari, CEO of Edcetera.
According to an article posted in 2022, the Society of Human Resource Management reported that the number of unincorporated self-employed persons grew sharply during the pandemic and is hovering at all time highs. The Ewing Marion Kauffman Foundation also found that 380 out of every 100,000 American adults became new entreprenuers each month of 2020. On college campuses, even, the interest in entreprenuership is surging. AASCB International even stated that students in a time of crisis believe their best bet is to start their own business. This surge may partially come from economists beginning to believe that a recession will come soon. Many people believe because of this that they should be working to have control of their own future as much as possible. And with social media and other trends, it no longer takes a four-year degree or sometimes any hard work to start your own business. (https://www.gettingsmart.com/2022/10/11/the-self-employment-surge-is-real-can-it-survive-a-recession/)
The real question here lies in whether this surge is actually a positive thing. What will happen when the majority is running their own business? Could this escalate to the point of employment under companies being at an all time low? And most importantly, what could so many people starting their own businesses actually mean for our economy?
Hey Sue! Your post poses a very interesting question, that I don't think can be answered easily. I love that more and more people are managing to be self-employed, as long as they're able to support themselves.
ReplyDeleteI'm not sure what this means for the economy as a whole though. Ultimately I don't believe this trend will affect the big dogs like Amazon, Apple, etc., but maybe smaller companies will take a hit. Of course, who knows? Maybe they'll find a way to adapt. I think the effect also depends on whether these self-employed people are providing products, or services? Or both? Lots to consider!
I like that you brought up how it wouldn't affect big businesses much, as I hadn't thought about that. I believe it will simply bring up a lot more competition in the small business world and they may have to make a move to ensure they are even more unique in the area- which will, of course, never be a negative for consumers. Hopefully it increases creativity! Not to mention a push for even cooler and unique marketing tactics. Thanks for your comment.
DeleteI find this topic very interesting. Self-employment is something that I do not know a lot about, but I would like to learn more about it, and this was a good start. I believe that self-employment can be a good thing, but at the same time, I believe that it will result in a great number of people becoming reliant on their own business that has not proven to be reliable. Many businesses around the country are having a hard time with staffing, and I believe that this could be even further exaggerated because people do not want to work for anyone except themselves. On the other hand, there are many people that do have what it takes and can be very successful with self-employment. There are many pro's and con's to self-employment.
ReplyDeleteThere are lots of pros and cons. For me the business unable to find works is pretty concerning. I truly believe the self-employment craze may be a decent chunk of why. However, like you said, some people have what it takes, and some don't. Hopefully that will push the people who don't want to work under others to do it anyway even when self-employment is a more popular option. Thanks for your comment.
DeleteHi Susannah! I think the world of entrepreneurs we live in today is great. It seems the ultimate goal for anyone is to be their own boss, and I do not blame them. It is incredibly hard to work under someone's wing without blooming yourself. As I do love our small businesses, I am not sure what this will hold for our economy.
ReplyDeleteI definitely believe working for yourself would be better than for anyone else any day. I also hold a strong love for small businesses and usually try as much as I can to support them when I can afford it rather than the big monopolies. The economy question is a big one, and honestly, I'm not entirely sure how to answer it myself. I'm hoping the saturation will simply lead to more creative small businesses and marketers in an attempt to stand out. Thank you for your comment!
DeleteAs someone who may end up in a self-employment path I think this rise is good, but I do think it could cause some changes to be made in the business world. If these changes are good or bad, we will just have to wait and see. Despite me not being qualified to predict business trends, I do not believe that it will lead to too many negative side effects. This is due to the fact that many businesses start with one person employing themselves, if nothing else it may just create more businesses. Of course this could lead to a shortage of workers but I think this may be solved by looking at why so many people are turning to self employment in the first place. I am just a college student right now though, so I guess I will just have to wait and see what happens.
ReplyDeleteI totally understand the wait and see what happens stand point. I'm super excited, really, to see what the market for small business turns into when everything finally dies down. I hadn't considered looking into why so many people turn to self-employment. I could see it being caused by the way workers are treated/payed today, but I believe that's mainly a true problem with minimum wage jobs and not necessarily careers. I am also simply a college student who hasn't deeply studied that topic though, but I believe it's a thoroughly interesting one. Thanks for your comment.
DeleteMiss Weeks your blog was very informative and interesting. Self-employment is definitely on the rise. I recently became self-employed at "JustForHim" Being your own boss is a blessing if you have the right tools and business knowledge to back it up. Micro businesses and internet businesses are popping up everywhere. Your research was packed with information that I can use for maintaining my business venture.
ReplyDeleteAs someone who is interested in being self-employment, given my field of interest. I personally believe self-employment will not over run corporate /"big name" companies, due to the fact that not everyone has what it takes to or desire to be their own boss. Though self-employment sounds like a dream at times, it's not for everyone. Running your own company comes with flaws that a corporate job would most likely not have. Like getting your company off the ground in the first place, creating your own brand, and sacrificing financials and personal life to keep it running. With these flaws there will be people that would feel more secure working for someone.
ReplyDeleteHello! Great blog, I was very informed about self employment. I am taking a small interest in starting my own self employment journey as well. I found it interesting that in your blog is states that a four year degree has not been needed for these self employment jobs. I also found it interesting that during times or crisis like the pandemic people found ways to support themselves and make money by entrepreneurship and self employment.
ReplyDeleteGood afternoon Sue. I finished reading your article and was surprised just how many people have turn to self employment during the pandemic. As for you questions, I do believe I can give my own insight into the matter. I believe that the surge is a net positive to workers as when more people start to gain their own sense of freedom in working, their productivity and quality of life goes up as well. It will force companies to start giving back power to the working class and meet their demands for better working conditions. As for the actual number, it's hard to imagine self-employment touching traditional employment any time soon. For the economy, driving more business and distributing wealth more with undoubtedly expand the economy further as less more is kept by big corporations.
ReplyDeleteSue, your article goes hand in hand with what millennials (specifically the older millennials that grew up in the '90s and 2000s) were told. Which was basically along the lines of "Go to college, get a 4-year degree, sit at an office job and you'll be set". This proved irrecoverably a lie, which was brought to light when Covid-19 happened. Those who felt like they dedicated their entire career to companies and then were in the same way ill-taken care of (when the world shut down) decided they no longer needed to contribute time and labor to something that no longer benefitted them. Can we blame anyone for that? I agree with Madeline that this ultimately won't affect the big giants like Google - but that could also be because employees of Google and similar companies already have more benefits than your average job. We're looking at your "small" businesses that cannot compete with the pay and benefits of Fortune 500 companies, and those who cannot get jobs with great pay and benefits are more likely to look to self-employment.
ReplyDeleteI work in a hardware/DIY/garden center store and we were considered mandatory and therefore stayed open all throughout the pandemic. There were so many people shopping for their projects. I talked to a lot of people about what they were doing since they don't have to go to work and some said "projects around the house", however, a lot of them said they started no contact businesses. The pandemic offered a whole new market for entrepreneurs to take advantage of. It was a crazy time that changed how people think of work.
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ReplyDeleteInteresting topic Susannah! I feel as though the rise of self employment is a good thing for people individually, and maybe individual households, but it could maybe propose problems to big corporations if it continues to grow.
ReplyDeleteThis is a very interesting topic Susannah! l often find myself and friends talking about this very topic everyday and weather or not we want one day to would partake in the trend. I think the first question you asked is the golden one, because no one truly knows and to answer your second question I think the employment under companies will go way down but there will still be people that will work for them cause there is always those people that won't hop of the trend or don't have the finances to do so. To your third question that is definitely something to consider when we haven't ever had something like this happen before, and it would be scary at the same time interesting to see what happens.
ReplyDeleteHowdy Sue. Your topic of choice is very interesting because while it is great everyone is chasing/achieving their dreams, this will surely affect our economy and our futures. While I see and understand the concerns people have, I don't think this will be a long-term issue. Being an entrepreneur is sort of a trend right now and I'm sure it will blow over. I think it is so big because starting up is so easy now with current technology. I don' t think there will be any long-term adverse effects on the work force or the economy.
ReplyDeletehttps://susannahw766.blogspot.com/2023/03/self-employment-on-rise.html
ReplyDeleteThis is a very well thought out and informative article. You made a lot of very interesting points and provided good information. I completely agree with your statements "What's up with this rise in self employment? Much of it lies in the pandemic of 2020. However, it's also likely it simply comes from the surge of accessibility in the entreprenuership world. This makes it easy for just anyone, no degree or prior experience, to jump straight into their own business."
Sue, your blog brought awareness to a topic I hadn't given much thought to until now. You make a very good point self employment has definitely increased since the Pandemic. I agree with you that it probably started because of the Pandemic, but recent global events is probably the main reason it is still so popular. The cost of living and inflation is steadily rising everyday. I believe this plays a huge part in it. Why work a 9 to 5 that barley helps pay your bills when you can be your own boss and make your own money you know?
ReplyDeleteAs a self-employed business boss, I can say it is as easy as it looks or seems. I have learned so much from this class and business management until I was stunned from all of this information. Small business can and most likely take a hit if they do not know how to run their business properly. Of course big fortunate companies are good.
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