2012: How The Economy Affected Entrepreneur Attitudes [Infographic]

Here in the United States, 2012 will probably always be perceived as a year that was rough financially. Many families are still struggling to get their finances back on track after the events in the economy in the past few years, and company lay-offs and strikes are still rampant. The news of Hostess is downright depressing, and it is definitely a sign of the times. Then, to top it all off, many people lost everything they owned during Hurricane Sandy, and it will take a long time to recover from that devastation. However, how has the economy affected the attitudes of entrepreneurs worldwide? It might seem like entrepreneurs would jump on the bandwagon of low spirits, but I’m happy to report, that’s not the case at all.

Hiscox recently conducted a very intense study involving the attitudes of 3,000 owners and partners of SMEs (small and medium sized enterprises) in six countries: the United Kingdom, the United States, the Netherlands, Germany, France and Spain. You might think it would make sense that the economy affected those attitudes in a negative way. However, the results of their study are inspiring and optimistic. It’s incredibly refreshing to me, and I hope you click over to Entrepreneurs In 2012 – Losing Sleep But Not Losing Hope to read all the study details. You can even download the corresponding PDF. They compiled their results into this infographic below of the same name.

This isn’t to say that the economy didn’t affect them at all in 2012 of course. Many entrepreneurs around the world are living on a tight budget, and they are somewhat stressed. But overall, even though they are having to work harder and be more creative, they have optimistic attitudes about the coming year and remain in good spirits. I’ve always thought that entrepreneurs in general are happier people than traditional employees, but I have no research to back that up, it’s just based on my personal experiences. If you are an entrepreneur, how has the economy affected your attitude about your business?