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A quarter want to be entrepreneurs

More than a quarter of employees dream of running a business, according to a survey from Lloyds Bank Insurance.

The report reveals that 26% of workers have entrepreneurial aspirations but the fear of taking a risk is preventing a third from starting a business.

Nearly half (48%) believe that the economic environment is not strong enough, while 35% say they don’t know how to start a business.

Key findings:

  • 51% want to run their own business to have more control over work/life balance
  • 46% want to take on new challenges
  • 41% cited financial reasons
  • 83% said they would be more motivated to work if they owned their own business
  • 79% said they would have greater job satisfaction
  • 78% said becoming an entrepreneur would be more stressful.

Damien McGarrigle, head of business insurance at Lloyds Bank Insurance, said:

“This research shows that we are a nation of aspiring business owners, with the workforce thinking up new ways to break out of their current jobs and become their own boss.”

A separate study by the Global Entrepreneurship Monitor has found that a record number of over-50s are starting businesses.

The report found that entrepreneurial activity for over-50s reached a record high of 6.5% in 2013.

The rate among over-50s has historically been lower than younger age groups, with an average of 4% of over-50s starting businesses between 2002 and 2008.

Professor Mark Hart of Aston Business School, who co-authored the report, said:

“The shake-up from the recession has provided the impetus for people over 50 to say that it’s time to do something that they’ve always wanted to do and to take an opportunistic approach to creating their own business.”

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