The idea of being your own boss is a romantic idea that's been around for as long as we've had bosses.
Speaking from experience - it has its pluses and minuses - (the romantic idea doesn't often include the unrelenting stress of getting your new business successfully off the ground and keeping it there along with all problems being yours) but what I miss most about not being in business for myself is the ability to put ideas into practice and have customers determine the validity of those ideas.
Whether it's economic optimism, Shark Tank, or just a bunch of frustrated people working for bosses they'd prefer not to work for - more people are interested in doing their own thing than ever before. According to the latest from FreshBooks.com's 2018 Self-Employment Report:
15 million Americans are currently self-employed
27 million Americans intend to switch from traditional employment to self-employment by 2020
Florida leads the way for those planning to switch
According to the report 39% of Floridians plan to switch to self-employment within the next five years. While it's likely that many would like to but won't ultimately decide to do so - it's doubtless that many will. With Florida leading the way, we're also positioned to potentially lead the way in entrepreneurship over the next decade as well.
Here are the top ten states for those who answered they'd switch to self-employment over the next five years:
#1: Florida (39%)
#2: Massachusetts (38%)
#3: Texas (38%)
#4: North Carolina (38%)
#5: New York (36%)
#6: California (36%)
#7: Michigan (30%)
#8: Ohio (29%)
#9: Illinois (29%)
#10: Pennsylvania (26%)