Profile of the Entrepreneurial Generation

Professor Cornwall, Director of the Belmont University Center for Entrepreneurship , profiles today’s young entrepreneurs — those 30 years old and younger. Quoting remarks from a speech he made at the Forbes Enterprise Awards:

One group with high rates of entrepreneurial activity is my generation — the Baby Boomers. These Entre-boomers, as they are sometimes called, are certainly important for our economy. But they are not the group who will be leading this Entrepreneurial Economic Revolution. The true foot soldiers who will lead us to economic victory in this Economic Revolution are those in the Entrepreneurial Generation.

So who is this Entrepreneurial Generation?

– They are those born between 1977 and 2002 — they range from the young people who are just now graduating from college, to those who are just entering primary education.

– Studies show that about 50% of today’s college students have business ownership as a primary career goal.

– They are more financially savvy — 37% of today’s college students already thinking and planning for retirement.

– They are independent thinkers

– They embrace change — and they view entrepreneurship as a career path that will allow them to use the changes that are occurring in our current world to their advantage.

What does the Entrepreneurial Generation think about work?

– Work is important

– They seek high levels of achievement — many university Entrepreneurship programs like ours at Belmont now see 40-50% of our students arriving as freshman with profitable businesses already operating.

– They want their work to make a difference and have meaning.

– But, they do not want it to become all consuming — They see entrepreneurship as a career path that will give them more control in their lives and the ability to create balance.

Good profile. If you are looking for some younger entrepreneurs, check out Mind Petals: Young Entrepreneurs Network, featuring younger entrepreneurs who blog.