Driving Your Business

One of the most common questions I get from readers is about company cars. To lease or buy? How do I take a tax deduction for my company car? What about insurance?

I answer one of these kinds of questions in this week's Smart Answers column.

Last week, I did some in-depth research to find stats on startups. They're often requested, but not easy to find without some digging. This time, I picked up the shovel so you didn't have to!

Let's not forget the podcast, which features an interview with a government contracting expert. Inside info: We actually did this interview twice, after a glitch in the first taping. Turned out that the second time around returned a much better result, so it wasn't all bad.

Next week the final podcast of 2009 will be posted. Remember to let me know, or comment on iTunes, if you hope the podcast returns next year.

Happy Entrepreneurs

The times are tough.
Consumer confidence keeps falling.
Our retirement accounts are hollow shells of their old selves.

And yet, people who work for themselves don't seem to regret it for a moment.

At least, not according to a survey released this week by business networking site Biznik.com and a professor from the University of Washington’s Foster School of Business.

The survey asked nearly 1,000 small business owners a variety of questions about their companies and the challenges they face. They found:

Passion and values continue to be the leading motivations for starting a business. Nearly one-third of respondents said the most important reason for starting their business was that they wanted to do something they enjoy. Another 25% cited the fact that they did not want to work for someone else. And, while only 60% of the respondents said they were satisfied with the performance of their business, 91% claim they are satisfied with their decision to work for themselves.

I know a lot of entrepreneurs and I'd say that sounds pretty familiar. And you can count me on in on that, too.