In this season of Thanksgiving, I believe it is vital for customers and consumers to give thanks and show appreciation for the spirit of entrepreneurship in America. Individuals with big ideas or innovations and small businesses continue to be the largest employers across the nation. The U.S. Bureau of Labor Statistics reported just last month that in the first quarter of 2021, gross job gains from opening and expanding private-sector establishments were 8.2 million. That was nearly two million more than the gross job losses for the same period. President Joe Biden is also honoring entrepreneurs with “A Proclamation on National Entrepreneurship Month, 2021.”
The President recognizes that “collaboration among entrepreneurs, innovators, and the public sector has led to some of the most important technologies and industries in the world, including cellular communication, energy storage, agricultural technology, and advanced manufacturing.” These entrepreneurs are ordinary people, like you and me. They had an idea and birthed it into a business or innovation. As a result of their venture, they can impact an industry. More importantly, their businesses are changing lives and the local communities through creating opportunities and jobs.
The hard work and ingenuity of our entrepreneurs and innovators are not just hyperbole but are supported by facts. The Small Business Administration’s Office of Advocacy found small businesses have accounted for 65.1% of net new job creation since 2000. The agency reports that “From 2000 to 2019, small businesses created 10.5 million net new jobs while large businesses created 5.6 million.” This proves the point that entrepreneurship is the lifeline for the American economy, and it has a global impact as well as touching the lives of you and your neighbor.
Magesh Rajan, Ph.D., P.E., MBA
President Obama was the first U.S. president to proclaim National Entrepreneur’s Day in 2010. If you work for a small business or have a self-driven entrepreneur within your family, you understand the level of daily sacrifice and commitment it takes for them to not only pursue their dreams but also employ workers whose very lives depend on and believe in the product, service, or innovation. This is why I am thankful for fellow dreamers and creators who are changing the world and the lives of others through a never-ending desire to innovate or meet a need that may be underserved or overlooked.
Throughout the rest of November and throughout the Thanksgiving Holiday weekend, keep this on your mind. As you shop Small Business Saturday and support Cyber Monday for those unique creations or shop local, do so with greater gratitude, knowing you are supporting the dream of hardworking women and men who likely created the business to meet a need right in their very community.
Magesh Rajan, Ph.D., P.E., MBA, is vice president of the Division of Research & Innovation at Prairie View A&M University.