Some business owners are extremely satisfied with their self-appointed work life, while others are regularly close to a burnout. For her dissertation ‘Busyness around the business’,Annink studied European policies on the topic of entrepreneurship, and she spoke with the self-employed in the Netherlands, Sweden and Spain. Her main conclusion: the self-employed are more satisfied with their work-life balance and well being than employees, but they also experience more conflict in the balance between work and family.
Last Minute Requests from Clients
It does not matter what industry you are in,if you are working with clients, you experience more stress. That is partly because customers sometimes have unrealistic expectations, often with last minute requests (and the need to be kept satisfied).
Also it matters whether someone chose to work independently. If you are doing that because you cannot find another job, then the chances are much greater that you are dissatisfied being a freelancer, than someone who did this choice because he saw an opportunity.
Task for the Government: to Make Starting a Company Easier
Governments have a role to eliminate stress by the entrepreneurs, concludes Annink. Her research shows that the self-employed experience less stress if it is easier to set up the company, for example by simplifying the tax rules and license, to make loans and provide education.
Unemployment benefits create a calmingwith the self-employed, just like a flexible range of childcare and leave. A required (long) maternity leave, for example, is seen as negative, because entrepreneurs can lose customers. It is better to have it more flexible.
Equality Was Not Positive for Entrepreneurs
Interestingly enough entrepreneurs in countries where there is equality between men and women, including the Netherlands, experienced more stress. Both male and female self-employed workers often experience more pressure and stress because they have a feeling that they need to be successful entrepreneurs, the breadwinners and the parent.
Source: http://www.rtlnieuws.nl
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