The Gig Economy Revolution: Inspiring a New Generation of Entrepreneurs

The economy has changed. There are many reasons for this, most of which appear to be good, and coming from the motivation of wanting to find the balance between income, passion, and freedom. COVID was a huge wake up call to millions of people that the traditional means and order by which the world tends to view work is not only outdated, but also unhealthy.

Trading a lifetime of employment for a bit of security and a 401k is no longer as appealing to newer generations as that of freedom, fulfillment, and the opportunities to grow in the abilities that truly after.

As a result, the 9-to-5 structure is beginning to wane in popularity in comparison to the flexibility of lifestyle afforded by a gig economy. Entrepreneurs who take the time to learn about and study the specifics of what is driving the gig economy can benefit greatly by understanding what types of hiring decisions to make, what services are most needed, and how to grow those businesses.

Gig Economy

A gig economy is powered by freelance workers running on short-term contracts, a job that usually only lasts until a project is complete. Being that there are emerging ever more and more opportunities, app’s, business, and platforms by which people can begin to find and offer their services or the work that needs to be done means that there is plenty of work to be had.

The fact that these new ideas are ushering in new ways of thinking about how business happens means that even things as traditionally strict as hours of operation are getting thrown out the window. People can now work a few hours a day, a few times a week or just when they feel like. The ability to shift between multiple different services like GrubHub to a part-time job, then to teaching a class on a subject matter that they have experience in means that people are finding more freedom.

The plethora of jobs and service variety that makes up the gig economy is only limited to the imagination. From dog walking to freelance writing, photography, or gardening, someone somewhere needs help with a project. That's what fuels a new growing aspect of the overall economy that is projected to be valued in trillions of dollars by 2025.

The gig economy is not really a new idea. While it has certainly gained traction with the newest generations, much of this gig economy has its roots born from the necessary reactions due to the global financial crisis in 2007-2008.

Being that so many businesses during that time were harshly affected by those unfortunate turn of events meant that they had to rethink how to do business or face closing their doors.

When millions of people started getting laid off by no fault of their own, they had to start thinking about what to do to survive. As a result, many of those people started turning to freelance and contract work to make it through those tough financial years. When the same things started to happen during the pandemic, our adaptable, capable species began to again do what it needed to do to survive.

Only this time, the nature of the crisis was financially and existentially
based. It's hard to be comfortable with the idea of going back to a loathsome job when the constant threat of death is looming in the back of one's mind.

The combined motivations inspired people to start reaching back into the skills, talents, and abilities that bring them fulfillment with a paycheck— most of what makes up the ever-growing popularity of entrepreneurial work. 

Interestingly, the shift in economic tides to a gig economy already had a solid place in the American workforce. There were an estimated 55 million people making a living by a gig lifestyle in 2017. That's around 36%. That number has grown by about six million more people since 2010 according to a CNBC report.

Changes to the Workforce

It may not be surprising to hear that, in a survey done by the independent
research firm Edelman Data & Intelligence, 63% of people chose to start freelancing work rather than out of necessity, and 79% of freelancers find freelance work to be better than a normal job.

The key motivations in people switching over to freelance work has to do, not surprisingly, with freedom and flexibility afforded such a lifestyle: 68% of freelancers say that the ability to own their career is very important, paired with the attractive ability to work remotely which scored at 54%.

When combining those motivations with 78% wanting greater flexibility of schedule and 73% citing the ability to pursue work that they find more meaningful, it's easy to see why there is a significant shift taking place in the foundations of traditional ideas about work and business. As more and more people step into the stream of the Great Resignation, more people who have yet to do so are considering the benefits they hear about from friends, family, and relatives.

Shifts in Traditional Business

As more companies see and feel the shifts that are taking place generally and specifically as to how business is being conducted, they will need to adjust. The rapid and undeniable growth of the gig economy is fueling entrepreneurial interest and availability.

Every entrepreneur will come to a place in their business history where they will have to make tough decisions about how to proceed amidst the struggle of profitability.

When a tough project with a curveball kind of request comes from a favorite client, the ability to turn to the gig economy platforms that connect freelancers with businesses in need. For the seasoned entrepreneur, the gig economy provides greater flexibility to deliver consistently great work without the chains of paperwork, corporate taxes, training, and the like.

Setting aside a lot of the major expenses not only minimizes risks, but it also allows for reallocation of ideas and resources for new growth in the future.