A quarter of over-35s would have liked to have started their own business at this stage in their lives, according to new research on life aspirations.
Around 30% of respondents also expressed a desire to change their career path, the survey by Bradford and Bingley found. A further 21% said they had dreams of working abroad, and more than half said they wanted to travel more.
A seperate recent survey by business advisors Inventya found that Brits are among the world’s most likely people to have a great business idea, but are often held back by their own fears.
The research suggested that a mixture of traditional British reserve combined with an ignorance of how to get started meant that many people allowed their ideas to fade rather than turning them into profitable enterprises.
Around 13m people in the UK have had a business idea, according to Inventya, but fewer than three million actually do anything about them.
“Britain is traditionally a fairly reserved nation and people do not tend to go for it where fresh ideas are concerned,” said David Thomas, director of the company. “But this is what needs to happen if we are to compete with nations such as the US and Japan.”
© Crimson Business Ltd. 2007
