Women business owners are more confident about their companies than men, according to the Small Business Pulse survey conducted by the insurance company The Hartford.
Among the surveyed small business owners, 91 percent of women said their business is successful, as opposed to just 80 percent of men. "As women realize they’ve built successful businesses, they tend to sharpen their focus on protecting their accomplishments against future uncertainty," Janice Co, an executive at The Hartford, said in a statement.
The "measured approach" often employed by women is visible in the survey results, as 55 percent of women said they would rate themselves as conservative when it comes to taking risks with their business, while only 47 percent of men labeled themselves as such. Female business owners are also less likely to see the potential reward in taking business risks, as 80 percent feel they would not have been more successful, while only 67 percent of males felt the risk wouldn't pay off.
Despite their confidence, women small business owners are less sure about the economy, the study found, with only 53 percent of women reporting that they are optimistic about the company, compared to 64 percent of men.