How your job makes you feel has a genuine connection to how long you live, and few jobs offer the sense of control that entrepreneurship does. New research out of the School of Business at Stevens Institute of Technology finds that “people who have engaged in entrepreneurship have approximately a 10 percent lower risk of death than non-entrepreneurs.”
Cristiano Bellavitis, an associate professor at Stevens, with his collaborators, analyzed more than 20 years of data from over 27,000 Americans aged 50 or older. Mental health emerged as the strongest link in their findings. Entrepreneurs reported lower levels of depression and loneliness, both of which are associated with better health outcomes and greater longevity. They found the benefit was strongest among entrepreneurs who launched their ventures because they wanted to start a business, rather than those who became entrepreneurs out of necessity.
“What seems to matter is not entrepreneurship alone, but the circumstances under which people enter it,” Bellavitis says. “When entrepreneurship reflects greater choice and opportunity, the autonomy and sense of purpose that can come with it may provide psychological benefits that extend beyond financial rewards.”
The advantage was more pronounced among women and among entrepreneurs with higher incomes or larger firms. Beyond those groups, two factors shaped who benefited most.
Agency. Opportunity-driven entrepreneurs, who left wage employment by choice to pursue a promising idea, captured most of the advantage. People who turned to self-employment after losing a job saw little to no difference in mortality risk.
Cumulative exposure. Duration and frequency counted. The longer and more often people engaged in entrepreneurship, the stronger the association with a longer lifespan.
That 10 percent figure doesn’t mean entrepreneurs live 10 percent more years. Bellavitis explains it as a lower chance of dying on any given day compared with non-entrepreneurs.
These findings are not limited to those who pursue entrepreneurship but can be applied to employers as well.
The researchers are careful to note that the study shows a strong association, not proof that entrepreneurship directly causes people to live longer. The relationship held after controlling for age, income, education, prior health and other factors.
Purpose, autonomy and meaningful engagement matter. Whether you work for yourself or someone else, Bellavitis says, finding ownership of your work and a reason to be excited about it every day is important for long-term well-being.
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