As the economy continues to transition away from the traditional 9-5 workplace, some experts are forecasting a rise in business ownership. If that trend holds true, Missouri is slightly ahead of the curve.

While owning a business is a commonly held dream in the United States, only about 6 percent of American adults have actually achieved that dream, according to data from the Kauffman Foundation as reported in the Missouri 2030 Dashboard.

Missouri is a tad above average, with 6.24 percent of adults here owning businesses. That puts Missouri at 20th out of the 50 states. The top state for business ownership is Montana, at 10.22 percent. Alabama ranks 50th, with just 3.89 percent of adults in that state owning businesses.

If some economists are correct, those numbers could rise dramatically in coming years. For example, the Future of Small Business Report by Intuit forecasts that the number of small businesses will expand from 30 million in 2014 to 42 million in 2026. The report predicts that the growth rate in small-business creation will rise to 3.3 percent, up from 2 percent.

Several factors underlie this trend, including the growing gig economy and easily accessible online small-business tools. There is also increasing demand for unique products. All this adds up to a marketplace where small businesses are better able to compete with traditional industry giants.

Missouri offers a number of tools to people who want to set up businesses here. The Missouri Secretary of State offers a step-by-step guide and an online form-filing portal to help small businesses get established.

See the full dashboard at mochamber.com/dashboard.