Reasons to be cheerful? Take part in AXA's Optimism Index

Are you feeling optimistic about the prospects for your business? Or has the economic gloom shaken your confidence? Enterprise Nation partner AXA Business Insurance wants to know how you're feeling about your business and the economy - and you could win an iPad 3 by taking part. Here's what AXA has to say...

We want to hear about what gets you out of bed in the morning and what drives you to succeed. We also want to hear about what concerns you about running a business, because we know that the road to success can often be bumpy. The spirit and passion of small business owners is what provides much of the energy to fuel the UK economy and it's vital that businesses like yours get the support you need to drive growth and expand. From home-based enterprises making cakes for local cafes, through to small manufacturing firms with aspirations of trading in an international marketplace, businesses need the advice, funding and the right protection in place if they are to thrive and grow. But it seems that despite low interest rates and a sense of optimism surrounding the events in London this summer, a worrying number of business owners are downbeat about their prospects. Small businesses taking part in our real-time Optimism Index have told us that ongoing uncertainty over their near-term economic prospects is putting pressure on them to work more hours for less gain this summer. Economic uncertainty across the Eurozone and Government austerity measures were cited as the two biggest reasons for this pessimistic outlook. And it seems as though business owners will be working harder then ever this summer to chase the growth opportunities that are out there, they'll be doing it with fewer resources, meaning that 40 per cent of respondents will not be taking any sort of holiday over the summer. Is this how you feel, or have you got reasons to be cheerful about your business prospects?

Share your thoughts

Take part in our live barometer of UK business sentiment. You can also find out what businesses like your own are thinking and feeling. There's an iPad 3 up for grabs every month between now and the end of the year just for taking part. Share your thoughts

Got an insurance question? Ask AXA

If you have any questions about protecting your business just ask us via our Q&A in the Enterprise Nation forum. Alternatively, you can Tweet Marie @axabizteam.

Photo credit: Camdiluv