As the economy shrinks across the globe, the world is seeing a trend: smaller businesses and along with that, more entrepreneurs working longer hours with smaller staffs.

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We’re bringing in a variety of perspectives on what new small businesses mean for economies across the globe, as well as the entrepreneurs themselves.

We start with Wired, which brings us the story of Tom Malone, an MIT professor who predicted in the 1980s that big companies would decentralize due to technology innovations—namely, the Internet.

“So now, in the graveyard of giants, it’s worth asking: Was Malone right? Was his age of nimble mammals simply delayed by the final march of corporate dinosaurs into the tar pits? This crisis is not just the trough of a cycle but the end of an era. We will come out not just wiser but different.”

Students across the globe are taking note of what Wired calls the “New New Economy”.

Forbes reports that students in China, particularly at Tsinghua University in Beijing, entrepreneurship courses are drawing an unprecedented number of students.

“Three years ago, Tsinghua could only fill one session of the basic entrepreneurial course for graduate students. Now both the graduate and undergraduate business school host four sessions and have a waiting list. Why the strong interest?”

The Washington Post answers that question with perspective of the chairman of the Center for Entrepreneurship in Gurgaon, India.

“With the economic slowdown, entrepreneurship has become a real career option, and students are queuing up. … There is a fear that everybody is not going to find a job when they graduate." --- Arun Sahay, Chairman, Gurgaon Center for Entrepreneurship

Meanwhile, USA Today reports small business owners devote more of their time to their businesses than other workers.

“Many workers had a Memorial Day break, but most small-business owners were glued to their laptops and cash registers: 57% say they work “always” or “most of the time” on official holidays. Just 31% of total adults answered the same way… Slightly more than 60% of small-business owners say they toil six or seven days per week, while only 22% of the general population say they work that much.”