Military veterans’ can-do attitude continues even after they become business owners, a new survey suggests.

According to the new Allstate/USA Today Small Business Barometer, veteran entrepreneurs’ optimism rates a 99 out of 100, compared to a score of 92 for all small business owners. Approximately 73 percent of veterans say now is the best time to own a small business, compared to 65 percent of all small business owners.

Veterans were also more likely to be planning to hire and more likely to have experienced recent growth.

“Being in the military challenges you to become your best self, and some of the skills it teaches — respect, organization, discipline and loyalty — are exactly the kind of traits it takes to successfully run your own small business,” said Steven James, an Allstate agency owner for the past nine years and a 10-year military veteran.

“Owning two small businesses also allows me to continue pursuing my passion for giving back and serving the community I call home.”

Veterans are popular with small business owners, about 45 percent of whom report hiring vets. About 35 percent have veteran hiring efforts. Part of that’s because business owners value veterans’ teamwork (41 percent) and their training (46 percent). More than half say it’s just the right thing to do.

The 2017 Small Business Barometer is based on a survey of almost 2,800 small business owners. This is the second year for the report.