The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It
by Michael E. Gerber
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Read in July, 2005
This is a fine book showing some of the flaws of small businesses and why so many fail. The author uses a fictional small business owner who started a pie shop and running herself ragged. She has a great gift in making pies but is burning herself out. She was thinking about how she her job was making and selling pies when her business could and should be so much more.
Successful companies don’t actually sell the products that they make. They fulfill an emotional need of their clients. For i...more
Successful companies don’t actually sell the products that they make. They fulfill an emotional need of their clients. For i...more
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Read in April, 2008
recommends it for:
business owners
I read the slightly-revised 15 year anniversary version of Michael Gerber's acclaimed The E-Myth. I've heard of this book for years, but have just now gotten around to reading it. Timing was great; I was able to turn around and recommend it immediately to two clients--one who is beginning a business and the other who is figuring out how to grow hers in the right way.
Gerber sets out to answer four questions:
- Why do more than 80 percent of small businesses fail within the first five ...more
Gerber sets out to answer four questions:
- Why do more than 80 percent of small businesses fail within the first five ...more
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Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in March, 2008
This is an EXCELLENT book for a small business owner, or anyone contemplating starting their own business, or snyone interested in small business management in general. The author discusses why most small business fail and has a framework that most people have never thought about. In a nutshell the reason most fail is because the founder is not truly an entrepreneur but is a technical person ("technician") in their respective field - and he/she does not realize the skill sets necessary...more
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Has a copy to sell/swap
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Read in May, 2006
recommends it for:
small business owners who feel trapped in their business
[Proper review coming]
Small business owners will find this book truly confronting...it basically says don't work 'in' your business, work 'on' your business. Which means don't just be a technician in your business (the employee's role), but also be the manager (the strategic overview person) and the entrepreneur (the growth oriented risk taker).
The Lesson: You need to balance all three persons within yourself.
The Truth: on average small business owners spend 90% of their time be...more
Small business owners will find this book truly confronting...it basically says don't work 'in' your business, work 'on' your business. Which means don't just be a technician in your business (the employee's role), but also be the manager (the strategic overview person) and the entrepreneur (the growth oriented risk taker).
The Lesson: You need to balance all three persons within yourself.
The Truth: on average small business owners spend 90% of their time be...more
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Read in April, 1997
recommends it for:
business owners
I read this book years ago when Quinn gave me a heads up on it. I have re-read this one time and time again. Easy read - principles put together in story form. It lists things that entrepreneurs do while they are starting a business, that won't get them to where they need to be. My favorite quote in the book is "If your business depends on you, you don't own a business - you have a job. And it's the worst job in ghe world, because you're working for a lunatic." If you own a small...more
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Read in November, 2007
About half a dozen important ideas buried in a mass of cloying, poorly written prose.
The 268 pages dedicated to this text could have been cut to 60 and the book would have been better for it. As it is, prepare to skim.
The author's habit of inventing characters that compliment him on his own ideas is a recurring and increasingly annoying technique. He also compliments his invented characters for their eloquence and drops repeated advertisements for his own company in the text. Classy.
The 268 pages dedicated to this text could have been cut to 60 and the book would have been better for it. As it is, prepare to skim.
The author's habit of inventing characters that compliment him on his own ideas is a recurring and increasingly annoying technique. He also compliments his invented characters for their eloquence and drops repeated advertisements for his own company in the text. Classy.
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Read in April, 2008
This book is more theoretical than practical. But, the book does make you think about how you are running your business and the things you need to do to hold yourself accountable in running your business and to make your business more successful. I recommend reading it. It is a quick read. The book may have been better if he used a different business for his main example throughout the book (he uses a pie bakery as his main example).
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Read in February, 2008
recommends it for:
small business owners
Just like biochem weeds out the future doctors from the pre-med students, this book weeded me out as a business owner. For the first half, I was all gung-ho. This isn't a dry business book, but a motivational and human one, but about halfway through, I concluded that I'm a writer, not an entrepreneur, so I'd do better with writing books. Perhaps someday I'll go back to this, but right now, it's not a priority.
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Every small business owner should make this a must read. And I gave it 4 stars because the book is very original. However, I was VERY DISAPPOINTED that Gerber (the author)did not get into the "meat and potatoes" of entrepreneurship until late in the book. Michael Gerber has so much potential, but this book left me wanting. However there were a couple "gold nuggets" out of there which have served me well.
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Read in January, 2007
4 star = Awesome read for any small business owner or anyone who thinks they want to start a small business. Be warned it may make you realize how hard starting your own business might be and you might get cold feet, but be reasured that if you follow some of the simple lessons you learn, that you are bound to have success.
I rate it G for lack of tommy guns, dead corpses, and swords that have names.
I rate it G for lack of tommy guns, dead corpses, and swords that have names.
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Read in January, 2008
the eponymous 'e-myth' stands for entrepreneur myth, and basically states that people have some eroneous assumptions about business that cause approximately 80% of small businesses to fail within a few years. if, like me, you know virtually nothing about business, economics, marketing, and the lot, then this book is an interesting primer, and a framework for your small business plans
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Read in May, 2008
Michael Gerber has written a masterpiece. This book explains why most small business don't work and what to do about it. The statistics are fascinating. In the first 5 years, 80 percent of new small businesses fail. In the next 5, another 80 percent fail. If you already started a small business or plan on it, this book is a must read.
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Read in December, 2007
This book came highly recommended by Kimberly Gile, and I really enjoyed it. Which is saying something cause I have been looking at reading business books with a certain amount of dread. There was a lot of story telling in between practcal advise. Lots of the things he was saying inspired ideas and creative thinking
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Read in October, 2007
There are some great points in this book about transitioning from the role of a skilled worker to the role of a skilled manager. I didn't like when it would self-indulgently engage in dialogues where two characters were both puppets for the author's point of view. A little ham-fisted. Still there is good stuff here.
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Read in February, 2008
Business. Must. Be. Systematic. Or. It. Will. Fail. This book is no joke. In fact, it's all truth. Anyone that has worked in a large corporation knows it lives or dies on internal controls and six sigma operational processes, and as Gerber right argues, small business are no different.
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Read in July, 2007
recommends it for:
church planters, entrepreneurs
From 30,000 ft., it's really common sense stuff. However, when you're in the thick of getting a new organization or business off the ground, I think this book is an essential read. It will really help you to get your head out of the blinders and into a more holistic frame of mind.
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Read in August, 2007
recommends it for:
new or prospective business owners
I read this book as preparation for my new business partnership and it helped me organize my thoughts, including fears and misconceptions. It is written in plain English but pulls no punches. Highly recommended for new business owners or those entering a new business partnership.
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Read in January, 2003
A book that finally suggests that you should go into business because you like business, not because you like what the business produces. Just because you like baking pies doesn't mean you will be good at a pie business. Everyone wanting to start a small business should read this.
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Read in February, 2007
Essential read for small business owners. A business book you can actually learn from. This book sheds light on the psyche of small business owners. It is very much a simple guide to getting your emotional priorities straight before wearing the many hats of a business owner.
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This would be so staggeringly incredible if I had a small business, or was thinking of starting a small busines. Even with my over-exposure to management theory, there were a couple of good nuggets, but this is very well suited to its target audience (small business owners).
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