The E Myth Revisited is a classic and must read book for people in business or considering getting started in business.
The E Myth Revisited
Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It
By Michael E. Gerber
HarperCollins, 1995
ISBN: 0-88730-728-0
This is a classic book, even as a revised edition of the original The E-Myth. This book takes you through a completely revised way of thinking about business and your role in it.
Chapters include:
* The Entrepreneurial Myth
* The Entrepreneur, the Manager and the Technician
* Infancy: The Technician’s Phase
* Adolescence: Getting Some Help
* Beyond the Comfort Zone
* Maturity and the Entrepreneurial Perspective
* The Turn-Key Revolution
* The Franchise Prototype
* Working On Your Business, Not In It
* The Business Development Process
* Your Business Development Program
* Your Primary Aim
* Your Strategic Objective
* Your Organizational Strategy
* Your Management Strategy
* Your Marketing Strategy
* Your Systems Strategy
* A Letter to Sarah
* Bringing the Dream Back to American Small Business
* Taking the First Step
I would say the core idea in this book is that the thinking and reasoning of why we often choose to start our own business is not the thinking pattern that will lead to a successful business. It is easy to get trapped into working in our business. We often start a business because we feel we can do something better than others that we see, often our boss. Or because we can do some thing better than we see many others doing it and feel we can and should turn this skill into money.
So what this book sets out to do is to overturn our thinking and help us to get our thinking right from the beginning, or if we are already in business, before the foreclosure or closing down sale sign goes up. It does this by taking you through the problems with conventional thinking and tries to substitute a good way of thinking that can carry you through the inevitable issues. Illustrated with lots of personal stories to put things in perspective, it is a surprisingly quick read, as you yearn to understand more and change your thinking.
The fact is that this book has done precisely that for countless business people all around the world. It is simple, direct and easy to understand. It may not be so easy to put into practice, depending on how disciplined you are, but I can say that this book went a long way in changing my ideas about business and getting my business on a much sounder basis.
If you are in business or contemplating starting a business, whether in the creative industries or not, you need to read this book, listen to the audio book or whatever it takes. It will help you work your business better, rather than work in your business and be trapped in the process.