The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It―A Guide to Starting a Business in a Productive and Successful Way

On April 8, 1999, I discovered a book that changed the way I view business; a book that helped me to realize that running a successful architecture firm required so much more than designing great architecture. It taught me that inside the owner of every small firm exists a battle among The Entrepreneur, The Manager and The Technician, and that if we don’t attend to the needs of each, our firms are destined for failure. The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It inspired me to build Fivecat Studio as a Franchise Prototype, even though we knew selling our business systems as a franchise was never a planned goal. The systems we created for the firm have allowed us to thrive and have given us the freedom we need to balance the requirements of our firm with the responsibilities of our family. It is the book that inspired me to begin to work “on my business, rather than in my business.” This book, written by Michael E. Gerber, had a major influence in the success of our firm and continues to guide many of our business decisions to this day. Fivecat Studio has been in business for 15 years. Annmarie and I experienced the startup pains of “infancy”, the hard earned success of “adolescence” and recently, with our return to the home studio and the launch of our new virtual business model, we are surprisingly “getting small again”. As I re-read the words of this inspirational how-to guide for successful small business, it is shocking to me how accurate Mr. Gerber is as he describes the different stages of the typical small business. As I read it, I can follow the path of Fivecat Studio through good decisions and bad, through ups and downs and I can see the next steps we need to take. I’ve read The E-Myth so many times that I have lost count. A quick peek at my Amazon order history documents that I have given this book to no fewer than 10 friends and acquaintances as a gift from one business owner to another, struggling to find a life of fulfillment and freedom. Michael Gerber breaks his book into three sections. In Part I, The E-Myth and the American Small Business, he defines the E-Myth as the Entrepreneurial Myth and discusses how most small businesses are the result of an Entrepreneurial Seizure. He says, “The technician suffering from an Entrepreneurial Seizure takes the work he loves to do and turns it into a job.” Does that sound familiar? How many architects do you know who have launched their own firms, with dreams of “doing it better” than their former employer and found themselves way over their heads in all the responsibilities of running a small business? Gerber describes the three phases of business; Infancy, Adolescence and Maturity. He explains why it is so important to build a Mature company from the start. “A Mature company is founded on a broader perspective, an entrepreneurial perspective, a more intelligent point of view. About building a business that works not because of you but without you. And because it starts that way, it is more likely to continue that way. And therein the true difference between an Adolescent company, where everything is left up to chance, and a Mature company, where there is a vision against which the present is shaped.” “Successful companies don’t end up as Mature companies. They start that way.” In Part II, The Turn-Key Revolution: A New View of Business, Mr. Gerber introduces the concept of the Franchise Prototype and the concept of “working on your business, not in it.” He encourages us to create systems which allow for predictable results and happy clients. “The system runs the business. The people run the system. The system integrates all the elements required to make a business work. It transforms a business into an organism, driven by integrity of its parts, all working in concert toward a realized objective. And, with its Prototype as its progenitor, it works like nothing else before it.” Many architects I know, including Annmarie at first, reject the thought of building systems for their firms. They feel that the routines and consistency of such will limit their creativity, that they will lose their flexibility to create amazing works of architecture. When, in fact, systems will do just the opposite. When everything else required to run a successful business is set to run on “autopilot”, an architect will actually have more time and flexibility to be an architect. Gerber continues, “Great businesses are not built by extraordinary people, but by ordinary people doing extraordinary things. But for ordinary people to do extraordinary things, a system – ‘a way of doing things’ – is absolutely essential in order to compensate for the disparity between the skills your people have and the skills your business needs if it is to produce consistent results.” This is also the section where some readers become frustrated with Gerber’s example of McDonald’s as a model for small business success. I know, as an architect, it is difficult to see the connection between the home of the Big Mac and our aspiring high-end residential design firms. Please trust me and read the book to the end. You will not regret learning the lessons he teaches using the examples of this successful business franchise. Here is some of what Gerber says about McDonald’s; “It delivers exactly what we have come to expect of it every single time. So that’s why I look upon McDonalds as a model for every small business. Because it can do in its more than 14,000 stores what most of can’t do in one! And to me, that’s what integrity is all about. It’s about doing what you say you will do, and, if you can’t, learning how. If that’s the measure of an incredible business – and I believe it is – then there is no more incredible business than McDonalds. Who among us small business owners can say we do things as well?” Part III, Building a Small Business That Works is a step by step, how-to guide for a successful small business. He leads us through a fully developed Business Development Program and describes the many strategies required for small business success. The E-Myth Revisited is not only your answer to building a successful small business, it’s also very entertaining. Gerber structures the information around a narrative about a woman named Sarah struggling with her small business named All About Pies. Many readers will see ourselves in Sarah as she evolves from frustrated Technician into a successful small business owner. When I posted recently that The E-Myth was my favorite business book of all time, many from the Entrepreneur Architect Community reached out and asked me why. In short… If you take action to implement the lessons Michael Gerber teaches, The E-Myth Revisited will take your firm to places you only imagined. I know it will work for you, because it has already worked for me.

Great read for someone struggling or questioning business. Read a few times, very informative and helpful.

An oft-cited fact is that most small businesses don't succeed. They fall prey to a common set of challenges - namely, that entrepreneurs never transition their work from a job into building a business. In this book, Michael Gerber shines light on this common error and shows ways to overcome it. He uses a parable of Sarah starting her own business as a way to interject life into these principles and illustrate how entrepreneurs can and should implement them. Starting a small business, in Gerber's description, is a personal journey filled with self-exploration, but not necessarily in the most fun way. Leaders have to learn to expand beyond being mere technicians to being managers and strategic thinkers. They must master each phase of the business so that they can hire well. Indeed, they must sometimes do parts of the business when they cannot afford extra help! Leadership becomes a mirror to learn from mistakes and to try out new things. Most small business owners never learn to master themselves, which is why their business fails. The chaos within becomes chaos outside that dooms the venture. Gerber seeks to guide new entrepreneurs to figure out how to structure their lives so that they can succeed professionally and personally. Not perfect, the book can seem at times a bit hokey, dated, and preachy. However, many of the principles still endure thirty years after first publication. Starting a new venture remains essentially about people - yourself and your customers' needs. This book shows how to get those relationships going in a way that rolls success. He's particularly interested in building a "turnkey business" that is reproducible and does not depend on one key but overstressed person. He doesn't believe personalities rule the day but instead intentional practices. If you're struggling with how to lead a new venture, whether on your own or supported within a larger organization, this book can teach you what leadership is necessary to succeed.

I have owned a small business for over 1.5 years now, as a one-man web development shop. For the past few months I have come to the realization that my current way of doing things will lead down one of two paths: frustration at working all the time for not a lot of money, or closing shop and finding a job. A couple of business partners recommended this book to me within the last two months, and so I bought it. I can only say that what happened next was the best part of owning a business for me so far ... reality checks and awakenings to what could be. As I read through the book, Gerber pointed out things about how most small business owners are "technicians" turned business owners; the problem, we may be skilled in what we do, but now we take on multiple jobs that we do NOT know how to do. The problem continues as we immerse ourselves in the "technician" work, but never actually work ON the business, so many aspects of the business suffer (sales, marketing, finances, operations) or just plain don't exist. In the first part of the E-Myth, Gerber discusses finding the balance of our inner selves: the Entrepreneur, the Manager, and the Technician, and the responsibilities that each of these roles must take on to drive the business toward success, as well as some pitfalls that each face unless there is a cooperative effort by each within you to work ON, not IN, the business. The second part of the E-Myth talks about the Franchise Prototype. While this sounds like Gerber is going to talk about how to build a franchise, it's not! What he discusses here is the importance of setting up your initial (and perhaps for many, the only) company the right way ... YOUR way. This will inevitably lead to the "prototype" company, so that, in theory, you can take that business system and replicate once, twice, 5000 times ... always running the "system" the same way in each business. The third, and final, part of the book guides you through the system that you will think through, the business processes that make up your business system, so that the business can run ... even without you in it! It talks about this becoming your own turn-key solution so that you have a business model in place that your system can effectively reproduce, as you need to. I took about a week to read through the book and soak in much of what Gerber has to say in it. Gerber includes interesting examples, and the book is very easy to read and understand ... and most importantly, incredibly enjoyable. While some of the text in describing his interaction with a particular business owner is a bit over the top, it doesn't detract from the primary message of the book. I will read it again, and have already begun to get my (new) business system in place. I now have plans to grow my company, and have the vision of what my company will look like. The fog has already started to lift, and the steps are being put into place to reach the success that I have been longing to reach. If you have, or are planning to start, a small business, this really is a fantastic book, and should be manditory reading. If you have a successful business in place, and don't agree with this book, please remember one thing before you post a negative review ... you are in the absolute minority of small business owners due to the fact that most small businesses fail within the first 3-5 years; due in large part to NOT having a system in place that helps drive the business. Most small business owners would most definitely benefit from reading this book, if for no other reason than the awareness of where they are and where they could be. Thanks to Michael Gerber for such an eye-opening experience, and a viable blueprint. I'm looking forward to the journey!

Amazing, the book correctly diagnosed the main issues I’m facing as a small business owner, and offered clear solutions. It also brings a refreshingly spiritual twist to the world of small business. Would give 10 stars if I could.

Excellent book.I learned a lot reading it. It's amazing what's really required to run a small business is relatively simple. Discipline is the hard part

"The e-Myth Revisited" is an entertaining, well-written book that provides Gerber's philosophy on why 80% of small businesses fail and what can be done to prevent that. It is presented in three parts. Part I serves to convince the reader that just because they are a great technician, it does not mean they will be a great owner of a business that does technical work. In essence, every small business must either grow or die, and for the owner, "your job is to prepare yourself and your business for growth" not necessarily work in the business. Part II seeks to convince the reader that the business Business Format Franchise is the optimal model for a small business. With this concept, the product of the business is the business itself, and the owner should build his business as if he will franchise it. Part III gets down to some blocking and tackling of founding and constructing the business. This is an excellent little section that communicates a lot in a short space about operational, management, and marketing strategies. The questions raised in sections "Your Primary Aim" and "Your Strategic Objectives" are worth posing when considering any vocation, not just running a small businesses. The concept of "The Game" is very insightful, and it is applicable to both small business and corporate managers. This isn't your typical business advice book. A consulting session with Sarah, owner of All About Pies, runs through the text, providing a forum for Gerber to give his advice in a personal fashion (and to exhibit an apparent flare for drama). The pages are sprinkled with references to classical literature, and there is a mid-book confession Gerber's exotic lifestyle, career choices and the road he took to become who he is now. And then there is Gerber's philosophical approach: - He says "Your business is nothing more than a distinct reflection of who you are". - He states small business has a higher calling than just business, and provides a Game to address the "Something is missing in most of our lives.... Part of what's missing is purpose. Values. Worthwhile standards against which our lives can be measured. Part of what's missing is a Game Worth Playing." Elsewhere, he says "A small business is a place that responds instantly to any action we take. A place where we can practice implementing ideas in a way that changes lives." - He compares a small business to a dojo, or our practice hall, to wrestle with ourselves outside our comfort zone. - He advises us to be wary of the comfort zone, saying "Your Comfort Zone has seized you before... and it can seize you again, when you're least prepared for it, because it knows what it means to you. Because it knows how much you want to be comfortable. Because it knows what price you are willing to pay for the comfort of being in control. The ultimate price, your life.... Comfort makes cowards of us all." As far as the intended audience, in the first line of his Introduction, Gerber states "If you own a small business, or if you want to own a small business, this book was written for you". This is very true, with two caveats: it offers little insight on how to determine what type of business to start, and secondly, there are nuggets of wisdom in here for corporate mid-level or line managers too. Although I was slightly put-off by long-winded digressions and melodrama, I still have to strongly recommend "The E-Myth" to its target audience.

An all-time classic business book. I've read this a bunch of times and recommended it to so many people. Must read for entrepreneurs

This book has been a real eye-opener and has completely changed my view on what a new business should look like. Mandatory reading for anyone looking to start his own company!

This book explains why you are stuck in business. All the myths revolved around entrepreneurship is explained.

This is a great book for people running small businesses. It shows you how a lot of people start a business after working a full-time job and feeling they could do better by striking out on their own, but then face a lot of unexpected problems unrelated to their craft. It teaches you how to resolve this and how to work on your business instead of in your business, and how every business requires at least three roles, even if you are a solopreneur - the technician, the manager and the entrepreneur. This will not teach you how to manage money, get leads or acquire customers, but I would recommend this book to anyone who needs clarity on how to run their business more efficiently and with less stress, particularly people who are starting or running a business for the first time. It will show you how to properly think about it and give you a guide on the tasks you need to do to optimize it.

L'ho comprato un paio di anni fa e riletto recentemente. E' uno dei libri di business che mi porto nel cuore da quando l'ho scoperto. Si rivolge ai piccoli imprenditori,quindi quasi tutti,e quindi quasi tutti dovrebbero leggerlo. Usa la storia come metodo per introdurre i concetti fondamentali e alla base di tutto c'e' il consiglio,vero,profondo, utilissimo di iniziare la propria attivita' con un piano ben chiaro in testa, farsi i conti bene e per bene intendo bene e partire da subito con l'idea che nel lungo periodo bisogna arrivare a una standardizzazione del servizio, tirarsi fuori dall' equazione e iniziare la costruzione di un brand in franchising. Non significa rifondare Mc Donald, ma evitare di rompersi la schiena tutti i giorni per cinquat'anni cercando di sfondare il muro della propria produttivita' fisica con la testa. Comprare cartaceo e regalare a chi ha un'attivita'.

Tout d'abord, que les moins Anglophones se rassurent, l'Anglais employé n'est pas très complexe. C'est un livre qui suit le développement si classique d'une personne qui créer son business à partir d'une vision technicienne/ingénieur. Le narrateur raconte comment il l'accompagne à travers différentes phrases, pour la faire grandir depuis ce stade de "freelance" à chef d'entreprise. Les questions posées sont pertinentes, et c'est un vrai must-read pour les entrepreneurs, en particulier ceux qui essaient de transformer un business déjà fonctionnel mais à toute petite échelle (freelance, autoentrepreneur...) en une PME.