The E-Myth Revisited by Michael E. Gerber - Book Report/Review Example

The E-Myth Revisited by Michael E. Gerber The E-Myth Revisited by Michael E. Gerber, is the second book by Gerber of the same title. The book was written to show entrepreneurs what not to do in business. One of the first points that Gerber makes is that entrepreneur's need to understand the difference between a job and owning a business. The book is divided into four sections. The first section explains what most people would define as the American small business. The second section explains a new way of thinking about business and entrepreneurship. The third section, explains how to create a small business that will be successful given the new paradigm that he discusses in section two. The final section is an epilogue that is geared toward brining all points together and reinventing small business. 1.0 Part I: The E-Myth and American Small Business Gerber says that entrepreneurs make a mistake when they think that because they are experts in their fields that this will translate into being an expert in opening and operating their won business because this is not true. He states that this is actually "their greatest single liability" (13). Most of the time, according to Gerber, when people do something they love and make it into a business, they wind up making it into a job. The reason for this is because they understand how to work in a job but they do not understand how to work as an entrepreneur. Unfortunately, this becomes a chore instead of a love and eventually, the individual experiences burn out in something they once loved. Gerber says that when people go into business for themselves, they turn into three people: "the Entrepreneur, the Manager, and the Technician" (p. 19). He refers to these as aspects of the personality. The Entrepreneur is the part of the personality that is creative and who lives in the future rather than the past or present. The Manager is the part of the personality that is responsible for planning, order, and predictability (25). The Manager lives in the past and always works to have order and balance. The final part of the personality is the Technician who is the one who actually does the work and lives in the present. As long as this part of the personality feels productive, they are happy (26). Gerber explains that each part of the personality has its place, but the person in small business must understand how each one functions and how to ask for help when necessary. He states that all small businesses must have the entrepreneurial spirit or it will not survive. 1.1 Part II: A New View of Business Business franchising is the topic of this section and there was much discussion about McDonald's and why it worked. He stated that this model was responsible for a 95% success rate (91). He uses this example as a way to explain that it is important to understand that "your business is not your life" (96). He suggests in this section, that people should use the skills and model of the franchise. In this way, they can take all the issues into consideration that are important to their business and look at it objectively. He emphasizes that the entrepreneur must have a different mindset than the old way of being in business. He says that when businesses have problems, it is not the business that is the problem 00 it is the entrepreneur. He says that the business owner must step back from the business and realize that they must "disidentify" themselves from their business to keep a clear vision of it. In other words, they must see their business as a product, regardless of whether they are selling a product or a service (111-112). 1.2 Section III: Building a Business that Works Innovation is a very important part of any business venture beaus it awakens the individual to ask questions that will move their business forward. This section of the book helps define a totally new way of interacting with customers. He gives step-by-step guidance on what situations might occur and what to say. He believes that an individual can provide themselves with their own professional development to the point of seeing their business "as though it were the prototype for 5,000 more like it" (134). He also suggests that an individual's business is of secondary importance because they should make their own well-being of primary concern. To accomplish this, everyone should ask themselves these questions: "What do I value most??" "What kind of life do I want?" "What do I want my life to look like, to feel like?" and "Who do I wish to be?" (136). He says that after these questions are answered, the next step is to write "a very clear statement of what your business has to ultimately do for you to chive your primary goal" (149). This is important because the two actions go together. This he calls a "strategic objective" and this will give a strong opportunity for reflection and the possibility of a strong business. Another idea he gave was to change your mind about spending so much time in your business and instead, replace "you" with a system. The trick to this is to plan as though you are an employee first, and then look up from that point. In this way, they can build the business, taking in all the strategies that have already been mentioned. 1.3 My Thoughts about the Book This book is a very important one that I feel that all entrepreneurs should read. It is full of wisdom that makes an individual want to read more. I have wondered about what it would be like to have my own business. This book inspired me and gave me ideas that could help in development of my own business. I think that I liked the third section the best because it had so much information about what to say and to dol. I think the questions that you must ask yourself were very important and I have been asking myself these questions. I do not know the answers to all of them yet, because they are very thought provoking. The book does get the reader motivated and it makes you want to do something. What I liked was that the book did not leave the reader hanging at the end of the book. Instead, they provided an afterword that addressed what to do next. He suggests that people must take a look at their business and how it looks in its present state. He then says to go through the steps (questions). I liked that he used so many of his clients and gave the information about what they said at each stage. There were only a few things that I did not like. The book had a lot of information that would take more than one reading. The chapter on McDonald's was lengthy and sometimes difficult follow. I understand that he wanted to use McDonald's as the example for franchising, and why it was important, but it was very long. Overall, I found the book easy to read and understand, and it was very inspiring. Work Cited Gerber, Michael E. The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It. NY: Harper-Collins, 2001. Read More