The E-Myth
We picture businesses being started by entrepreneurs. Gerber says most are started by technicians, people good at a craft who have what he calls an entrepreneurial seizure. One day they're fed up with the boss and decide to go it alone.
Business
The E-Myth Revisited
by Michael E. Gerber
Why do experts struggle as owners?
Michael Gerber spent years advising small-business owners who worked flat out and still got nowhere. His diagnosis is a myth about who starts businesses, and it explains why being brilliant at the work can leave you struggling to run the business.
Hear a sample · read by Laura
What you'll learn
- The E-Myth
- The Fatal Assumption
- Three people in one owner
- Build it as a prototype
The key ideas in The E-Myth Revisited
The Fatal Assumption
The technician assumes that understanding the technical work means understanding a business that does that work. Gerber calls this the Fatal Assumption. A great mechanic knows cars. A garage also needs pricing, hiring, marketing and cash.
Three people in one owner
Gerber says every owner has three personalities pulling in different directions. The Entrepreneur dreams about the future. The Manager wants order. The Technician wants to get on with the job. In most small businesses the Technician is in charge, so nobody is steering.
Build it as a prototype
Gerber tells owners to treat their business as the model for 5,000 more just like it, the way a franchise works. Write down how every job is done, so anyone trained can do it the same way. Then you can work on the business instead of in it.
Lines worth underlining
The E-Myth
The E-Myth is the belief that knowing the work means you can run a business doing it.
Three roles
Every owner is part Entrepreneur, part Manager and part Technician, and the Technician usually wins.
Sarah's pies
Sarah loved baking pies, but running a pie shop left her no time to enjoy it.
Step back
Set aside time to step back and improve how the business runs, instead of only doing the daily work.
Franchise
Build it like a franchise, with written steps so ordinary people can run it without you.
A story from the book
Sarah and the pie shop
Gerber's running example is Sarah, who loved baking and opened a shop called All About Pies. A few years in, she was baking, serving, cleaning and doing the books alone, exhausted, and had come to dread the pies she used to love.
One thing to try
Write one job down
Pick one task that only you know how to do, like pricing a quote or opening up in the morning. Write the steps clearly enough that someone new could follow them on Monday. That's the first page of your operations manual.
There's more to The E-Myth Revisited
Knotd has the key ideas from 250+ non-fiction books, each in a few minutes, in plain words. The E-Myth Revisited comes with a Spot the Trap case to make it stick.
Get the whole book on KnotdOpen in the appQuestions about The E-Myth Revisited
What is The E-Myth Revisited about?
Why do experts struggle as owners? Michael Gerber spent years advising small-business owners who worked flat out and still got nowhere. His diagnosis is a myth about who starts businesses, and it explains why being brilliant at the work can leave you struggling to run the business.
What are the key ideas in The E-Myth Revisited?
The E-Myth; The Fatal Assumption; Three people in one owner; Build it as a prototype.
What's one thing to try from The E-Myth Revisited?
Pick one task that only you know how to do, like pricing a quote or opening up in the morning. Write the steps clearly enough that someone new could follow them on Monday. That's the first page of your operations manual.
Is The E-Myth Revisited on Knotd?
Yes. Knotd has the key ideas from The E-Myth Revisited in a few minutes, in plain words, plus a Spot the Trap case to test them. It's one of 250+ non-fiction books in the app.
