Michael Gerber's E-Myth Revisited is a must-read for anyone harboring dreams of entrepreneurship. It shatters the common misconception that running a successful business is simply about having a great product or service. Gerber argues that most businesses fail because they're built on a faulty foundation – the myth that the entrepreneur themselves needs to be the "technician" doing all the hands-on work. The book brilliantly lays out a framework for building a business that works for you, not the other way around. Gerber introduces the concept of the "Entrepreneurial Myth" – the belief that technical skill and a passion for the product are enough for success. He then dives into the three key roles a business owner must embody: the Technician (the doer), the Manager (the organizer), and the Entrepreneur (the visionary). Gerber's core message is that for a business to truly thrive, the entrepreneur needs to focus on building systems and processes, not getting bogged down in the day-to-day operations. The book provides actionable steps to delegate tasks, standardize procedures, and ultimately, build a business that can run without you being constantly at the helm. Even if you're not planning to start your own company, The E-Myth Revisited offers valuable insights into business operations and management. It's a wake-up call for any entrepreneur feeling stuck in the weeds and a roadmap to building a successful, scalable business. Highly recommend!

"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.

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!