Over the weekend I decided to re-read one of my favourite business books – an oldie but a goodie, The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About it by Michael Gerber.
I must admit, this is one of those books that I don’t think I will ever tire of reading. It contains so many good ideas that I make a point of going over it every year or so.
In The E-Myth Revisited Michael explains that there are fundamentally three different ‘hats’ that a business owner will wear – the Entrepreneur, the Manager and the Technician. In other words, the business owner – the person who has all the ideas and sees the big picture; the business manager – the one who implements the ideas and sees that everything is running smoothly; and the mechanic who makes the products or provides the services.
As new business owners we often try to fill all three roles ourselves, but in reality we’re not doing ourselves or our business dreams any justice in doing this. We need to determine which of the three roles we are best suited to and then source partners, staff, contractors… others who can help fill the other two roles. Often it is necessary for a start-up micro-business to fill all of these roles initially however it’s a good idea to do so with a plan in place to fill the other roles as you are able to.
This book also talks about the importance of having systems in place so your business runs like a well-oiled machine and he outlines ways to help develop your venture into a turn-key business.
There are other topics mentioned in this book such as the various stages of business growth, however the two points mentioned above would have to be the main points that I have taken from The E-Myth Revisited.
In case you hadn’t already figured, The E-Myth Revisited is a book that I highly recommend every business owner or prospective business owner read at least once.
Not everyone will want their business to operate like Michael Gerber’s suggested model but it’s certainly worthwhile knowing this information.
Here’s to your success in business…
Donna-Marie
