Andrew Jary BS 310

The E- Myth Revisited write-up

Gerber, Michael E. The E Myth Revisited: why most small business don't work and what to do about it. New York: HarperCollins Publishers, 1995. Print.

Overview The title is short for The Entrepreneurial Myth which makes sense because entrepreneurial is an extremely long word! The title is also fitting because throughout the book Gerber acknowledges the common myths that people have about the entrepreneurial experience and dispels them one by one. I loved the fact that this book was so easy to read. Gerber did not try to make himself look like a genius by using lingo and talking above all but the highest of the high. Instead he used a writing style that was engaging while being both easy to read and fun to read. The real world examples are also very helpful; not only to learn the concepts but to enjoy and follow along and stay engaged.

3 Reflection Points I was into the book from the very beginning because right away the first myth that Gerber talked about was the characteristics of an entrepreneur which is something I have thought about at times in terms of whether I am the right kind of person to become a successful entrepreneur. He talked about how a lot of people picture entrepreneurs as these people that overcome insurmountable odds and were heroic type characters that managed to succeed at the near impossible. I know that this is an important topic not only from my own thoughts but also from Gerber who stated that this was the most important factor in small business failure today. The next topic I personally found particularly interesting was chapter 5 and the idea of the comfort zone of an adolescent business. The reason I found this topic important is because it is something that is hard for everyone because everyone has a comfort zone and I think everyone has had at least one experience when things got out of that zone and they had to deal with it in some way. In terms of how to deal with the

Andrew Jary BS 310

issue in the business sense Gerber proposed three options: getting small again, going for broke, and adolescent survival. The first of these options, getting small again, is a route that is taken when the business owner cant take the stress and everything that goes along with getting bigger. They choose this because they like to be in control and when they start to lose that they need to get back to a point when they had the level of control they need. The second option, going for broke, involves basically ignoring the stress and troubles of expanding and simply continuing on the same path. Ignoring a problem and continuing blindly doesnt sound good to me and it didnt sound like Gerber thought highly of it either. The final option, adolescent survival, is when the business actually survives through possibly too much hard work and stress on behalf of the owner of the business. In this scenario the business doesnt end up falling apart but likely the owner does personally. I also found chapter 12 to be very important with the idea of keeping things in perspective and making sure you know what your priorities are and keeping them in order. For me I would view my business as important but not important enough to keep doing it if it wasn't making me happy on a personal level being in the business. It can be dangerous if someone determines that the business defines them and they have only lived a successful life if their business is a great success. It's good to want a successful business but it shouldn't be the only thing that you derive happiness from or even the largest thing in my opinion.

Application All of the points that I acknowledged above are general things that might not help me in a specific aspect of writing my business plan but they will all help me throughout the whole life cycle of the business. Each of the items provide good perspective. All three of the items above are good to keep in mind at all points of business.