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The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It?
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In The E-myth Revisited, Michael Gerber paraphrased a quote from Gen. George Patton. It has stuck with me for many years after having read the book.
>The comfort zone makes cowards of us all.
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> I think the primary problem is that the business is "me" and I'm having a difficult time transitioning from a "freelancer" to a "business" in a way that still keeps me flush with reliable income.
Read The E-Myth Revisited.
The first chapter or so will resonate with you deeply as the whole book is about turning your business into an actual business that can function without you so you can get your life back.
There's a good book on this called "The E Myth" that might help shed some light on this for you. It's not a huge long book, but it goes into the idea that running a business is entirely different than working in your field.
Also, try to keep in perspective your experience. If you fail, so what? You have a great opportunity here to try something. If it works then great! If not, you might go back to a 9-5 with a new appreciation for the simplicity of it all.
Do you have any management experience? Do you know how to read and create financial statements? Do you know how to do sales/marketing? Do you have relationships with vendors?
I recommend getting a copy of The E-Myth Revisited. It will help you understand the systems that you would need to setup to form the basis for your enterprise. Borrow a copy from your local library.
Read "The E Myth." It's probably the single best thing you can do for yourself, and I would not start a bakery until you've done so. It's a fast and easy read. I own a small food business, and I'm following the book's principles because it would be a waste of time not to.
Amazon link (it's less than $10)
Self-employment is a tough racket — I've been doing this both part- and full-time for the past twenty years. Getting paid is almost as difficult as selling work... I sure do wish I had read The E-Myth twenty years ago. tl;dr: being a good technician (i.e. skilled at what you technically do) is only a third of the battle in running your own company successfully.
"Creative types need to get a 'real job' so that they don't really starve to death."
Myself, I'm a [now retired from] electrician whom is looking to switch careers =|
There is an amazing book called e-myth: why small businesses don’t work and how to succeed. A best friend bought it for me when I tried to launch my own business and it really illuminated all the unknown unknowns for me. You might be able to rent it for free on your reading app from your public library. I really encourage you to check it out.
Read "The E Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Fail" https://smile.amazon.com/dp/0887307280/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_apa_glt_fabc_ES01N8ABZP33E20TFBEZ
You'll learn a lot about running the business part of it and the team of people you'll need. It's about a bakery so you'll find a lot of parallels. Short easy read, do this right now before your start anything else.
The E-Myth Revisited is another great read for somebody thinking that being a good technician will translate into being a good owner (hint: not often true). Personally, I would not leave IBEW to run my own residential shop (did that for a few years — residential is boring and most customers think you're ripping them off).
Do both. Take a small contract and manage your new business. Find out how much hands on you need to run the bakery. Can you be the manager ? or do you gotta be the janitor and baker too
Before you buy the bakery go read
The E-myth. It will teach you to avoid the pitfalls of being a small owner operator business
The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It https://www.amazon.ca/dp/0887307280/
Oh boy where to start? I can ramble for hours about my personal do’s & don’ts, but of course every situation is different. I would say my number one advice to someone going in business for themselves is to build a BUSINESS not a JOB. I made that mistake & had to correct it 5 years in. I’m still dealing with the pains of customers coming in and only wanting to talk to ME. I would advise reading The E Myth (link below), it changes my perspective and helped me transition my store from a “job” to a “business”.
The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It https://www.amazon.com/dp/0887307280/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_MGNCHJRBNPHTAB64QCVM
Ok, as you think of features, put them on a list. Use something like Trello so you can organise them.
Once you have you list of features, start to make note of the things that take the most time for you. Those should be the things you outsource or automate first.
When I say automate, you may be able to look into "no code" solutions like IFTTT and different actions that trigger based on things you do. i.e. when I get a WhatsApp message, add a new line to spreadsheet a. etc
I can recommend this book for your stage of business:
Welcome to the club — read "The E-Myth" (not for discouragement, but to be realistic about going beyond TECHNICIAN roles — you are now an accountant and salesman, too).
Carry "change order" forms right behind your invoices, and always have the client sign it for ANY change. Don't underbid yourself just to get work — if a scheduling conflict occurs, which prevents you from working productively, BILL THE G.C. for it.
Your first employee will be the most difficult decision you ever make — don't let it be a family member. Don't employ or work for family — or if you do, set realistic expectations and MAKE A CONTRACT.
PAY YOUR TAXES. Get insurance. Don't leave your tools on a jobsite EVER.
For the reasons you just described, I think it's important to definitely have a "point of contact" [not yourself] for your company, the person that handles scheduling and billing and irate customers [perhaps a good marital partner might fulfill one or both or all of these roles].
At the end of the day, if you end up doing individual contracts with random clients, daily, you will get burnt out from "trying to wear too many hats." If you want to run your own trade company, or really any company, I always recommend getting at least a decade of experience (ideally in a junior role) and reading this book. tl;dr: if you the perfect technician, you are only a third of the way to running a successful business.
One thing to consider is looking for an employer where these roles aren't so strictly defined - usually smaller places, but any place that pushes cross functionality and cross training would work.
Then you get away from questions like "Should I code or be a Product person" because you can do both. The best product people, I think, understand good software engineering, and the best coders understand the market and the problem product is trying to solve.
Regarding starting your own thing - I'd highly recommend reading the EMyth. It's a bit hokey, but has a few really solid ideas I've never seen anywhere else.
https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280/
Aside from your AUD, you need to reevaluate the situation with your family business. You’re clearly under immense work related stress due to the role you play and it’s not sustainable.
I’d suggest you start by reading the E Myth Revisited: https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280/ref=nodl_
>1. do this tonite download E-MYTH REVISITED and follow EVERY FUCKEN STEP TO A "T"
Came here to recommend this exact book. As enticement to read E-MYTH REVISITED, OP, understand that being technically competant is only about one third of the overall skill required in running your own business. Reading this book a decade ago would have saved me much suffering/lo$$.
Similar to /u/foldedWings book recommendations, I also found the "The E-Myth" to be really helpful. The author definitely likes the sound of his own voice, but the core of the book was really great at framing (for me) the balance between manager, tradesperson and dreamer (eyes on the future of the business).
Look into local resources. Like, dig deep. Whether that's a facebook group for Women in Business in your area, SheEO or mentoring offered by the local small business association, etc. We received our loan through a Women in Business type organization that partners with our local credit union, which then offers a year of mentoring and a huge catalogue of free, previously recorded online classes. Sometimes it's useful to accept a tiny loan, in order to open those doors and connections that would otherwise be closed.
>most are shit at running a business
>don’t know how to manage customers
>suck at communicating
>project management is miserable
After reading The E-Myth I realized I no longer wished to be a full-time residential sub-contractor. I have since fired almost all of my homeowner clients, and only do occasional side jobs for outstanding and multiple-property-owning clients.
Read E-Myth. It focuses on the transition from great technician to great business owner. It's cheesy writing, but invaluable information.
As far as the shop itself goes, I don't know if there's an economic way to address this, but as a non-average size person, it's very hard to find gear to try on, correctly sized bikes to demo, etc. If there was a shop I knew of that kept small men's stuff in stock, or specialized in "difficult to fit," I would travel far to get to them.
Good luck!
Before you start your own shop, read Dr. Gerber's book The E-Myth.
As we are most-primarily all technicians, first, the other two major aspects of running a company are often overlooked. This book has changed my opinion on having run my own company for more or less the past decade (past two years full-time / for-serious) — I still have no fucking clue what I'm doing, but my sales/marketing has been taking off recently.
Excellent write up thanks for that.
As I suspected what's been created here is simply a job. In terms of valuation of the business with the industry this is in the $27k is about what this would be valued at but I think it's be hard to sell as there is virtually no barrier to entry.
Good on you for taking the initiative I would that a look at this it's a great book and will help you I think on the next part of your journey which is to create a business which isn't just a job.
> Finally be the first bricks and mortar business in the history of ever to seamlessly integrate online and offline business. Try to pretend like it is not the 1990's and why don't we give this web thing everybody talks about a try.
OP, this is an amazing opportunity that has landed in your lap. But the success of it will NOT fall into your lap. Please do your homework, make a plan, find a mentor, bounce your plan off of them, and be so smart about your business that you work "on" your business and not "in" your business.
I highly suggest reading the The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It. It doesn't have a lot of answers (on purpose), but gives a lot of food for thought.
Then again, commercial real estate can be a fantastic source of passive revenue if you're willing to be a landlord instead of running a store.
Edit: formatting
That sounds fantastic. Good luck.
I have often wondered about 'breakfast only' restaurants. I can see that at first glance it would seem like you are saving money by running fewer shifts, but this to me seems like a math problem. What I wonder is, if you have the infrastructure, why not capitalize on it by running dinner also?
Now if it's a lifestyle business you're going for where it depends on you being there all the time, then I can certainly see why. But then you run into the E-Myth situation. Why not implement standard operating procedures to take yourself out of the day to day grind?
Go read the book e-myth revisted RIGHT NOW.
It will answer all these questions, or more importantly. What you should do about all these questions. You'll quickly find that the skills need to run a welding shop are not at all related to the skills needed to do fabrication and repair jobs and most people suffer at the former.
1: Quote based on what makes sense for you, track the accuracy of the quotes and revisit to learn where you're over or under bidding. Don't race to the bottom, if you're this busy raise prices. Do it now.
2: Yes, you walk in or call them up and ask them if they have any work they are looking to sub out. Owning a successful business is a large portion of having good people and sales skills. Listen to them and find their pain points. Is it turn around time, quality of work, difficult jobs they can't/don't want to do (large pieces, small pieces, one-off, difficult alloys). Pick something you're good at and layout why it's better to go with you than to do it in house.
3: No clue, all my work was B2B or done through web portals. Probably doesn't hurt to spend a few hours on a nice clean website as it makes you look legit.
- Common rule of thumb is that you shouldn't be extract more than 2-10% of net profit. That is highly dependent on way too many factors. As a data point my side business did about 150K a year in sales and I was extracting 5-15K in profit the rest was reinvested. Once you start getting big enough I highly suggest you get an SBA loan or similar for working capital so that you don't have cash flow issues.
5: Make sure your business insurance, liability, waivers and paperwork are in order. Get good legal and tax advice for your area so you don't have any surprises come tax time.
Any advice I'd give is better presented in this essential book: E-myth
Read this book
The E-Myth teaches that in order to run a successful business you need to fill three roles:
- Technician- who does the work
- Manager - who sets up systems and focuses on the day to day...at the same time, not losing sight of the overall vision
- Visionary - the entrepreneur, the big picture person...the person on top of the tree.
In order to be successful, you need to be good at all three areas but the problem is that most people are only good at 2/3. Let's say, I can do the work (technician) and have the vision of where I want to be (visionary) BUT I can't focus enough on the plan to see it through...can't break it down to small manageable chunks. That's when I hire or partner with a manager. Someone that sees where you are going and helps you focus on taking care of the small things, so the big things can take care of themselves. I hope this helps because it helped me.
Source: first generation American with no idea how to start a business in this country. The E Myth definitely made me see things differently. I now own 2 businesses, one has been going for 6 years grossing 15k per month and the other we just launched back in January. The key was to figure out my strengths very early on and delegate the rest either by hiring or establishing a strategic partnership.
This post is spot on. I feel like this kind of behavior is often overlooked in the community. Headlining these kind of excuses is a very common "anxiety of finishing things" (there is probably a psychological term for this that I don't know) that goes along with perfectionism.
What also comes into play is a theory from "The E-Myth Revisited" (big recommendation btw), where it says that many entrepreneurs are in fact technicians who love the work they do instead the act of running a business. As a technician from the graphics department you will love reading for hours about the perfect logo for your company and how to create it. What you need to do instead is think like a manager and pick any good logo real quick and launch. So if you ever get lost in reading to much about stuff instead of doing it, ask yourself: "Is this technician in me? What would the manger do?". Do this over and over and eventually you will learn to act like the manager more than like the technician.
Now I'm asking myself if there are any reports of failed businesses because any of those excuses were actually true? Does anybody know any business that failed, because the owner wasn't passionate about it or because the market was already saturated but the owner didn't notice beforehand?
Don't have much input on your financial situation (other than as other people have mentioned, grow that business!), but may I suggest that you read a book like The e-Myth Revisited - Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It by Michael Gerber.
It has some great advice for how to take a business of passion where you are an employee (like yours) from something that consumes your life to something that can enrich your life and increase your free time instead of taking all of it. It's a quick read, and your situation sounds like you could really use it's advice. I really want you to succeed!
I don't have any relationship to the book by the way, financial or otherwise, I just think it could help you, and it is a quick read so it wouldn't kill you with your schedule.
Edits were because I suck at reddit formatting.
Your job is to lead them, not to do the same job as them.
A person who starts a car company doesn't spend all day building cars. He/she figures out how to make both the company, and the employees, successful.
I'd highly suggest you check out a book call The E-Myth. It covers this topic extensively.
This book probably covers the strategy that you need to adopt.
http://www.amazon.ca/The-E-Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses/dp/0887307280
It focuses on tactics to build up processes to replace a lot of the more mundane 'busy work' and build cohesive teams
First, read the E-Myth Revisited. Never turn something you love into a business.
If you still want to tackle this, what need are you filling? Are there no rescues or animal shelters in your county currently? Are they inadequate/corrupt? Are there grooming/boarding businesses that are thriving? What about dog walking services? Is there an organized network for pet sitters? Are there illegal breeders on Craigslist?
Zoning laws are going to be a big hurdle. It's probably not allowed to have too many animals in one place that isn't a farm.
Is there a happy medium? Can you find a way to systematize your business so that others work IN your business, leaving you to simply work part time ON your business?
Before you squeeze the trigger and go full time on your own business venture, I highly recommend that you check out the book "The E Myth", if you haven't already.
The E-Myth is a great read for small business entrepreneurs that find their business taking over their lives. The E-Myth = Entrepreneurs that think they have a business, but really just have a job (and a shitty one at that). Highly recommend it.
http://www.amazon.com/The-E-Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses/dp/0887307280
Thanks for posting this awesome offer!
The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber is something recommended during a health communication class during a personal business startup discussion. It has great reviews too!
I was a consultant/freelancer for 3 years and just quit the business a few weeks ago. Before I quit, I hired a lawyer who became my collection agent. He was so good at getting money rightfully owed to me. I'm still working with him to start a new company.
I had my "come to Jesus" moment when I browsed Emyth Revisited. I realized that my business had failed. In a way, it was a huge relief because I was miserable catering to big businesses who would scream if I was a minute late, but were casual about paying me. Most people think I'm nuts for dumping my business, but I know I did the right thing.
I wish you the best in deciding your next step.
Dude, you rock. Thanks for really opening up and being human - real. As I like to believe, "keep talkin'... (to) keep healthy" :)
There's so many benefits to what you're doing - it's almost holistic: the purpose, the comraderie (and not, sometimes... so problem-solving), learning to overcome hurdles (conversely, sensing accomplishment), learning finance, customer service, what it all says about your character, etc, etc.. priceless experience. No wonder it feels so HUGE! :P That's why, at some point, employees are hired.
Related, here's a fucking great insight on growing small business - Perhaps do it as a "book club" with your partners so they're on the same page as you to bounce off ideas, all of you speaking the same "language": http://www.amazon.com/The-E-Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses/dp/0887307280/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1355692048&sr=8-1&keywords=e-myth
I'd say the vibe you put out there is inspiring others, from what you've written. I appreciate it, because we have to counter-balance the weight/BAGGAGE of the ney-sayers/doubters.
Most people are almost worshipping "safety" and "comfort"... being an "armchair quarterback" on life - calling the shots for everybody else, while they don't contribute to the solution (yet, reap the benefits from the ideas of innovators!).
That shit gets no one anywhere, but sitting on one's ass and lameness. Yeah, it's comfortable alright (as they wallow, hide, and die inside - slave to their master, fear).
Related: "A ship is safe in harbor... but is that what it was made for?" - anonymous
Dude, surf's definitely UP - go play! :)
This has nothing to do with /r/atheism... your friend didn't get to market fast enough and didn't protect her trade secrets. Business is harsh, she better hurry up and buy a few books on marketing.
Beyond that, this book is very helpful:
http://www.amazon.com/E-Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280
The E-myth revisited, by Michael Gerber. I'm sure this will be recommended many times, and for good reason.
https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280
I just read The E-Myth Revisited and I cannot recommend it enough for any entrepreneur. It talks about how to build a sustainable business.
You don't need a co-founder and you don't need investors.
Build an MVP in 3 months and see how it goes.
Do not make the mistake of wasting 3 years to build something no one wants. Do not give half to a co-founder for something you can handle in the beginning.
Also, subscribe to Valuetainment. It has phenomenal content on everything you'd need.
Former virtual assistant here wanting to put in my two cents from the internal side.
>Think of a task you need to do for your business, but you don’t have the time, or the knowledge on how to properly execute it.
Yes and no. You should have a general idea of how the task should be done.
For example, if you have no idea how to write a blog post, you should make an attempt to learn the basics of how to write a blog post before hiring someone to do it for you.
That way, you know the type of voice you're going for, what type of content your business puts out (authority/expert type? gathering info and presenting it? opinion piece?), the format, and relay that information to your contractor.
You can't delegate it if you don't know what you're looking for. You also won't know if the end product will be effective.
You don't need to know how to do it exactly or even how to execute it, but you should know the basics of what you're asking for.
> I have seen many freelancers in the Philippines charging up to US$50 per hour to manage an Instagram account. That’s a lot of money for such a task. Try to figure out what is the hourly rate in the country where you are hiring... This will help you to estimate the budget you can allocate on a task.
I don't get out of bed for less than $45/hour as a virtual assistant and a lot of people will balk at that price.
Here's what my former clients got at $45/hour:
- Text me. I'll respond within 15 minutes during my office hours.
- Keeping up with industry trends, obsessively go through your analytics, refine your strategies, and reinvest what you're paying me into courses/books/knowledge to expand how I can help you (for example, instead of just scheduling your posts, I may pick up graphic design, photography, copywriting, ads, etc. to expand my skill sets).
- Minimal management. You don't even need to ask me to update you monthly on your social media progress. I'll have a small powerpoint presentation with analytics, charts, and screenshots, detailing where you are, where you're projected to go, and how it aligns with your marketing goals. I'll also explain it in plain English instead of industry jargon. This will be pre-recorded so you can watch it at your leisure.
- Note - this isn't specific to me. I speak for a lot of USA based VA's I've known who charge a similar rate.
Or, you can pay someone in India $10/hour to schedule your Instagram account, but good luck getting that VA to go above and beyond at that rate.
>Use a "hidden word"
On my end, when applications have these "hidden word" things, it screams inefficiency to me. You are REALLY going to base my ability to perform my tasks on whether I can I spy with my little eye a single word in your wall of text?
Here's a more accurate way to do it:
- List the task and ask the VA for their process.
- Tell the VA a problem that you've faced (and solved) in your business and ask them to solve the problem in their cover letter.
Here's an example: I recently hired a project manager/assistant to keep me on task with my clients. My clients text/email/call/etc. and I needed someone to organize and schedule my tasks out through Asana (a project management type of app) in an organized fashion because it's so tedious to do it myself.
I asked the following two questions:
- When would you use "Boards" in Asana and when would you use "Lists" in Asana? (Their response shows me their ability to think on their own, without needing me to hold their hand through how to do everything. People who are intimidated by the need for self-thinking will not answer this question and just not bother applying).
- I need you to export my Toggl timesheet in PDF format so I know how much time I'm spending on each client. You log in, try to export the PDF file, but every time you try to open it, it says the file is corrupted. What do you do? (At this point, MOST entry-level virtual assistants give up and just say "hey the file is corrupted, what do I do?" which I do NOT want. I want someone who has the ability to GOOGLE and problem solve).
That being said, this advice will not work for everyone.
Your ability to teach, delegate, or pay, will impact your relationship with your virtual assistant. If you have money but no time, go high-end and hire an expert VA at $35/hour or higher.
If you have time but no money, hire an entry-level/foreign assistant and take the time to train them.
I'm currently transitioning out of being a VA to start a digital marketing agency. I am now hiring my own team of virtual assistants to help me. Here's what I've learned from the hiring end:
- Be prepared to train if you're not prepared to pay. Read The E-Myth (not an affiliate link).
A lot of businesses fail in hiring because they want to hire someone to solve a problem they can't solve themselves. $10/hour virtual assistants are ENTRY LEVEL and will need a lot of hand-holding and training. You can absolutely go this route if your budget is low or you have a lot of time to train (or have processes at the ready) but in my experience, few business owners have been organized or patient enough to train someone entry-level.
Within 6 months, they usually fire the entry-level assistant in favor of a more high-end one.
The other thing is... if you got a "good one" who can handle their own at the lower rate, get ready to have people try to snatch your assistant for $12/hour or $15/hour or be forced to match a competitor's rate. - Hire for culture over ability.
However, what isn't replaceable and what is difficult to teach is culture and work ethic.
I personally work with entry-level VA's due to lack of budget (I have more time than money) - but I hire VA's whose visions and lifestyles align with mine.
For example, I am starting a digital marketing agency. I DO NOT want to hire entry-level virtual assistants who are digital marketer wannabes because they'll just work for me for a few months, gut me for all my knowledge, and take what they learned from me to compete with me.
Fuck that.
Instead, I hire people who have a full-time job, or children, or family obligations, and are seeking "side income" NOT full-time hours. They are happy with entry-level $15-$25/hour pay and they have no intentions to eventually compete. I've noticed they're usually easier to work with because they're not constantly looking for more/higher-paying clients and they aren't burnt out from the industry.
Ultimately, I am working with a niche group of people (spiritualists, cannabis entrepreneurs, sexual empowerment coaches, zero waste/environmental coaches, etc.) so the people I hire MUST have a current interest in those subjects. I can freakin pay for a $29 Instagram course in Udemy or give them my Skillshare login to teach them Instagram but I can't teach them to care about our clients.
(Note: I'm not saying hire people who are absolute newbies with no experience. You can hire a mom who has a huge Instagram following to manage your Instagram account for $15/hour and then send her to take a Udemy course to refine her marketing skills in Instagram. You can hire a college student who wants to be a scientist but codes websites on the side, to help you manage your clients' Wordpress websites).
I know this was super long-winded... Just wanted to give a perspective from a former virtual assistant who now works with virtual assistants.
Not an affiliate link btw
Read the e-myth revisited https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280 - this book is about working on the business and not in it.
If you own your own business, thinking about doing it, or if you work for a business that seems like it runs like shit… read this. https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280
Buy this book (The E-Myth Revisited): https://www.amazon.com/dp/0887307280?psc=1&ref=ppx_yo2ov_dt_b_product_details
Read it. Study it. If you want less stress and pressure, then starting a business is the opposite of what you want to do. UNLESS.... you start it with the right ideas and structure from the get go. Don't quit to build yourself another job for less pay and more responsibilities.
At the end of the day, you can give him all the advice in the world but it will only help if he is willing to take it. How receptive is he to constructive criticism and advice?
Buy your dad a copy of The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber. It's a great eye-opener for small business owners working IN the business way too much instead of creating processes and learning to work ON the business.
Does your dad have any restaurant experience prior to opening this cafe? Does he understand food & labor costs as a percentage of revenue and basic business finances like how to read financial reports and determine profitability and cash flow? How is the product -- what is the atmosphere like? Is the food good? Do you have a lot of repeat customers? How are prices compared to other cafes in your town or general area? Is the location in a good spot with good road visibility and traffic numbers?
How is he getting the word out about the cafe? Lots of small restaurants and cafes open in my small town and I never even hear about them before they go out of business... and I'm on the Chamber of Commerce board! I just recently saw a small sandwich shop post that they were closing because a friend of mine shared their Facebook post and I had never even tried them. You may think because you are in a visible location that everyone will just eventually "know" about you, but it doesn't work that way. I worked at a pizza restaurant for several years and we had been open over 5 years and still had people coming in all the time saying "I didn't even know you were here!" and we were in a huge shopping center with a Publix as the anchor store. I would be doing mailers, door hangers, Chamber of Commerce ribbon cutting, sponsorships, coupons, social media advertising, contests, and anything else that could get the word out to new potential customers. Consider creating a loyalty program that keeps customers coming back (like buy 9 coffees get one free).
I recommend this podcast episode:
https://fs.blog/knowledge-project-podcast/derek-sivers/
And this book:
https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280
Both related to this matter.
https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280
Read / listen to this then, if still want to own a business, do the stuff others have said here.
I highly recommend reading or listening to this book.
https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280/
You should read "The E-Myth" (https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280). The entire narrative is a discussion between the author and a character who opened a bakery - extremely relevant to your situation.
The central premise is that it is not enough to want to bake things - as a bakery owner, your job is not to bake but rather to create the system that allows you to bake. This is not the same skillset.
u/Anomander explained it right. If you'd like to read up more on why small businesses operate that way, I heavily recommend The E-Myth Revisited book.
Delegate, delegate, delegate. You’re at the point where you need to hire some real talent on your team. Focus on systematizing as much of your business as possible and get the right people in place. It’ll be painful at first, but that’s the only way to get what you are looking for. A couple books I recommend.
The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It https://www.amazon.com/dp/0887307280/
Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business https://www.amazon.com/dp/1936661837/
Please read this as soon as you can to try and avoid some pitfalls down the track:
https://www.amazon.com.au/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280
Table of Questions and Answers. Original answer linked - Please upvote the original questions and answers.
| Question | Answer | Link |
|---|---|---|
| Without getting too specific, what line of work are you in? | I am in the cell phone/electronics industry. | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0is0s/) |
| I've just covered someone's electricity bill for 140 usd a few days ago :-) My business failed during covid but I still have 3 income sources so I can do that. I actually search for people in need here on reddit, how do you find them? Anyway, you're doing great work. Keep it up! | It makes me happy to hear someone else is doing some good work out here as well! I’m sorry to hear about your business, but I’m glad you still have a few sources of income. If you don’t mind me asking, what type of business were you in? I have a few ways I reach out. One is posting on here which I just started doing the last year or so, I also search for people who ask for help on here & message them. I also try to anonymously reach out to my local community & find families or are in need. | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0jwkd/) |
| I often see folks claiming that doing good deeds and making social media posts to draw attention to your good deed is a selfish act, some even go so far as to claim it negates the goodness of the deed. Do you believe that's the case, or do you think seeking attention for good deeds is positive, for instance because it may inspire others to do good? | It makes me cringe when people post photos or videos of them handing someone in need food or money, I think good deeds should be done anonymously. I get that it may bring awareness to the situation, but I look at it as extorting those in need for their own social media gain which takes away from the wholesomeness. | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0n1q1/) |
| How do you find said strangers to donate to and how do you deliver the funds? | I find them mostly online (Reddit often), social media, etc & call into their utility company to make the payment. The majority of companies, you only need their account number in order to pay. I also sometimes reach out locally, but I like to stay anonymous so online is easiest. | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0jw8e/) |
| After posting this, how many people have messaged you, requesting money or their bills paid? | Too many to count that I definitely won’t be able to help, so I’ll probably delete this soon. I really try not to turn anyone in need away, but I’ve gotten at least 50 messages right now. I’m so far beyond rich, but people take generosity as a sign of wealth. Just because I manage my money well doesn’t mean I make $500k/year.. lol I make under $200k a year, but live way below my means & tie my “charity work” into my business expenses. (My business does around $640,000 gross rev) | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0pj3c/) |
| So...why are you seeking acknowledgenent for this? I call BULLSHIT. | This is my anonymous account & I don’t want anyone to know who I am, so it doesn’t really matter if you “call bullshit”... Lol | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0o5q7/) |
| Do you have a family? How do they feel about your generosity? | I have a wife, but we do not have any children or anything. She knows I do this, but she doesn’t really know to what extent. I handle all of the finances & bills, but we both work together in our business. | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0m7ia/) |
| Has anyone you helped ever reached back to you later down the road to thank you? | No, not really. I did have someone I helped last year comment on one of my Reddit posts recently & had some nice words to say, but that was the only one. To be fair though, I keep it anonymous so no one can contact me unless it was on here. | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0m9s6/) |
| Do you donate to charities too or mainly people in need? | No, I like to keep it direct so I know where it goes. There are so many good charities out there, but I can’t help but wonder if my money is actually being used correctly. | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0magk/) |
| Is your plan to influence others and turn this into a movement rather than a lifestyle? | Not necessarily, but that would be cool. I also consider myself a business person, so if I could figure out how to become wealthy while helping people that would be amazing. | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0nk88/) |
| That's always been the dream if I ever won the lottery or something. Leave huge tips, pay for groceries. That's so awesome. What spurred you to start doing that? | Well to be honest I use to frequent a Mexican restaurant down the street from my grandparents house & have way too many margaritas every time I went. I was maybe 19/20 at the time, but I knew the owner so they served me. I’d get so bombed I would pay for random peoples meals. It felt really good & someone once declined my offer and told me to help someone who NEEDED it. I started doing just that and it just snowballed. | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0o26u/) |
| Hi! You sound like an incredibly altruistic person. So happy there are people that exist like you in the world. My question is: With your cell phone/electronic job, what are your tips for growing a business like this successfully? I have a close friend who is working parallel to something like this, machine repair work. He wants to build eventually into a business, but it’s a tough gig with consistency! He has AS and works so hard with his condition but the consistency of work is limiting - and side hustles are hard to find that work with his condition - especially with this pandemic! Any words of advice for him on getting ahead/reaching those dreams as self employed in the industry? I imagine any type of advice would help 🤷🏼♀️ | Oh boy where to start? I can ramble for hours about my personal do’s & don’ts, but of course every situation is different. I would say my number one advice to someone going in business for themselves is to build a BUSINESS not a JOB. I made that mistake & had to correct it 5 years in. I’m still dealing with the pains of customers coming in and only wanting to talk to ME. I would advise reading The E Myth (link below), it changes my perspective and helped me transition my store from a “job” to a “business”. The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It https://www.amazon.com/dp/0887307280/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_glt_fabc_MGNCHJRBNPHTAB64QCVM | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0oybb/) |
| What Reddit subs do you find people who need help? | I don’t have a specific sub, but I search for key words that I think may pertain to someone in need and I typically can drum up something. | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0p8qy/) |
| What is the most bizarre expense you’ve covered? | I stay pretty straight forward, so unfortunately no wild stories to tell. Lol | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0qnc4/) |
| Wow. Congratulations on your success. Also, when you say you do it anonymously, do you keep it as a secret to your family/friends too? Or what are their views on your altruism? Edit: pronoun. | I don’t want to give the wrong impression, I’m not wealthy, I’m just good at managing business expenses & budgeting. Lol, my wife knows I do it, but doesn’t necessarily know the who, what, when, or where. I handle all of the finances and what not. As long as it doesn’t make or break you and you aren’t exploiting the needy to get the deed done, it’s great. | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0rh8t/) |
| What kind of education background did you come from? | I graduated high school in 2011 & completed one semester at my local community college after that, but that is all. Although I do have some meaningless “certifications” from a few week long courses I took pertaining to my line of work. That was more for my own personal growth, it’s not an actual state certified course or anything. | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0slnw/) |
| What are you trying to compensate for? | Maybe from all of the stealing & bad things I did as a teenager? I’m really not sure, but I use to be a really shitty person, so maybe that’s it. I’ve grown closer to god the last 6-ish years and I’m sure that has something to do with it. | [Here](/r/AMA/comments/mzg48t/i_am_27_years_old_ive_spent_roughly_20000year_the/gw0spfz/) |
The only advise I got from another upholsterer was to put the time into learning how to sew boxed cushion covers. He said that will be the most difficult thing I will need to learn. I think he was correct.
The way to learn is the Ivan Iverson technique: "Practice, practice, practice. We're talking about practice." I did not have an upholster mentor or someone I worked for. That would have saved me a lot of time in my learning process. But I did succeed because I was willing to put the time in to learn and actually do upholstery. I got hold of every video and book I could find. The only videos I bought were Merv Knutson's DVDs.
Buy a compound sewing machine. If makes sewing much easier for all types of fabrics, vinyls, and leather.
I went through the program at SCORE and got a mentor (a retired business person) to learn about running a business. Even if you are a one person business the skills and knowledge needed to upholster are totally different than the skills and knowledge needed to run a business.
I bought and read several times the book The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About. If you fail in your business you can read this book and find out exactly why you failed. Really! This book is that good. I am very grateful that I read this book at the beginning of starting my business.
Check out your community colleges and adult education facilities. I took a class where I stood and watched a guy reupholster a club chair for 10 Wednesdays for 2 hours each time. This was very helpful for me.
Best of luck.
This is not a staffing/hiring problem, it is an efficiency/revenue problem.
​
First step:
Get the house in order
- Raise your prices and start billing for ALL your billable time. (Optional but highly recommended: require pre-payment) This will do two things:
- It will increase your revenue and create a profit margin
- It will reduce your workload. (Although never as much as you expect.)
- Define roles and document processes
- Implement a solid PSA (Connectwise, Autotask, etc...)
​
Second step:
Once your time and business is profitable, hire a customer service/inside sales person. They will field break/fix calls, do check-ins/check-outs and sell your pre-paid time, freeing yourself to do tech work and management.
​
Third step:
Now that you're extremely profitable and can afford it,
- re-assess the need for an additional tech. (Growth != health. Your profitability may be just fine at this scale.)
- If you still want to grow, at least now you have the revenue to support a GOOD technician. (Speaking from experience, a bad technician does 100x more harm than good)
​
Source: nearly 10 years of doing it wrong. :)
​
Books to read:
Profit First (Mike Michalowicz)
The E-Myth Revisited (Michael E. Gerber)
Don’t know, but it’s a popular book. Amazon Link They also have an audiobook version
Don’t know, but it’s a popular book. Amazon Link They also have an audiobook version
The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don't Work and What to Do About It - Michael E. Gerber is also on my list.
​
Depend on what you want to do. If you're a developer Start Small, Stay Small: A Developer's Guide to Launching a Startup by Rob Walling and Mike Taber is a pretty good book to start.
​
For more general you can read The Lean Startup: How Constant Innovation Creates Radically Successful Businesses by Eric Ries.
Check out the E-myth https://www.amazon.com/dp/0887307280/ref=cm_sw_r_cp_api_i_mHGHFb8R5Q0XP
Read The E-Myth Revisited. It will help you reorganize and restructure your business much more effectively and is often recommended for small business owners.
Read the book "The E-Myth"
https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280
This does not work that well if you need to hire very smart or very skilled people though.
ITT: A lot of people who could do with a read of The E-Myth Revisited.
I think you have a solid and easy to use website that really clearly describes your service....Good work. It's tough because it seems hard to differentiate yourself from a large competitor, competing on price/service alone is always a bit risky.
Of course, I say this and my business is something where I feel like I'm in the same boat....Just keep looking for new ways to make yourself different and better compared to the competition and I'm sure you'll do well. Might do you well to read the E-Myth Revisited (https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280). I'm sure you'll soon find you're too busy to do everything.
Have you read "The E-Myth Revisited" by Michael Gerber?
It lays out the concept and process for setting up your business to run itself without you.
Come over to r/smallbusiness and read E-Myth Revisited.
The E-Myth Revisited https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280
Read the E-Myth before you quit your job or invest any real money into starting a business: https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280
Fully agree. This book's an oldie but a goodie in terms of getting you thinking about process and automation in building a business: https://www.amazon.com/Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280
For books: I always recommend the E-Myth Revisited. It's from a guy who studied thousands of businesses and shares what makes businesses fail or thrive. Very good short read.
For Courses: I try to keep up with the Stanford University Business online lectures. The eCorner has some great lectures from successful entrepreneurs.
For Podcasts: I listen to This Week in Startups Podcast. It's more aimed at Silicon Valley, but there are some good guests like Chris Sacca or Gil Penchina.
Glad you found it helpful! You may also want to check out:
Instead of paying a ton of money to take online classes that probably won't really help you all that much, just read a few books. Here are some great books to start with:
The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber This book will teach you how to build systems in your business, how to work on your business and not just in it, and how to effectively grow your business so it can run independent of you.
Financial Intelligence for Entrepreneurs by Karen Berman & Joe Knight The finances are THE most important aspect of your business. If you can't manage cash flow, nothing else matters because you'll be bankrupt in a year. This is the best book for entrepreneurs, it puts financials into perspective for non-financial types. It was a huge eye-opener for me to be able to understand the P&L, balance sheet, cash flow statement, etc.
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey Not a productivity book as much as a book about what's important in life and business, about priorities, growing as an individual, and leading a good life. Must read for anyone, in my opinion.
The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John C Maxwell Great book on true leadership.
Getting Things Done by David Allen As a business owner you'll have way more to do than hours in the day. This is the best productivity system on the planet... even if you just use some aspects, it will make you 1000x more productive.
Read the E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber. It addresses exactly what you are asking: http://www.amazon.com/The-E-Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses/dp/0887307280
My own experience. Read this, this, and this book.
First, most business books blow their load in the first 1/3. If you get the main premise of the book, you can probably move on. That said, here are a few that have genuinely changed my thinking.
- The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber. The gist: your business needs systems and roles. The introduction of the "Technician, Entrepreneur, Manager" archetypes help you see that although you're an expert pie-baker, for example, you may not be a great business owner.
- Ready, Fire, Aim by Michael Masterson. The gist: the most important thing in your business is sales. If you can't sell, you will be out of business fast, no matter how good you are at your craft (e.g. pie-baking)
- Start With Why by Simon Sinek. The gist: what you do/sell isn't nearly as important as what you believe, and why you believe it.
And if you need some further book recommendations, I have a pretty extensive resource page on my site. I'm always open to new suggestions.
The Lean Startup by Eric Reise. Especially for tech startups.
The E-Myth by Michael Gerber
Beer School by Hindy and Potter. Great even if you aren't doing a brewery. They actually (kinda) pivot in that they also ran a distribution business that they said was more profitable than the brewery.
That sounds so close and yet so far from paradise, owning a stable business and being able to work for yourself! I'm trying to do the same (but in the software industry, thank goodness I can hide behind a computer screen and still be productive), so I've been reading a fair number of books and participating in a young entrepreneur's meetup in order to learn and receive valuable advice and experience from others.
This isn't really advice that is specific to Asperger's, but one book I ran across, if you haven't read it before, is <em>The E-Myth</em>. While I wasn't too excited about the tone or presentation of the book (it sometimes felt like the author was promoting his own business-consulting business), I found the underlying concepts to be very valuable. It addresses your very predicament of just barely scraping by, with no spare cash or time or energy to do anything other than survive and worry about how long even that will last.
The main message is that a person in that situation is probably thinking like a technician (that is, the person that does the work specific to the business) nearly all the time, but needs to devote more time toward thinking like an entrepreneur that builds a vision of where the business is going, and like a manager who specializes in working on the business, rather than working in the business like the technician. The business needs to be seen as a complex system or machine that can be designed and tweaked in order to become more efficient, whether that is so that the business can grow or so that it can maintain a comfortable equilibrium.
If your business is already operating near peak efficiency, then it's simply not operating within a very sustainable or profitable market. But I suspect that there are plenty of ways in which you could significantly improve the business, freeing up your time and energy, and maybe give you some extra profit to put into efficiently delegating well-designed work for others to do. Not that there's ever a simple formula for figuring those things out; it might take some cleverness and innovation, which I understand can be hard to come by when you feel like you have no spare mental energy to invest. But don't give up hope yet; I have hope that you can succeed!
Amazon can do a better job than I can. It's easily one of the must reads for any new entrepreneur:
Watch the Art of the Start by Guy Kawasaki
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=-3755718939216161559#
Also be sure to read The Emyth
http://www.amazon.com/E-Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280
As I posted in /r/atheism...
This has nothing to do with religion/atheism... your friend didn't get to market fast enough and didn't protect her trade secrets. Business is harsh, she better hurry up and buy a few books on marketing and make employees sign non-competes:
http://www.biztree.com/Templates/Non-Disclosure-and-Non-Compete-Agreement.html
Beyond that, this book is very helpful:
http://www.amazon.com/E-Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses-About/dp/0887307280
There's a big difference between making decent art and running a business, that's the point. Sure, I don't know what you know, but trying to push people in to that world if they don't want it for themselves rarely turns out well. The E-Myth is a good book which talks about this - it has some analogies using a woman who liked baking and opened her own bakery and grew to hate baking because she really wanted to be a baker, not a business owner.
While I don't know what you know I do know what I know. What I know comes from building a successful business from nothing to a multi million dollar company and all the things I have to do on a regular basis that have nothing to do with where my original skillset was. Some days I just feel like I get nothing done at all when I'm just working on payroll and taxes and accounting and licensing and a million other layers of bureaucracy that you would think would be easy but involved being transferred between various state agencies while someone tries to figure out who can actually fix a problem.
Running a webcomic with the intent of it actually being financially supportive is going to be far less about comics than it will be about marketing, advertising, and social media. Not to mention the technical, financial, and legal side of the issue, either. Any business is more about business than whatever it is the business is actually doing, especially for the people running it.
A "business about X" is a business first and "about X" second. You don't have to be a business expert right off the bat but you better be willing to devote time to figuring it out quickly.
I just see tons of posts on here where someone thinks a friend or relative has a great skill at something - drawing, making cakes, sewing, whatever - and thinks they should start a business. Often time they are very skilled. Running a business is a completely different thing, though, and that is my point. I feel like you're trying to help, and I want to make sure you don't inadvertently push your friend in to something that causes them to hate their hobby and they are going to end up resenting you for.
This is the classic E-myth story: http://www.amazon.ca/The-E-Myth-Revisited-Small-Businesses/dp/0887307280
You should read The E Myth revisited as it will help you quite a lot.
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