My Favorite Quote from The E-myth Revisited

The E-Myth Revisited by Michael Gerber was the first book on business I ever read. It opened my mind to a whole new way of thinking about business. In fact, I was so impressed with the book that I can still recite my favorite quote on command, even though I memorized it nearly 4 years ago. It goes like this:

"If your business depends on you, you don't own a business, you have a job, and it is the worst job in the world because you are working for a lunatic."

I think that is a fantastic editorial insight on operating a business. It highlights what I believe to be a major flaw in many small businesses started by technicians who are knowledgeable on how to do work, but not how to run a business that does that work.

My Entrepreneurial Internship

Growing up I was chronically overweight. Finally after graduation from Rensselaer, I decided to change my lifestyle. Nearly a year later, I had lost more than 100 pounds.

To achieve such remarkable progress I spent many hours in the gym. My gym, Gold Medal Fitness, has been in business 25 years and remains independently owned and operated by one man. Since reading that eighty percent of independent businesses fail in the first five years, I knew that Gold Medal Fitness' owner, Gary, was doing something right. I asked Gary if I could spend a month as an intern observing his business model and day-to-day operations. After agreeing to my request, Gary recommended that, in addition to my internship, I read The E-Myth Revisited a follow-up to a book he read 25 years earlier before starting his business.