Daily Inspiration 3-21-13

"Ninety-nine percent of business opportunities

are actually jobs for the people who buy them.

They may be better jobs (most actually aren't!)

than the ones the buyers had before, but they are

still jobs, not true business opportunities.

 

A true business opportunity is the one that an

entrepreneur invents to grow him or herself.

Not to work in, but to work on.

That's the work of an entrepreneur."

 

-- Michael Gerber

Around the time I started my business in the beginning of 2008, I heard of a book called The E-Myth and ended up buying the updated version titled, The E-Myth Revisited. Many things in that book have stuck with me. It was the first time I heard the phrase, "working on your business rather than working in your business." That immediately made sense to me having started a closed a business some 30 years prior.

One of the lessons that I learned from that first endeavor was how I was working in the business and not on it, to the point that I was unable to let go of the reins enough to hire someone to replace me. That would have been the smart thing to do then, but we often learn our lessons by not doing the smart thing.

Another thing from the book I took to heart and is also tied to my previous attempt is the idea that "if your business requires you, you don't have a business, you have a job." I have been focused on creating a business that doesn't now and won't require me in the future.

Michael Gerber's later book is accumulated knowledge worth studying. It is Awakening the Entrepreneur Within, and I recommend it. On page 11 and 12, he says, "To an entrepreneur, the success of the invention--the business--is measured by growth. The faster a business grows, the more successful the invention. The slower the business grows, the less successful the invention. To an entrepreneur, slow growth or no growth is death. To be caught up in a slow or no-growth business is to be doomed to show up every day to perform in a show nobody enjoys."

It's interesting, but I find many ways to apply these ideas to people who have jobs working for others and wanting to perform better, have better results, be more fulfilled in the process and much more.

Some thoughts to ponder. . .


The Idea Of Working On Your Business, Is The Same As Working On Yourself, Don't You Think?

Spread Some Joy Today--Being kind to others is a great method of spreading joy.