Growing a Business

It took me a while to finish this book, because it was so simple that I became bored. I read several nonfiction books which aren't meant to be exciting and keep me on my toes, however I do expect to stay engaged. In the last few chapters, some rules of thumbs were given which I really did jot down in my memory- Hawkens gave away more advice throughout the book that will definitely help any future business owner.

I read this book and watched the TV series around 1990. I credit Growing a Business, as much as anything I ever read or heard, for the success of my company today.In 1992 a group of first-time entrepreneurs started a company together. Some of the group had a blueprint of how a company is supposed to start. Get capital. Build something. Launch it. Succeed. They had not read the book, or they had but did not believe it spoke to us.Some of the group had a more organic idea, inspired in part by this book. Each company has its pace, its flow, its learning curve. The CEO is the clock, the pacer, the navigator. There is a constant calculator going on each decision, each day, extrapolating payoffs, comparing the costs and benefits. And there is a recognition of what we are going into business for and structuring the business to support those objectives.For example, we wanted a great place for employees. Each employee would share the experience and benefits. The "Startup 101" types of books treat this topic as an add-on after you do all the important things. Hawken makes it primary. It is primary if you want a place for the best people to do their best work. Structure your company around the employee experience and all else falls into place - if that is the kind of company you want.An important lesson from this book is serious initial capital for inexperienced entrepeneurs can be a mistake. Hawken describes this. So important. So easy to overlook.Large amounts of startup capital allows you to outsource parts of a company you may not totally understand yet. It makes some mistakes very expensive. It dulls the creativity at times, the innovation to do more with less. It might encourage one to do things just because you see other companies doing them. It tempts you to make large steps, when it is critical in modern markets to learn to make many smaller steps.And so on. This book may not fit every entrepreneur. It certainly does not provide all the information you need for growing a company. But for some of us it describes a pattern for growing a good company.If you are thinking about starting a company, or are in the early stages of a startup, I recommend this book. It might change how you do things, and you might get more satisfaction from the adventure as a result.

The reason I like this book is because it does not follow popular style "10 ways to get rich" or "how to make business in 5 minutes". It is focused on individuality and it recognizes that every business is different, the same way we are. It does not give you a recipe on how to grow business, because lets face it, there is no recipe. If it was easy everybody would be doing it. However, it does give you a sound advice that makes sense. I think that lots of small business owners are thinking the same way and it is nice to read that somebody experienced same kind of problems and faced similar obstacles as well as how they approached the problem. It is great book that simply makes sense...

When I started my business with $20,000 in 1996, I stumbled upon this book. It helped me form the core values of my company and to build it with only a one year loan of $40,000 (in year 2, repaid in year 3) to $3M in sales, 20 employees and strong profitability in 4 years (and we are not even a tech company!). If you want to grow fast, this is not necessarily the book for you. If you want to build value and profitability - read it, know it, live it.

This is a wonderful, even perfect, book (as much as any book or work of art can be perfect). It is smoothly written and loaded with uncommon, common sense which unmasks many conventional business "truisms." Take this for example: "Research into small business has shown that most fail because of a lack of working capital. But that's like saying the cause of most divorces is conflict." By focusing on the inner business, Hawken helps any business person create an enterprise that is ideally suited to its owner. It's smart capitalism with a human face. If this sounds appealing, also consider The Mindful Money Guide. It's not about establishing a business per se (although it does have a whole section on finding truly satisfying work), but it will complement Hawken's book well, by thoughtfully (and amusingly) addressing one's whole financial life.

I started my business in 1988 and no advice I received was a valuable at Paul Hawken's. He helps you to see a business from 10,000 feet as well as from just inches below the surface: in your heart, where ultimately your business must succeed. I recommend this book to everyone, but have ceased lending my copy out-two have disappeared. Today, my business is an enormous success-indeed, a somewhat famous one-and no one deserves more credit than Mr. Hawken, for the advice and inspiration of this lucid and engaging book. To every small business owner: buy it today, read tonight, and see if it doesn't change things immediately.