tiny mba review

But my business and my future... they were mine

This is the quote that hit me the hardest starting to read The Tiny MBA by Alex Hillman.

I've spent a lot of time building significant value for other people, in situations I don't control, for unknown future usage. In the end I don't own any of that work and to pay rent next month I have to do it again. I can, which is why I have a successful consulting practice, but it's not what I want for myself 10 years from now.

This book isn't your typical business advice book. It's a large chunk of "What's in the fridge?" for the notions you've built up in your head. The truth is that the fridge never existed, you created it, and you can un-create it for yourself.

Once you see and understand those patterns, business takes an entirely new shape. You can begin to see things - things that really matter - on a longer horizon and make better choices.

Let's start with a banger.

Like, why do you get paid?

Do you know? like, really know? No one is paying you for no reason, what value are you creating for other people and how much of it are they capturing? Why?

Have you ever had a shitty manager that made your life hell, made people (or entire teams) quit, and generally threw their weight around? This book forces you to confront the reality that, as an employee, you're at the mercy of not whoever signs your paycheck, but whoever happens to be in the right place at the right time.

No one client or customer can own you, or subsequently, ruin you.

The book covers a wide range of ideas that I wish someone had presented to me 10 years ago, when I had so much time, lower burn rate, and more. Would I have listened? I don't know. You should.

I'll end with a couple quotes that I think encapsulate why so many of the startups I've seen fail or get themselves into really shitty situations.

Ruthless generosity scales extremely well.

all problems are people problems.

The most likely thing to kill your business, is you.