Success Made Simple: An Inside Look at Why Amish Businesses Thrive

by Wesner

The keys to better business from a thriving group of business owners-the Amish Business can be discouraging. According to US Department of Labor figures, only 44 percent of newly-opened firms will last four years. Amish firms, on the other hand, have registered a 95% survival rate over a five-year period. And in many cases, those businesses do remarkably well-as Donald Kraybill "the phrase 'Amish millionaire' is no longer an oxymoron." Success Made Simple is the first practical book of Amish business success principles for the non-Amish reader. The work provides a platform of transferable principles--simple and universal enough to be applied in the non-Amish world, in a wide variety of business and management settings. With a focus on relationship-building and the big picture, Success Made Simple offers business owners everywhere the tools for better, smarter, more successful enterprises.

Genres: Business

256 pages, Hardcover

First published January 1, 2010

Reviews

[Scott Wozniak · Rating 3 out of 5]

The title is more accurate than you might think. The book shares good business principles. It is also very simple. Not wrong. Just not super helpful--and not new at all. The Amish angle is interesting, but in the end it didn't even get deep or insightful on that front, either.

[John · Rating 4 out of 5]

Amish mystique. People are willing to spend serious money on Amish goods. Shoppers in Amish Country hunt tokens of rural simplicity to cart home to a hurried urban existence. Handmade hickory rocking chairs might sell for $120USD. Amish firms, on the other hand, have registered a 95% survival rate over a five-year period. Compare that to the average five-year survival rate for new businesses across the United States, which hovers just under 50%.
Amish do not participate in government-sponsored retirement programs, having negotiated an exemption from the SSI system, neither paying in nor receiving payouts. The community steps in if they need help. Amish retain dignity as they move into the twilight of life. The aged are neither forgotten nor brushed aside. A barn takes a long time to build if it's just you and a hammer. Invite a couple hundred helpers over, and you can put one up in a day. Whether you're starting your barn from scratch, or looking to pound a final few pegs, it's worth asking: who's helping you raise yours?

http://librarum.org/book/14187/73

[Stephen · Rating 5 out of 5]

With a five year business failure rate of 5% compared to a 50% failure rate among non amish business' there clearly are many things that the Amish excell at in order to be successful bussiness owners. Things that bussiness owners and self employed can learn from. Many people look down at the Amish as backward, clearly that can't be true.
While waiting for this book to arive from Amazon I was thinking what this book would tell me, and I thought it has to be values that differ the Amish from the general population, and that is what the book is about. Whether it is hard work, family, faith, vision, mentorship, lifelong learning, relationships, there is a lot of useful knowledge in this book. Success may be simple though not easy, but is there a better way... apparently not if you want to be successful.

[Marta Perry · Rating 5 out of 5]

SUCCESS MADE SIMPLE by Erik Wesner is a great book for anyone interested in Amish culture. Wesner explores the growing number of Amish entrepreneurs as many Amish move from agriculture to small businesses. Especially interesting is the high success rate of Amish small businesses in comparison to the national average. Wesner discusses the factors that contribute to this success, linking them to the values of Amish culture. As the publisher of the Amish America blog, he is definitely an expert on all things Amish!

[Joan · Rating 5 out of 5]

I guess the reason I liked this book so much was because I've never thought of starting my own business until recently, and it was interested to get the perspective of a Amish sect who are forced to go into business for themselves. Maybe "forced" is the wrong word, but they need to provide money for their large families fast, while I am given the time to think about it first. I was amazed at their strong community oriented/ personal feelings about business and hope, if I do start a business, that I can have that attitude because it seems to work for them!

[Bev · Rating 2 out of 5]

All in all, it was an interesting book. Having lived in Indiana, I had some experience of the Amish and was very interested to hear how they ran their businesses.

As expected, having a fundamental value system greatly affects how they approach business and how they define success. Yes, you should be considerate of your employees and their families, but it's kind of disappointing to see these sorts of "management concepts" having to be spelled out like this.

[Sharla · Rating 1 out of 5]

I just skimmed through the book a little and it looked very boring.

[Jeanne · Rating 5 out of 5]

Interesting read with many lessons to be learned for the small business owner.