Got to admit I'm somewhat ambivalent in my take on Carol Roth's new business book, "The Entrepreneur Equation." If I had had this book back in 1992 when I started my professional photography business, it probably never would have gotten off the ground because Carol's business checkpoint questions would have convinced me I was doomed to failure at the get-go. But my business was a success for eight years, and I only closed it due to the accelerating technology of digital photography which made every Tom, Dick and Harry a photographer.
So should potential entrepreneurs heed Roth's warnings to take hard looks at your business prospects before opening shop? Yes, I think for the majority of people this is true, unless you want a business of what Ms. Roth calls a "jobbie," a sole proprietorship with no employees.
I had a "jobbie" at my studio; no one but me did all the work, and if I got sick, I still had to follow through with appointments, especially weddings. When I got put in the hospital briefly, the business had to be closed, and there was no one to call back the messages on the phone.
Roth wisely outlines the realities, risks and rewards of having one's own business in her book. She brings ample experience to the table, having helped clients raise more than $1 billion in capital, complete multi-million dollar mergers and acquisition deals, secure high-profile licensing and partnership deals, and create brand enthusiast programs among others.
My only beef with the book is that it seems to be more focused on the medium-sized business with employees, as she says that is the type of business which can build equity, something which is difficult if not impossible to do as a sole proprietor with no employees. So with the caveat that this book is really not for the "jobbie" intent on making crafts for Etsy or eBay, I do recommend it for posing the difficult questions which one should answer for oneself before taking out a second mortgage to start a small business.
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