The One Minute Entrepreneur: The Secret to Creating and Sustaining a Successful Business (Hardcover)

by Ken Blanchard (Author), Don Hutson (Author), Ethan Willis (Author)
Key Phrases: creating legendary service, ego issues, people soar, Helping People Soar Like Eagles, Quack Quack, Dirk Gardner (more...)

Editorial Reviews

Review
Advance Praise for The One Minute Entrepreneur

“Don Hutson and Ken Blanchard have done a beautiful job teaching the essence of entrepreneurship.”
-Zig Ziglar, author and motivational teacher

“Filled with gems of wisdom. Read it if you’re serious about reinventing your life.”
—Mark Sanborn, president, Sanborn and Associates, and author of The Fred Factor and You Don’t Need a Title to Be a Leader

“There is much said about stewardship in life and business…however, the greatest stewardship is of influence. The One Minute Entrepreneur will teach you the importance of influence and inspire you to choose mentors wisely.”
—Jim Amos, chairman emeritus, UPS

“We each have a lot more to learn and a lot more to teach. The One Minute Entrepreneur will help you do both.”
—R. Brad Martin, chairman of the board, Saks Incorporated

“The One Minute Entrepreneur will help you understand that while success might be easier said than done, focusing on a few essentials will dramatically increase your probability of success—and help you have fun doing it.”
—Michael E. Gerber, entrepreneur and author of The E-Myth, The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Fail and What to Do About It, and Awakening the Entrepreneur Within
--This text refers to the Kindle Edition edition.

Review
Advance Praise for The One Minute Entrepreneur

“Ken Blanchard, the master storyteller and brilliant consultant/trainer, focuses his unique wisdom and keen insights on helping entrepreneurs achieve enduring success. Another grand slam!”
- Stephen R. Covey, author, The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People and The 8th Habit: From Effectiveness to Greatness

“Ken Blanchard invented the art of business fables, and he and his co-authors have written another winner.  This is a wonderful mix practicality and entertainment.  A quick, must read for anyone with an inkling for going out on their own, and probably just as relevant for readers interested in personal and professional improvement.” 
-- Patrick Lencioni, president, The Table Group; author, The Five Dysfunctions of a Team.

“Don Hutson and Ken Blanchard have done a beautiful job teaching the essence of entrepreneurship.”
-Zig Ziglar, author and motivational teacher

“Filled with gems of wisdom. Read it if you’re serious about reinventing your life.”
—Mark Sanborn, president, Sanborn and Associates, and author of The Fred Factor and You Don’t Need a Title to Be a Leader

“There is much said about stewardship in life and business…however, the greatest stewardship is of influence. The One Minute Entrepreneur will teach you the importance of influence and inspire you to choose mentors wisely.”
—Jim Amos, chairman emeritus, UPS

“We each have a lot more to learn and a lot more to teach. The One Minute Entrepreneur will help you do both.”
—R. Brad Martin, chairman of the board, Saks Incorporated

“The One Minute Entrepreneur will help you understand that while success might be easier said than done, focusing on a few essentials will dramatically increase your probability of success—and help you have fun doing it.”
—Michael E. Gerber, entrepreneur and author of The E-Myth, The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Fail and What to Do About It, and Awakening the Entrepreneur Within


See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 160 pages
• Publisher: Broadway Business; 1 edition (April 29, 2008)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0385526024
• ISBN-13: 978-0385526029
• Product Dimensions: 8.2 x 5.8 x 0.7 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.6 ounces (View shipping rates and policies)
• Average Customer Review: 4.0 out of 5 stars See all reviews (33 customer reviews)
• Amazon.com Sales Rank: #72,353 in Books (See Bestsellers in Books)

Customer Reviews

Most Helpful Customer Reviews

6 of 6 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Awful, Blanchard really phones this one in., July 25, 2008

By	R. Edwards (Durham, NC) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

Compared to some of his previous books this one really disappoints. The story is told as a hokey narrative (as is Blanchard's style) of the hapless protagonist as he struggles to start his career in sales and then start his own business. It quickly dissolves into a shameless ad for a half dozen or so motivational speakers and fellow authors. Very little meat on the bone. Each chapter ends with a list of a few folksy hints and tips our hero learns, but they are often not well developed or supported in the story and add little to this boring shallow book. Pass on this one. For a good getting started in business story with better take-aways read Maverick: The Success Story Behind the World's Most Unusual Workplace by Ricardo Semler.

19 of 24 people found the following review helpful:

1.0 out of 5 stars Weak, May 17, 2008

By	M. Davis (New Orleans, LA) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

The stories in this dreadful One Minute tome are told in a way that isn't realistic. People don't just don't speak like the characters in this weak, so-called helpful book for entrepreneurs do.

But nevermind that.

I read The One Minute Manager 14 years ago and I recall enjoying it and coming away with a couple of pointers. Maybe I was not only younger but more easily impressed then. If you must read this hokey book, and you find it as boring and unhelpful as I found it, then at least save yourself some time and skip to the end of each chapter where you'll find such gems of advice as "Ambition is the fuel that can drive life-changing events." Or, "If nobody will pay you to do what you love, you have a hobby, not a career." I kept waiting for there to be something better, but it didn't come.

Just watch the video above. I think it speaks for itself. The author's trying really hard to sell you on this unhelpful book.

This book is about Common Sense 101: work hard, keep the cash flowing, strive for balance in your life, and treat others with respect.

Maybe All I Really Need to Know I Learned in Kindergarten would be more apt of a guide. I'd follow one point of advice from that book regarding 1-minute Entrepreneur:

Flush.

4 of 4 people found the following review helpful:

2.0 out of 5 stars Flat, traditional, and sickeningly 'wholesome', June 5, 2008

By	Jacob Hart (Norman, Oklahoma) - See all my reviews (REAL NAME)

I understand that this is supposed to be a "parable," but I find the characters one-dimensional and difficult to identify with. There is a traditional, conservative thread running throughout the book -- Jud is very, very much a down-home, clean-cut type. He marries (of course), has two children (of course), and ends up creating a corporate culture that includes the typical terminology we're all so sick of -- "contact with the customer" is relabeled as "moments of truth," the company's philosophy is centered around some acrostic of the words "I CARE," and so on.

I couldn't quite finish this book, short though it was. There were some pieces of wisdom that may or may not be obvious ("play to your passion," "listen to others," "don't be afraid to ask for help"), but overall, I found the characters and story to be too flat and smarmy to endure. The book seems to be a poor approximation of life. I like the fact that the authors made an attempt to put their advice into context by forming a story around it, but the entire book is unrealistic.

Jud and Terri are not like real people. I couldn't identify with them. The whole adventure reads like a "family-values" sitcom written by conservative businessmen.