Company of One: Why Staying Small is the Next Big Thing for Business
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- Create Date：2021-09-14 09:55:09
- Update Date：2025-09-06
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- Author：Paul Jarvis
- ISBN：0241470463
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Summary
A refreshing approach to entrepreneurship centered on staying small and avoiding growth - maximizing happiness， sustainability and profitability。
Paul Jarvis left the corporate world when he realized that working in a high-pressure， high-profile world was not his idea of success。 Instead， he now works for himself out of his home， and lives a much more rewarding and productive life。 He no longer has to contend with an environment that constantly demands more productivity， more output and more growth。
In Company of One， Jarvis explains how you can do the same， including:
· Planning to set up
· Determining desired revenues
· Keeping clients happy
· And， of course， doing all this on your own。
"Jarvis makes a compelling case for making your business better instead of bigger。 A must-read for any entrepreneur who prioritizes a rich life over riches。"
-CAL NEWPORT， bestselling author of DEEP WORK and DIGITAL MINIMALISM
"You're not a machine， so why would you run your business like one？ Company of One shows you another way。 If you've ever wondered how to have a business that works for you-instead of the other way around-you need this book。"
-CHRIS GUILLEBEAU， bestselling author of SIDE HUSTLE and THE $100 STARTUP
Paul Jarvis left the corporate world when he realized that working in a high-pressure， high-profile world was not his idea of success。 Instead， he now works for himself out of his home， and lives a much more rewarding and productive life。 He no longer has to contend with an environment that constantly demands more productivity， more output and more growth。
In Company of One， Jarvis explains how you can do the same， including:
· Planning to set up
· Determining desired revenues
· Keeping clients happy
· And， of course， doing all this on your own。
"Jarvis makes a compelling case for making your business better instead of bigger。 A must-read for any entrepreneur who prioritizes a rich life over riches。"
-CAL NEWPORT， bestselling author of DEEP WORK and DIGITAL MINIMALISM
"You're not a machine， so why would you run your business like one？ Company of One shows you another way。 If you've ever wondered how to have a business that works for you-instead of the other way around-you need this book。"
-CHRIS GUILLEBEAU， bestselling author of SIDE HUSTLE and THE $100 STARTUP
Reviews
Kari
，
Books like this one， make you pause and think why the typical or most common way of doing things isn't the only way。It's a book to come back to anytime the impulse to take decisions based on what others are doing comes up。 Books like this one， make you pause and think why the typical or most common way of doing things isn't the only way。It's a book to come back to anytime the impulse to take decisions based on what others are doing comes up。 。。。more
Mark Nutting
，
Jarvis presents the rarely taken view that keeping your business smaller can give you more work and life satisfaction。 His viewpoint isn’t that growth is bad， simply that growth for growth’s sake isn’t good for you or your company。 I liked and agree with much of his perspective。 This could be a great read for you， particularly if you feel that your business doesn’t need to be a fortune 500 business， that making enough for a comfortable life， sustain your business， and being able to help others i Jarvis presents the rarely taken view that keeping your business smaller can give you more work and life satisfaction。 His viewpoint isn’t that growth is bad， simply that growth for growth’s sake isn’t good for you or your company。 I liked and agree with much of his perspective。 This could be a great read for you， particularly if you feel that your business doesn’t need to be a fortune 500 business， that making enough for a comfortable life， sustain your business， and being able to help others is enough。 。。。more
Gita Swasti
，
It’s assumed that hard work and smart thinking always result in business growth。 But the opposite is often true: not all growth is beneficial， and some growth can actually reduce your resilience and your autonomy。 Just as I learned new skills in self-sufficiency that were far outside my realm of knowledge， companies of one can do the same。 Indeed， they’ll need to in order to stand out and thrive。 Secara tradisional， growth akan selalu dilihat dari jumlah produk yang berhasil terjual。 Hal ini suda It’s assumed that hard work and smart thinking always result in business growth。 But the opposite is often true: not all growth is beneficial， and some growth can actually reduce your resilience and your autonomy。 Just as I learned new skills in self-sufficiency that were far outside my realm of knowledge， companies of one can do the same。 Indeed， they’ll need to in order to stand out and thrive。 Secara tradisional， growth akan selalu dilihat dari jumlah produk yang berhasil terjual。 Hal ini sudah kenyang saya alami karena berkecimpung di ekosistem usaha sosial。 Sudah kenyang melihat orang pitching dengan kata-kata， "Target kami tahun depan akan menambah kapasitas produksi sejumlah …"， "Penerima manfaat kami saat ini sudah lebih dari … dan akan bertambah menjadi … di 3 tahun mendatang。" Menyelesaikan masalah dengan kata 'lebih' artinya lebih kompleks， lebih besar biayanya， dan lebih besar tanggung jawabnya。 Kata 'lebih' mungkin terdengar solusi paling mudah untuk dilakukan， tetapi bisa saja bukan solusi terbaik。Startup Genome Project， menganalisis 3。200 high-growth tech startup， menemukan 74 bisnisnya gagal bukan karena perencanaan keuangan yang gagal， tetapi terlalu cepat berekspansi。 Growth bukan menjadi sesuatu yang strategis， tetapi harmful。Kenapa tidak bintang lima？ Karena ada beberapa bagian yang sebaiknya diperpendek saja。 Sisanya， menyenangkan untuk dibaca。 Saya mendapatkan bukunya melalui fitur langganan Scribd。 。。。more
David Hutchens
，
I’ve been living a “company of one” for a couple of decades now， so a lot of this book was affirming stuff I was already doing。 But I am at a period of significant scaling now， and this book gave me some gems。 His ideas about implementing strategic limits to growth gave me a lot to reflect on。 And his insights about becoming a teacher of your expertise is exactly where I am right now。 His reflection questions at the end of each chapter were strong and I took them seriously。 I found this book to I’ve been living a “company of one” for a couple of decades now， so a lot of this book was affirming stuff I was already doing。 But I am at a period of significant scaling now， and this book gave me some gems。 His ideas about implementing strategic limits to growth gave me a lot to reflect on。 And his insights about becoming a teacher of your expertise is exactly where I am right now。 His reflection questions at the end of each chapter were strong and I took them seriously。 I found this book to be equal parts affirming and challenging to my thinking。 。。。more
Jean Sung
，
Eh。 This book has good ideas and an interesting premise that growth for is not as good as growth for being better。 That is interesting and the author does expand upon it a bit in detail with examples。 Great。 Less great is the rest of the book which is a windy narrative through semi related concepts and an amalgamation of others' ideas and quotes with a little bit of autobiography sprinkled in。 idk， not that compelling and only worth reading because my flight got delayed 2。5 hours and I had nothi Eh。 This book has good ideas and an interesting premise that growth for is not as good as growth for being better。 That is interesting and the author does expand upon it a bit in detail with examples。 Great。 Less great is the rest of the book which is a windy narrative through semi related concepts and an amalgamation of others' ideas and quotes with a little bit of autobiography sprinkled in。 idk， not that compelling and only worth reading because my flight got delayed 2。5 hours and I had nothing else really to do 。。。more
Jeremy
，
Loved it！Super informational， lots of great tips along the way。 I have been reading and applying the lessons to my work and it been so helpful。
Heli Künnapas
，
Üldiselt oli "Ühe inimese ettevõte" täitsa hea raamat。 Kindlasti soovitan kõigile， kes istub samuti kahtluste otsas， et kas ja kui palju peaks kasvama või kas hoopis ühe inimese ettevõttena jätkata。Pikemalt kirjutan blogis: https://midaheliluges。blogspot。com/20。。。 Üldiselt oli "Ühe inimese ettevõte" täitsa hea raamat。 Kindlasti soovitan kõigile， kes istub samuti kahtluste otsas， et kas ja kui palju peaks kasvama või kas hoopis ühe inimese ettevõttena jätkata。Pikemalt kirjutan blogis: https://midaheliluges。blogspot。com/20。。。 。。。more
Steven
，
Cool concept。 I'm not sure if it's a book-length topic but Jarvis does a solid job expanding his idea without stretching things too thin。 Cool concept。 I'm not sure if it's a book-length topic but Jarvis does a solid job expanding his idea without stretching things too thin。 。。。more
Sharee W
，
I would give this book 3。75 stars。 Whether you’re selling a product or service there are good ideas in this book。 Having worked for large companies that were extremely too heavy （meaning a lot of overhead） I understand the author’s point of keeping overhead low and only grow or scale when you feel it necessary。A point of the book that might be missed is that you can start your own business offering a product or service and be happy with it allowing you to afford a lifestyle that makes you happy。 I would give this book 3。75 stars。 Whether you’re selling a product or service there are good ideas in this book。 Having worked for large companies that were extremely too heavy （meaning a lot of overhead） I understand the author’s point of keeping overhead low and only grow or scale when you feel it necessary。A point of the book that might be missed is that you can start your own business offering a product or service and be happy with it allowing you to afford a lifestyle that makes you happy。 This point is also made by author and podcast （Side Hustle School） host Chris Guillebeau who is mentioned in this book。 In the early chapters the author touches on that even as an employee you are a company of one。 You are likely a meme er of a team but it’s your responsibility to develop skills to be a valuable team member。 You must be your own advocate。 。。。more
Ethan Drower
，
Really novel book for those that don't dream of building massive startups。 Really novel book for those that don't dream of building massive startups。 。。。more
Sahil Parab
，
Being a company of one lets you control your own life and your job。But to achieve autonomy as a company of one， you have to be a master at your core skill set。Excellent read。
Karen Chung
，
Disclaimer: I only read about the first third of the book， then skimmed the table of contents for the rest。 I normally finish books as a matter of course and stubbornness， but one's time left on earth grows shorter by the day and minute， and this one was so repetitive that I decided to move on to a book with a higher information value for me。This is not to diminish the core message of the book， which is a very good one: in business， as in so many other areas of life， choose quality over quantity Disclaimer: I only read about the first third of the book， then skimmed the table of contents for the rest。 I normally finish books as a matter of course and stubbornness， but one's time left on earth grows shorter by the day and minute， and this one was so repetitive that I decided to move on to a book with a higher information value for me。This is not to diminish the core message of the book， which is a very good one: in business， as in so many other areas of life， choose quality over quantity。 You don't necessarily have to aim to grow a megabusiness。 If you focus too much on growth instead of your product， your product will suffer。 Focus on making and offering a really really good product， and your tribe will often find you。 Charge more for quality， and let someone else serve the mass market。 。。。more
Rahul Mahindru
，
Didn’t meet my expectations。 The author kept talking the same thing again and again。My key takeaway was “Challenge the need of growth” 。
Tahlia
，
Couldn't get through the whole thing kept putting me to sleep！ Couldn't get through the whole thing kept putting me to sleep！ 。。。more
Adrian Lin
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 I loved this book。 It really gave me some ideas with how to build my business。# Takeaways from Company of One## Part 1: Begin* A company focused on growth often puts in complicated systems， which then require more financial and Human Resources to manage， which then require more complex systems， etc。 It’s a vicious cycle* When you hire employees， you’re responsible for them and their livelihoods。 If you only get freelancers， you’re only responsible for that particular process。 This can be used fo I loved this book。 It really gave me some ideas with how to build my business。# Takeaways from Company of One## Part 1: Begin* A company focused on growth often puts in complicated systems， which then require more financial and Human Resources to manage， which then require more complex systems， etc。 It’s a vicious cycle* When you hire employees， you’re responsible for them and their livelihoods。 If you only get freelancers， you’re only responsible for that particular process。 This can be used for accountants， designers， etc， as a per-project basis。* “When hustling turns sleeplessness into a badge of honor and work demands push health， family， and friends to the back burner， it’s definitely time to take a break” * “Adam Grant of Wharton found that when people take the time to thank their contractors， employees， and coworkers， they become much more engaged and productive”* Cost of acquiring new customers is often high。 It often is better to retain customers， and get them to renew。 This is esp true in my business。## Part 2: Define*The right mindset** ‘Companies of One need to become adept at “single-tasking” — doing one thing for an extended period of time without distraction’* Ability to focus wanes after 55 hours a week*Personality matters* * Be Fascinating: you need to polarize and have a strong opinion and have a defined brand personality to stand out in the attention economy。 Luckily you can do this as a company of one。 You can do this better than can big multi-national companies* STRATEGIES to be polarizing and to stand out: 1） PLACATION: change the minds of those who hate you。 2） PRODDING: intentionally antagonize haters to sway neutrals into being supporters of your stance。 3） AMPLIFICATION: singling out a specialty or characteristic and fully embrace it。* People can copy things but they can’t easily copy personality， esp your personality， which is more conveyable as a company of one*The one customer** Customer service is important。 90% Americans are more willing to spend more because of great customer service。 80% did not buy as a result of poor customer service。 Only 40% actually ever voice their dissatisfaction， and 90% simply LEAVE。 Therefore take customer service seriously and respond to those who actually complain* 83% of new business comes from word-of-mouth* Listen to customers。 Respect them。 Sometimes they just want an apology and to know that you are listening。*Scalable systems** If you create goods and services that are scalable， then you can simplify your life and create the life you want。 Examples include digital courses that are do-at-your-own-pace with little ongoing consulting work* Email marketing is a scalable system。 It’s also personalizationable and segmentable。 *Teach everything you know** When you teach and build a relationship as a teacher， the audience trusts you as the domain expert on the subject matter， and to show why you’re better。* Teaching helps your customers succeed， and so they’ll keep coming back as an informed buyer* Ideas are not valuable。 Execution is。 There’s nothing new under the sun。 Most successes are old ideas done well。 * One study found that the more clients were educated， the more loyalty they developed and the more appreciated they became。## Part 3: Maintain*Properly Utilizing Trust and Scale** Trust is linked to how willing a customer is to buy。* Trust has three elements: 1） Confidence: I believe what you say。 2） Competence: I believe you have the skills to do what you say。 3） Benevolence: I believe you’re acting on my behalf。* “Word-of-mouth conversation drives sales five times more than paid online media”* 83% of customers are willing to provide referrals， but only 29% actually do so。 So don’t be afraid to ask your customers for referrals！* Customers are happy with small incentives， and double incentives where both they and the person they refer get bonuses* Trust is hard to regain once lost。 Communicate to maintain trust*Launching and iterating in tiny steps* * “For a CoO to launch a new product， the process has to be simple”* Simplicity has three elements: 1） Predictability: it’s easy to instantly understand。 2） Accessibility: being honest。 3） Building blocks: it should be analogous to an existing and understood concept* You don’t need VC backing。 You can get crowdfunding。 You can even use crowdfunding to see how much of a market there is for something。* “Launching isn’t a onetime， singular event， but a continual process of launch， measure， adjust， repeat”。 Even though many people think that it is。*The Hidden Value of Relationships** Smaller companies often want to act like larger companies but many larger companies want to act like smaller ones。 * A CoO should be better， not bigger。 * Relationship-building is important， even for those customers who haven’t been paying customers for a while。 Build that loyalty。 If they’re happy， you’re winning。*Starting a Company of One: My Story** It’s easier to start a product as a consulting service first to see what things people actually need， and then to build the systems and details later。* Paul Jarvis would’ve offered a bit of free stuff: a consulting， or road mapping session。 A lot of people ended up hiring him exactly to execute the consulting plan he’d made* The teaching material he used to educate people could be compiled into a book。* You can test the online course with current trusted customers as you go， only make a few lessons at a time and see how they react and the feedback they give。 。。。more
Micha Goebig
，
I only skipped through the chapters but things made a lot of sense。
Tiina Pärtel
，
Book that pushes you to shift your perspective。 Making you think， whether it's even necessary to grow your business， or would staying small suit you better？ Offering ideas about setting yearly upper limits to your profit and how about not working more this year， when you've achieved it？ The main message: focus on offering the best service to your customers and enjoy the ride。 Book that pushes you to shift your perspective。 Making you think， whether it's even necessary to grow your business， or would staying small suit you better？ Offering ideas about setting yearly upper limits to your profit and how about not working more this year， when you've achieved it？ The main message: focus on offering the best service to your customers and enjoy the ride。 。。。more
Auste Skrupskyte
，
Quite of an average book， I must say。If you never worked alone， freelanced or read about it - this is a great read。 Yet， if you’re more like me， who has been curious about it a lot and has done it before （worked alone） - this is rather average。Simply， no new or “groundbreaking” thoughts were put through。I picked up a few ideas - on infusing your personality into everything you do and teaching your audience。 These two really brought me some ideas， since I am in the setting up a Company of One sit Quite of an average book， I must say。If you never worked alone， freelanced or read about it - this is a great read。 Yet， if you’re more like me， who has been curious about it a lot and has done it before （worked alone） - this is rather average。Simply， no new or “groundbreaking” thoughts were put through。I picked up a few ideas - on infusing your personality into everything you do and teaching your audience。 These two really brought me some ideas， since I am in the setting up a Company of One situation myself。 So yea， some thoughts came through well， but this book could have been either smaller and sharper （a handbook） or a little more fun for this length。 But don’t get me wrong - if this is a new area for you， you will most likely enjoy this！ 。。。more
Jessica
，
Parts of this book dragged a bit， but there was a lot of good content in the third section。 I definitely got a lot out of it。 There are great tips on scaling your business， which will enable large results that seem impossible for the self-employed （companies of one）。
Jason Clark
，
I was skeptical about the concept behind this book at first。 However， the author does an excellent job of explaining the meaning of his thesis。 Much of the information is/would be invaluable to those who own or want to start a small business。 There's a chapter about getting started that I really felt hit the nail on the head。 I highly recommend this book。 I was skeptical about the concept behind this book at first。 However， the author does an excellent job of explaining the meaning of his thesis。 Much of the information is/would be invaluable to those who own or want to start a small business。 There's a chapter about getting started that I really felt hit the nail on the head。 I highly recommend this book。 。。。more
Jakub Dembiński
，
Bardzo podoba mi się， że jest coraz więcej osób， które pokazują drogę solopreneur。 Paul Jarvis świetnie zwraca uwagę， aby kwestionować wzrost， ponieważ odnosi się on do naszych celów。 W książce jest wiele przykładów i alternatyw dla głoszonych prawd o prowadzeniu， czy działaniu firmy。 Nie ma tutaj nakazu na jedno rozwiązanie， według którego powinno się rozwijać biznes。 Dużo większą uwagę autor zwraca na elastyczność i dobieranie rozwiązań do swoich potrzeb。Dobre praktyki zaciągnięte z tej książk Bardzo podoba mi się， że jest coraz więcej osób， które pokazują drogę solopreneur。 Paul Jarvis świetnie zwraca uwagę， aby kwestionować wzrost， ponieważ odnosi się on do naszych celów。 W książce jest wiele przykładów i alternatyw dla głoszonych prawd o prowadzeniu， czy działaniu firmy。 Nie ma tutaj nakazu na jedno rozwiązanie， według którego powinno się rozwijać biznes。 Dużo większą uwagę autor zwraca na elastyczność i dobieranie rozwiązań do swoich potrzeb。Dobre praktyki zaciągnięte z tej książki:-Zacznij najprościej jak się da i zawsze kwestionuj wprowadzanie nowych elementów-Używaj skalowalnych systemów-Wykonaj małe kroki i iteruj-Najłatwiej startować z produktem jako konsultacja， żeby zobaczyć czego ludzie potrzebują。 Potem można dodawać systemy i detale。Polecam każdemu， kto chciałby zobaczyć inne możliwości prowadzenia biznesu。 。。。more
Ranjit Ravindran
，
A great book for one who is a entrepreneur
Andrew Brady
，
Good thoughts but nothing super remarkable。
Madis Merila
，
Common goal of many companies is to grow at all costs。 Selling more dollar bills for 90 cents does not fix the problem， but is likely to make it worse， because bigger companies are less efficient。 Fixing the underlying issues is more sustainable。
Anjani Murti
，
The main premise of this book is super straightforward: that growth is not always the best move。 Sometimes， telling yourself enough is better than forcing "unnecessary innovations"。 Sometimes， managing small but effective business is better than working for well-known massive companies。 Sometimes， balancing work in a certain level and having peaceful family is better than putting all your eggs in the career basket and losing the important sight。The main principle is， simplicity is always better The main premise of this book is super straightforward: that growth is not always the best move。 Sometimes， telling yourself enough is better than forcing "unnecessary innovations"。 Sometimes， managing small but effective business is better than working for well-known massive companies。 Sometimes， balancing work in a certain level and having peaceful family is better than putting all your eggs in the career basket and losing the important sight。The main principle is， simplicity is always better than complexity。 Pick your battle， let go of things that only overwhelm you just for the sake of "growth"， always prioritize family and relationship。#companyofone #smallbusiness #homeindustry #entrepreneur #entrepreneurship #business #businessbook #careergoals #career #worklifebalance #family #balance #carpediem 。。。more
Robin
，
Very entrepreneurial， but I took note of Jarvis's idea of Monday and Friday with no e-mail， no social media， no appointments， just writing; Thursdays all phone calls and meetings。 Just a thought about how one might schedule if one is one's own boss。 Very entrepreneurial， but I took note of Jarvis's idea of Monday and Friday with no e-mail， no social media， no appointments， just writing; Thursdays all phone calls and meetings。 Just a thought about how one might schedule if one is one's own boss。 。。。more
Sherman Langford
，
This book suffers from a common criticism of business books—that is too long， repetitive， etc。 And the thesis probably could have been adequately treated in a long form essay。As for the thesis itself， there’s novelty and originality to it。 The idea that the pursuit of growth in building and owning a business is not the holy grail。 That small and profitable and static is more than ok。 It resonated with me as I’m about to embark on creating and running my own small business。 The book offers a perm This book suffers from a common criticism of business books—that is too long， repetitive， etc。 And the thesis probably could have been adequately treated in a long form essay。As for the thesis itself， there’s novelty and originality to it。 The idea that the pursuit of growth in building and owning a business is not the holy grail。 That small and profitable and static is more than ok。 It resonated with me as I’m about to embark on creating and running my own small business。 The book offers a permission structure to create a small business that funds a decent lifestyle， and defining what is “enough” and staying right there and building no further。 。。。more
Angela Lam
，
The book started out strong （with decent arguments for why small is beautiful）。 As an owner of a Company of One myself （I run a digital business with a small remote team）， I can relate to the ideas。 But after a while， it starts to repeat itself and drift from 1 point to another （e。g。 leadership， productivity。。。） without diving deeply or specifically enough into any area to make it really relevant to the Company of One。Overall， it was an enjoyable read。 Mainly because it was clearly written， with The book started out strong （with decent arguments for why small is beautiful）。 As an owner of a Company of One myself （I run a digital business with a small remote team）， I can relate to the ideas。 But after a while， it starts to repeat itself and drift from 1 point to another （e。g。 leadership， productivity。。。） without diving deeply or specifically enough into any area to make it really relevant to the Company of One。Overall， it was an enjoyable read。 Mainly because it was clearly written， with a conversational tone that’s not preachy。 There are some references to real-life examples and empirical research （enough to provide some basis/background to the author’s points）， but most of it pretty common-sensical。I'm only giving 3* because:1。 It’s really repetitive。 While found myself nodding to the ideas initially， when I try to think back on what I’ve learned besides “growth isn’t always good， small can be better”， it wasn't that much。 I had to go back and really dig through the pages to filter out actionable insights…。2。 The sections， titles and sub-titles are great。 They made sense and had a logical flow。 But the content within the sections don’t always fit。 Instead， you find the same arguments from another section being repeated and after a while the arguments all blend together despite the distinct headers。3。 I agree with the high-level concepts， and I liked the examples。 but I’d have preferred more specifics that’d shed light on the "how-to"s My biggest takeaways:- Bigger isn't always better- Set an upper bound for my goals。 Book summary at: https://readingraphics。com/book-summa。。。 。。。more
James Quandahl
，