The $100 Startup

Saturday August 24, 2019

Maybe I should stop reading books based just on what's in local Little Free Libraries. Regardless, The $100 Startup was a fine vacation read: light on content but interesting enough to inspire some thought.

The core of Chris Guillebeau's book (and brand overall, it seems) is wish fulfillment along the lines of The Four-Hour Work Week (referenced indirectly on page 123) or Why the Rich are Getting Richer. He's a self-help guy: his success is in capturing imaginations.

The encouragement is nice, and generally less irresponsible than that of some of his peers. Guillebeau currently seems to be recommending "side hustles" rather than quitting your job outright. The book is still a bit cavalier in places, as on page 170 where it nearly endorses auto loan fraud as a startup funding method.

Health insurance is on pages 236-237. There "self-insured" means "uninsured" and one individual says "My health-care plan involves prayer, vitamins, and avoiding sharp objects." Aside from the national crisis of the US healthcare system, this section speaks to the reality that many entrepreneurs just aren't doing terribly well.

There's an acknowledgement on page 247: "The fact is that the majority of people don't own their own business." There are good economic reasons for this, based on efficiency and risk reduction. It's fun to think about, along with whether it needs to be true for you.