The Personal MBA
  • Published: 30 January 2013
  • ISBN: 9780670919536
  • Imprint: Penguin General UK
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 496
  • RRP: $27.99

The Personal MBA

A World-Class Business Education in a Single Volume

Formats & editions
Paperback
30 Jan 2013
EBook
3 Feb 2011
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10th Anniversary Edition

True leaders aren't made by business schools. They make themselves

Getting a MBA degree has become difficult to justify not just because of the large price tag but also because of the growing impracticality. Even the elites like Harvard and Wharton offer outdated, assembly-line programs that teach you more about PowerPoint presentations than about how business really works.

For ten years, Josh Kaufman's The Personal MBA has served as an effective alternative introducing hundreds of thousands of readers to the most powerful business concepts of all time. He shares the essentials of entrepreneurship, marketing, sales, negotiation, operations, productivity, systems design, and much more, in one comprehensive volume.

The Personal MBA explains:

- The Iron Law of the Market: Why every business is limited by the size and quality of the market it attempts to serve-and how to find large, hungry markets
- The 12 Forms of Value: Products and services are only two of the twelve ways you can create value for your customers
- Option Fatigue: Why consumers are more likely to buy something when faced with three options rather than thirty
- Entropy: Why focusing too heavily on creating new products and systems is a great way to go out of business

With The Personal MBA, you will avoid years of pointless group work, unhelpful financial models and daunting student loans. Instead, you will have gained the skills and tools necessary to take your place among today's business leaders.
  • Published: 30 January 2013
  • ISBN: 9780670919536
  • Imprint: Penguin General UK
  • Format: Paperback
  • Pages: 496
  • RRP: $27.99
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About the author

Josh Kaufman

Josh Kaufman is an independent business professor, education activist, and author of the Personal MBA: Master the Art of Business.

Josh Kaufman's unique, multidisciplinary approach to business education has helped hundreds of thousands of readers around the world master the essentials of business on their own terms, and his work has been featured in BusinessWeek and FastCompany, as well as by influential websites like Lifehacker, Cool Tools, HarvardBusiness.org, and Seth Godin's Blog.

Also by Josh Kaufman

The First 20 Hours
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Praise for The Personal MBA

A masterpiece. This is the 'START HERE' book I recommend to everyone interested in business. An amazing overview of everything you need to know. Covers all of the basics, minus buzz-words and fluff. One of the most inspiring things I've read in years

Derek Sivers, founder of CDbaby.com and bestselling author of Anything You Want

No matter what they tell you, an MBA is not essential. If you combine reading this book with actually trying stuff, you'll be far ahead in the business game

Kevin Kelly, founding executive editor of Wired and bestselling author of The Inevitable

File this book under NO EXCUSES. After you've read it, you won't be open to people telling you that you're not smart enough, not insightful enough, or not learned enough to do work that matters. Josh takes you on a worthwhile tour of the key ideas in business

Seth Godin, bestselling author of This Is Marketing

I've run across few people who conceptually 'grok' how to get things done better than Josh Kaufman

David Allen, bestselling author of Getting Things Done

Fundamentals are fundamentals. Whether you're an entrepreneur or an executive at a Fortune 500 company, this book will help you succeed

John Mang, Vice President of Japan Fabric & Home Care, Procter & Gamble

This book goes far beyond business: I used the marketing, sales, and communication principles in this book to complete my PhD and land a highly competitive postdoc and professorship at a world-class research university. Whatever you do for a living, this book will help you do it even better

Dr. Zachary Gagnon, Assistant Professor of Chemical Engineering, Johns Hopkins University

If you're thinking of starting a business, this book will radically increase your confidence. If you're already running a business, this book will help you identify weaknesses in your systems to get better results. If you're thinking about plunging yourself into debt to get an MBA, this book will challenge you to your core. Are you more interested in becoming a better businessperson, or having a document to hang on your wall to impress people?

Daniel Joshua Rubin, Playwright and Portrait Artist

I graduated with an MBA in 2005 before I encountered The Personal MBA, but I still felt like I didn't know anything about business. In retrospect, I wish I had read this book before enrolling in an MBA program-it would've helped me be more mindful while completing my degree. Who knows . . . I might have skipped the MBA completely. This is easily the best foundational business book available.

Roger Hui, Technical Account Manager, RedHat, Inc.

I used the mental models in this book to create a profitable business in less than four weeks. Josh quickly dispels many mistaken beliefs about entrepreneurship, and his guidance has made me vastly more productive and successful, and my life more fulfilling.

Evan Deaubl, President and CEO, Tic Tac Code, LLC

These concepts really work: I'm booked solid with clients, making eight times more money, feeling far less overwhelmed, and having a lot more fun. If you want to live up to your potential, you can't afford to miss this book.

Tim Grahl, Founder and CEO, Out:think Group

After one hour with Josh, I immediately used his advice to bring in an extra $120,000 this year. These simple principles are astoundingly effective.

Dan Portnoy, Founder and CEO, Portnoy Media Group