Small Business Stories: Tales of Entrepreneurs, Their Successes and Failures, and Some Finance Lessons

An “entertaining” book on business management and finance might seem like an oxymoron, but Randal Suttles has managed to make a dry topic amusing. He uses humorous stories to convey practical small business lessons. Tell me it is important to get the numbers right when taking inventory, and my eyes will gloss over. But throw in a story that includes 30 rats in a grain elevator to illustrate the point, and you have my attention! Because the stories are enjoyable to read, the business lessons behind the stories are more memorable.I found value in all the lessons, but the one that resonated the most with me was: If it doesn’t make sense to you and you can’t figure out how to do it, don’t. Even if everybody else is doing it. The author uses a savings and loan story to illustrate the point, but I could see how it applied to my business as well. Small business owners looking for practical advice will find it in this book…and they might even get a good laugh or two along the way.

I like the stories the author tells. I only wish there were more. I’ll read this again for sure. Enjoy.

The book was a quick read with important insight for any business owner. The stories address issues or related problems small business ownerslike myself have faced. With his almost 50 years of experience, his to-the-point stories are valuable lessons and refreshing advice.

Randy Suttles book sheds light on on some of the most pressing issues facing smaller companies today, and how the best way is to handle them. He provides a great insight into the financial role of business ownership and overall management. I highly recommenced this book.Daniel A Johnson, CFOPatriot Holdings

I was tempted to buy this book by the title and description which led me to think that the book would provide some interesting and novel stories about small businesses. In the event, I found it to have little of any substance beyond a bunch of 'war stories', outlining the author's experience of working with some clients. That said, someone starting a career as the owner of a small business may find the book contains some nuggets that may help him / her to navigate the challenges of running a business for the first time.