Big Enough: Building a Business that Scales with Your Lifestyle

by Lee LeFever

Overview

An eye-opening antidote to the endless-growth mindset, Big Enough offers an alternative path to career success.

In this illuminating book, entrepreneur Lee LeFever gives an inside view of building a scalable, product-focused business, while never compromising on quality of life. Lee and his wife, Sachi, responded to the promise of the internet by building a home-based business, Common Craft, that was profitable yet small enough to pivot and innovate. Lee takes you through the multiple business models they pursued—marketplace, digital product licensing, subscription services, distribution partnerships, and more—and offers his best tips for how you, too, can build a lightweight business that supports a life you love. A must-read for anyone interested in entrepreneurship, business strategy, and e-commerce, Big Enough arms you with insights into how technology and innovation are changing the face of business—and how the science of happiness and the pursuit of values can help redefine what it means to be successful.

Product Details

ISBN-13:	9781989603185
Publisher:	Page Two Books, Inc.
Publication date:	09/15/2020
Pages:	176
Sales rank:	539,100
Product dimensions:	5.50(w) x 8.40(h) x 0.50(d)
Age Range:	18 Years

About the Author

Lee LeFever is the co-founder of Common Craft and author of The Art of Explanation. Since 2007, Common Craft has won numerous awards, worked with respected brands like LEGO, Google, Intel and Ford, and created original explainer videos that have earned over 50 million online video views. Today, Common Craft produces educational guides, ready-made videos and digital visuals that are used by educators in over 50 countries. Lee and his partner Sachi are Common Craft’s only employees and work from their home off the coast of Washington State. www.leelefever.com

Table of Contents

Prologue: The Scale of You xiii

1 More Hours, More Money 1

2 Return on Luck 13

3 Work for Hire 23

4 Choice as a Shareholder Value 37

5 The Business of Permission 45

6 Designing for the Future 55

7 A Platform of One's Own 63

8 Live the Monetorium 77

9 Turning Copycats into Customers 93

10 Success through Failure 105

11 The Power Not to Care 119

Conclusion: Big Satisfaction on a Small Island 127

Epilogue: Defining "Big Enough" for Yourself 139

Acknowledgments 147

Notes 149

Editorial Reviews

In Big Enough, Lee LeFever uses his finely honed explainer skills to provide a refreshing, personal guide to designing a business around the values that matter most to you. Big Enough offers plenty of tactics and tips, but more importantly it gives readers a chance to rethink their definitions of success and adjust their working lives accordingly. As the sole proprietor of a 'big enough' business myself, I found a lot to steal here, and I think you will, too.”
—Austin Kleon, New York Times–bestselling author of Steal Like An Artist

"A practical business autobiography, approachable and useful... Lee helps you understand the real difference between freelancing and entrepreneurship (and what to do about it)."
—Seth Godin, founder of Akimbo.com

"We often hear about how the internet has allowed companies to get big fast, but the same forces can provide great leverage for individuals or small partnerships to choose different success metrics, like freedom, health, or satisfaction. In Big Enough, Lee LeFever shares the approach he and his wife took in building their small online business, and the incredible flexibility it's given them in how they live. As the owner of a tiny online business, I wish I'd had this thoughtful and engaging book as a blueprint when I started out."
—Jason Kottke

"I've admired the work that Lee and Sachi LeFever have done with Common Craft over the years. I loved reading the stories behind their success. They made it look easy...of course, reality is always a little trickier. This book was fun to read, incredibly open and honest, and came at such a perfect time for me! I learned so much from Lee's insights into building a 'big enough' business and it really inspired me to rethink a lot of what I'm working on. If you are an entrepreneur with heart, you'll love this book."
—Tara @missrogue Hunt, author, researcher + founder, Phlywheel

"There is a growing movement of smart business owners who are more concerned with 'enough' than the typical 'more.' Lee LeFever tells his story of letting personal values and freedom chart his course in business, to help others determine how they want to define their own success."
—Paul Jarvis, author of Company of One

From the Publisher