According to a recent study in the Global Business and Economics Review, the failure rate of Amish businesses is less than 10% in the first five years, compared with 50% of small businesses in the U.S. over the same time period.
Erik Wesner, author of Success Made Simple: An Inside Look at Why Amish Businesses Thrive, points out these five values as part of the secret of their success:
• Never ask an employee to do something that you wouldn’t be willing to do yourself.
• Value relationships over onetime deals.
• Cultivate a rigorous work ethic.
• Learn to work outside your comfort zone.
• It’s all in the details: make sure the product — or service! — you deliver is carefully crafted.