---
title: "Meaning & Key Takeaway of: Small business, right down to the…"
description: "\"Small business, right down to the individual can beat big, bureaucratic companies ten times out of ten.\" — John Naisbitt"
image: "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a9/john-naisbitt-14068_beats_small-business-right-down-to-the-individ_889006.png"
---

#  Small business, right down to the individual can beat big…

![“Small business, right down to the individual can beat big, bureaucratic companies ten times out of ten.” quote by John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a9/john-naisbitt-14068_beats_small-business-right-down-to-the-individ_889006.png)   [Download](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a9/john-naisbitt-14068_beats_small-business-right-down-to-the-individ_889006.png) [Open image](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a9/john-naisbitt-14068_beats_small-business-right-down-to-the-individ_889006.png)

> “Small business, right down to the individual can beat big, bureaucratic companies ten times out of ten.”

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

## About This Quote

This interpretation was drafted with AI assistance. It is one reading of the quote, not the author's own explanation.

Individual entrepreneurs can outcompete large bureaucracies through agility and personal dedication.

**In simple terms:** Small firms can beat big ones with flexibility.

Key Takeaway

Leverage personal strengths to challenge larger rivals.

Themes

entrepreneurship competition agility

Mood

optimistic strategic

Type

business motivational

When to use this quote

- startup launch
- local market competition
- service customization
- digital disruption

Key Concepts

innovation customer focus lean operations

Questions to Reflect On

- How can a small business maintain advantage over time?
- What niche can you dominate?

A Different Perspective

Large firms may have resources that outweigh agility.

★ ★ ★ ★ ★   No ratings yet

[Business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/business/) [Company](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/company/) [Individual](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/individual/) [Small business](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/about/small-business/)

## Related quotes

> [From the outside, the CIA seems pretty exotic, but from the inside, it's a big bureaucratic place. Think 'post office with spies.'](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-eisler/from-the-outside-the-cia-seems-pretty-exotic-but-from-the-inside-it-s/)

[Barry Eisler](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-eisler/)

> [I'm just happy to beat someone who has a big name like Dustin, because for the legacy, it's going to be maybe the biggest…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/islam-makhachev/i-m-just-happy-to-beat-someone-who-has-a-big-name-like-dustin-because/)

[Islam Makhachev](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/islam-makhachev/)

> [I think it's good politics to beat up on big companies and rich people.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/sam-wyly/i-think-it-s-good-politics-to-beat-up-on-big-companies-and-rich-people/)

[Sam Wyly](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/sam-wyly/)

> [I learned that you could beat the big guys with desire, passion, and hard work.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/scott-borchetta/i-learned-that-you-could-beat-the-big-guys-with-desire-passion-and/)

[Scott Borchetta](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/scott-borchetta/)

> [Jiu-jitsu is created where the small man can beat the big man.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/b-j-penn/jiu-jitsu-is-created-where-the-small-man-can-beat-the-big-man/)

[B. J. Penn](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/b-j-penn/)

> [The idea of jiu-jitsu is to give the little guy a chance to beat the big guy.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/royce-gracie/the-idea-of-jiu-jitsu-is-to-give-the-little-guy-a-chance-to-beat-the/)

[Royce Gracie](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/royce-gracie/)

> [Small can beat big, but you must have a plan.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/bryce-courtenay/small-can-beat-big-but-you-must-have-a-plan/)

[Bryce Courtenay](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/bryce-courtenay/)

> [The only thing I have control over is working hard and going about my business the right way, and playing the game how I've…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/alex-bregman/the-only-thing-i-have-control-over-is-working-hard-and-going-about-my/)

[Alex Bregman](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/alex-bregman/)

> [America's corporations learned long ago that equality is just good business and is the right thing to do,](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/lloyd-blankfein/america-s-corporations-learned-long-ago-that-equality-is-just-good/)

[Lloyd Blankfein](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/lloyd-blankfein/)

> [As I get older, everything feels like it's fundamentally connected, and once you've accepted the idea that business is right, and the free market…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/herbert/as-i-get-older-everything-feels-like-it-s-fundamentally-connected-and/)

[Herbert](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/herbert/)

> [ I have to say I was very lucky in this \[movie\] business. I was in the right place at the right time when I… ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/richard-masur/i-have-to-say-i-was-very-lucky-in-this-movie-business-i-was-in-the/)

[Richard Masur](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/richard-masur/)

> [Keep your thinking right and your business will be right.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/zig-ziglar/keep-your-thinking-right-and-your-business-will-be-right/)

[Zig Ziglar](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/zig-ziglar/)

> [Profitability is the consequence of doing business in the right way, to honor God.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/ted-malloch/profitability-is-the-consequence-of-doing-business-in-the-right-way/)

[Ted Malloch](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/ted-malloch/)

> [“It seems wrong to call it “business.” It seems wrong to throw all those hectic days and sleepless nights, all those magnificent triumphs and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/phil-knight/it-seems-wrong-to-call-it-business-it-seems-wrong-to-throw-all-those/)

[Phil Knight](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/phil-knight/)

> [You can take my factories, burn up my buildings, but give me my people and I'll build the business right back again.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-ford/you-can-take-my-factories-burn-up-my-buildings-but-give-me-my-people/)

[Henry Ford](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-ford/)

## More by John Naisbitt

> [Almost all change is evolutionary, not revolutionary... expectations always travel at higher speeds.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/almost-all-change-is-evolutionary-not-revolutionary-expectations/)

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

> [One of the best kept secrets in America is that people are aching to make a commitment, if they only had the freedom and…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/one-of-the-best-kept-secrets-in-america-is-that-people-are-aching-to/)

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

> [In turbulent times, in times of great change, people head for the two extremes: fundamentalism and personal, spiritual experience...With no membership lists or even…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/in-turbulent-times-in-times-of-great-change-people-head-for-the-two/)

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

> [“The modernization of Asia will forever reshape the world as we move toward the next millennium.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/the-modernization-of-asia-will-forever-reshape-the-world-as-we-move/)

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

> [We are drowning in information but starved for knowledge.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/we-are-drowning-in-information-but-starved-for-knowledge/)

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

> [In an information society, education is no mere amenity; it is the prime tool for growing people and profits.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/in-an-information-society-education-is-no-mere-amenity-it-is-the/)

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

> [The new leader is a facilitator, not an order giver.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/the-new-leader-is-a-facilitator-not-an-order-giver/)

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

> [In sales, as in medicine, a prescription before diagnosis is a mistake in the arts.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/in-sales-as-in-medicine-a-prescription-before-diagnosis-is-a-mistake/)

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

> [Globalization is a bottom-up phenomenon with all actions initiated by milions of individuals, the sum total of which is globalization. No one is in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/globalization-is-a-bottom-up-phenomenon-with-all-actions-initiated-by/)

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

> [I was totally surprised by the spread of the legalization of same-sex marriage. In just my lifetime we have gone from a taboo to…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/i-was-totally-surprised-by-the-spread-of-the-legalization-of-same-sex/)

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

> [“Don't get so far in front of the parade that no one knows you're in the parade.”](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/don-t-get-so-far-in-front-of-the-parade-that-no-one-knows-you-re-in/)

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

> [Trends, like horses, are easier to ride in the direction they are going.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/trends-like-horses-are-easier-to-ride-in-the-direction-they-are-going/)

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

> [...countries don't create economies. It is entrepreneurs and companies that create and revitalize economies. The role of the governments should be to create a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/countries-don-t-create-economies-it-is-entrepreneurs-and-companies/)

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

> [In turbulent times, in times of great change, people head for the two extremes: fundamentalism and personal, spiritual experience...](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/in-turbulent-times-in-times-of-great-change-people-head-for-the-two-2/)

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

> [In the network model, rewards come by empowering others, not by climbing over them. If you work in a hierarchy, you may not want…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/in-the-network-model-rewards-come-by-empowering-others-not-by/)

[John Naisbitt](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

[Explore all 48 John Naisbitt quotes ](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/)

## More Beats quotes

> [Histories never conclude; they just pause their prose. Their stories are, if they are truthful, untidy affairs, resistant to windings-up and sortings-out. They beat…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/simon-schama/histories-never-conclude-they-just-pause-their-prose-their-stories/)

[Simon Schama](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/simon-schama/)

> [So many things beat upon us in a lifetime that simply enduring may seem almost beyond us… But the test a loving God has…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/henry-b-eyring/so-many-things-beat-upon-us-in-a-lifetime-that-simply-enduring-may/)

[Henry B. Eyring](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/henry-b-eyring/)

> [The Beat Generation, that was a vision that we had, John Clellon Holmes and I, and Allen Ginsberg in an even wilder way, in…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/jack-kerouac/the-beat-generation-that-was-a-vision-that-we-had-john-clellon-holmes/)

[Jack Kerouac](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/jack-kerouac/)

> [Certainly these are not easy times. But history does not contain very many easy times. Years from now, we will look back at this…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/laura-ingraham/certainly-these-are-not-easy-times-but-history-does-not-contain-very/)

[Laura Ingraham](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/laura-ingraham/)

> [I usually write from the rhythm section...If a drummer got a funky beat on some things - like a half-shuffle or a shuffle or…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/miles-davis/i-usually-write-from-the-rhythm-section-if-a-drummer-got-a-funky-beat/)

[Miles Davis](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/miles-davis/)

> [If you don't like club beats take a HIT OF E and you will love the music.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/kevin-mccarty/if-you-don-t-like-club-beats-take-a-hit-of-e-and-you-will-love-the/)

[Kevin McCarty](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/kevin-mccarty/)

> [Every pitcher can beat you, it doesn't matter how good you are.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/barry-bonds/every-pitcher-can-beat-you-it-doesn-t-matter-how-good-you-are/)

[Barry Bonds](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/barry-bonds/)

> [Only two to three per cent of an audience is interested in words and pays attention to lyrics; most of the rest of it…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/al-stewart/only-two-to-three-per-cent-of-an-audience-is-interested-in-words-and/)

[Al Stewart](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/al-stewart/)

> [Joel Lane documents a life we don’t quite live, in a city we can’t quite find: half glimpsed and half imagined, we know it’s…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/chaz-brenchley/joel-lane-documents-a-life-we-don-t-quite-live-in-a-city-we-can-t/)

Chaz Brenchley

> [Practice to beat the best.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/dick-bennett/practice-to-beat-the-best/)

[Dick Bennett](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/dick-bennett/)

> [I don't know about the rest of the world, but I know in our region everyone is gunning to beat us. We have a…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/landon-donovan/i-don-t-know-about-the-rest-of-the-world-but-i-know-in-our-region/)

[Landon Donovan](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/landon-donovan/)

> [Grand business plans are all very well, but nothing beats dipping your toe in the water.](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/baron-bilimoria-karan-bilimoria/grand-business-plans-are-all-very-well-but-nothing-beats-dipping-your/)

Baron Bilimoria Karan Bilimoria

> [Let a man who has to make his fortune in life remember this maxim: Attacking is the only secret. Dare and the world yields,…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/william-makepeace-thackeray/let-a-man-who-has-to-make-his-fortune-in-life-remember-this-maxim/)

[William Makepeace Thackeray](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/william-makepeace-thackeray/)

> [Imagine if you were a drummer, and you accidentally picked up two magic wands instead of sticks. There you are, keeping the beat, the…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/mitch-hedberg/imagine-if-you-were-a-drummer-and-you-accidentally-picked-up-two/)

[Mitch Hedberg](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/mitch-hedberg/)

> [I don't like small birds. They hop around so merrily outside my window, looking so innocent. but I know that secretly, they're watching my…](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/anonymous/i-don-t-like-small-birds-they-hop-around-so-merrily-outside-my-window/)

[Anonymous](https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/anonymous/)

Browse all 3,311 Beats quotes

```json
{
    "@context": "https://schema.org",
    "@graph": [
        {
            "@type": "Quotation",
            "text": "Small business, right down to the individual can beat big, bureaucratic companies ten times out of ten.",
            "creator": {
                "@type": "Person",
                "name": "John Naisbitt"
            },
            "isPartOf": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website"
            },
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/small-business-right-down-to-the-individual-can-beat-big-bureaucratic/",
            "about": {
                "@type": "Thing",
                "name": "Beats"
            },
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/small-business-right-down-to-the-individual-can-beat-big-bureaucratic/#quotation",
            "image": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a9/john-naisbitt-14068_beats_small-business-right-down-to-the-individ_889006.png",
                "contentUrl": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a9/john-naisbitt-14068_beats_small-business-right-down-to-the-individ_889006.png",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/i/6a9/john-naisbitt-14068_beats_small-business-right-down-to-the-individ_889006.png",
                "width": 1080,
                "height": 1080,
                "caption": "“Small business, right down to the individual can beat big, bureaucratic companies ten times out of ten.” — John Naisbitt",
                "creditText": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
                "creator": {
                    "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
                }
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "BreadcrumbList",
            "itemListElement": [
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 1,
                    "name": "Home",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 2,
                    "name": "Quotes",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 3,
                    "name": "John Naisbitt",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/author/john-naisbitt/"
                },
                {
                    "@type": "ListItem",
                    "position": 4,
                    "name": "Small business, right down to the...",
                    "item": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/small-business-right-down-to-the-individual-can-beat-big-bureaucratic/"
                }
            ],
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/john-naisbitt/small-business-right-down-to-the-individual-can-beat-big-bureaucratic/#breadcrumb"
        },
        {
            "@type": "WebSite",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#website",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "publisher": {
                "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization"
            }
        },
        {
            "@type": "Organization",
            "@id": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/#organization",
            "name": "SMS4Smile Quotes",
            "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/",
            "logo": {
                "@type": "ImageObject",
                "url": "https://sms4smile.com/quotes/wp-content/themes/sq/assets/icons/icon-512.png",
                "width": 512,
                "height": 512
            }
        }
    ]
}
```
