A Practical Way to Get Rich . . . and Die Trying: A Memoir about Risking It All


John Roa - 2020
    His account of his rise from a self-described below-average student, to becoming a poster boy for the ambitious, successful young entrepreneur, to nearly destroying himself in the process is the subject of A Practical Way to Get Rich . . . and Die Trying. Roa's twenty-year-long journey from being dead-broke to wealth he never imagined is an absurd and often comical story of talent, luck, risk, rapidly changing technology, larger-than-life personalities, sex, gambling, and excessive alcohol and drug consumption. Roa's intention for his memoir is not to present a glamorous rags-to-riches saga, but, instead, to serve as a cautionary tale of the toll that entrepreneurship can take on ambitious young people unprepared for the physical and mental costs that "making it" can take. Those pitfalls eventually took their toll on Roa, who, in the face of round-the-clock pressure and risk taking, ultimately suffered a psychotic breakdown from which he almost didn't walk away. As he healed in the aftermath, he began to question the ethos that had brought him to that dark place, and he learned from other entrepreneurs that they, too, had experienced similar debilitating issues that they felt unable to admit, let alone discuss.A Practical Way to Get Rich . . . and Die Trying is a compelling memoir and the foundation for a campaign of honesty and vulnerability in an industry that currently allows neither. Roa aims to be the bridge to helping young leaders confront the mental health issues and abuse that too often accompany the tech startup that so many have embraced as their salvation for their future.

Start It Up: Why Running Your Own Business is Easier Than You Think


Luke Johnson - 2011
    Running your own business is nowhere near as tough as you might think. So what are you waiting for? Luke Johnson is Britain's busiest tycoon, with a personal fortune estimated at £120 million. From Pizza Express and Channel 4 to his incisive Financial Times column, Johnson has spent two decades on the business frontline. In Start It Up, Johnson sets out to inspire - and guide - every budding entrepreneur. He tackles the issues that really matter: finding the right idea, sourcing funds, and getting the best from the people you meet on the way - chiefly yourself. 'A must-read for inspiring entrepreneurs, probably the best book available on the subject' John McLaren, Management Today 'Part rant, part outpouring of useful knowledge gleaned from 20 very successful years in business. There is a great deal here that is good' Richard Reed, co-founder of Innocent Drinks, Financial Times 'For the budding entrepreneur, this clear, thoughtful and passionate how-to guide will be an excellent first investment' Economist Luke Johnson is one of Britain's most successful entrepreneurs with an estimated personal fortune of £120 million. He is Chairman of Risk Capital Partners and The Royal Society of Arts, and a former Chairman of Channel 4 Television. He writes columns for the Financial Times and Management Today. In the 1990s he was Chairman of PizzaExpress, which he grew from 12 restaurants to over 250; he also founded the Strada pizzeria chain and owns Giraffe and Patisserie Valerie. He lives in London and is married with three children.

The Elephant Catchers: Key Lessons for Breakthrough Growth


Subroto Bagchi - 2013
    Those who hunt Rabbits are rarely able to rope in Elephants. Many organizations, even those that may have a brilliant start, falter in their attempts to achieve transformational growth in their later phases. In The Elephant Catchers, Subroto Bagchi distils his years of on-the-ground learning to explore why this happens and what such organizations and their people must do to climb to the next level and beyond. Through a combination of engaging anecdotes from his experiences as co-founder and subsequently Chairman of Mindtree Ltd and insightful stories from our everyday world, Bagchi demonstrates a crucial point: Organizations with real ambition to get to the top need to embrace the idea of scale and then ensure that it systematically pervades every aspect of its functioning. In doing this, he leads you to evaluate: Is your organization's infrastructure designed to evolve and ultimately mimic the simultaneity of a living organism? Are you constantly nurturing and renewing your brand identity or letting it stagnate and decay? Does your sales force have as many hunters as it has farmers or is it dominated by a grizzly who just waits for the salmon to land in its mouth? In a fiercely competitive environment, are you really stepping 'out of the box' and learning from unusual sources? Are leaders in your organization truly building capacity or merely solving problems?Practical advice on real issues, from how to deal with consultants to the question of succession, words of caution on strategy traps and M&A's and invaluable insights into a whole range of growth-related issues - The Elephant Catchers has it all. Engaging, wise and thoroughly accessible, this book is a must-read for everyone in every organization seeking breakout success.

Once a Bitcoin Miner: Scandal and Turmoil in the Cryptocurrency Wild West


Ethan Lou - 2021
    From investing in Bitcoin in university to his time writing for Reuters, and then mining the digital asset ― Lou meets a co-founder of Ethereum and Gerald Cotten of QuadrigaCX (before he was reported dead), and hangs out in North Korea with Virgil Griffith, the man later arrested for allegedly teaching blockchain to the totalitarian state.Coming of age in the 2008 financial crisis, Lou's generation has a natural affinity with this rebel internet money, this so-called millennial gold, created in the wake of that economic storm. At once an immersive narrative of adventure and fortune, Once a Bitcoin Miner is also a work of journalistic rigor. Lou examines this domain through the lens of the human condition, delving deep into the lives of the fast-talkers, the exiles, the ambitious, and the daring, forging their paths in a new world harsh and unpredictable.

Selling to Win


Richard Denny - 1989
    It gives practical advice on how to:- Get a sale when your service is not the cheapest- Turn your customer into an ambassador- Build a positive attitude- Beat the competition- Close a saleThis is a valuable book, recognized as an effective and powerful sales-improvement guide.

Hustle Harder, Hustle Smarter


Curtis Jackson - 2020
    A decade ago the multi-platinum selling rap artist decided to pivot. His ability to adapt to change was demonstrated when he became the executive producer and star of Power, a high-octane, gripping crime drama centered around a drug kingpin's family. The series quickly became "appointment" television, leading to Jackson inking a four-year, $150 million contract with the Starz network--the most lucrative deal in premium cable history.Now, in his most personal book, Jackson shakes up the self-help category with his unique, cutting-edge lessons and hard-earned advice on embracing change. Where The 50th Law tells readers "fear nothing and you shall succeed," Hustle Harder, Hustle Smarter builds on this message, combining it with Jackson's street smarts and hard-learned corporate savvy to help readers successfully achieve their own comeback--and to learn to flow with the changes that disrupt their own lives.

The Acorn Principle: Know Yourself, Grow Yourself


Jim Cathcart - 1998
    The Acorn Principle is a guide to doing a complete "life checkup" that will help you pinpoint your talents and strengths. Nurturing those strengths is the key to the success you've always wanted but didn't know how to attain. By reading this book and doing the simple exercises, you'll learn things about yourself that you and most people don't even suspect. You will learn: Why some people attract you and others repel you * How to predict your instinctive reactions to various situations to understand what circumstances you thrive in and why * Where your intellectual blind spots are * Why you like and dislike certain things and how to use that knowledge to motivate yourself * Who are the most influential people in your life and how to connect with them and others more effectively * How to control your simple daily actions in such a way that you develop new abilities and continually grow a better life.The potential to live the life of your dreams exists within you. The more you explore your talents, your relationships, and the patterns in your life, the more readily you will be able to tap into those potentials. A more fulfilling and meaningful life is possible for you without changing your nature; it will come from discovering who you already are. The mighty oak sleeps within you . . . right now.

Business Legends


Gita Piramal - 1998
    and industrialists of the lime were not afraid to think ahead and plan big. Among the entrepreneurs who led this Industrial resurgence, four were particularly outstanding, G.D. Birla, Walchand Hirachand, Kasturbhai Lalbhai and, J.R.D. Tata. Gita Piramal, author of the acclaimed Business Maharajas, sensitively recreates the Lives and Times of these four titans of industry. She draws upon hitherto untapped sources of information to Sketch her profiles, making htis perhaps the closest Look at these legends this fair. Thought provoking and incisive. Business Legends is a compelling Account of ambition and achievement.

Do Scale: A Road Map to Growing A Remarkable Company


Les McKeown - 2019
    It can increase your reach and future proof your business. But how do you scale ? And how does it differ from flipping for a quick profit or slower organic growth? Les McKeown advises industry leaders on how to achieve scalable, sustainable growth. In Do Scale, he draws from his decades of experience to provide a clear understanding of what's involved, and the strategies needed to take your business (or not-for-profit) to the next level. You'll find out: What it means to scale and if now is the right time; Why founders need to get out of their own way ; How to develop winning teams; Your secret weapon for decision making. With practical advice and clear guidance, Do Scale is an essential manual for anyone looking to grow a successful and sustainable organisation and turn it into something truly remarkable.

How to Write a Great Business Plan


William A. Sahlman - 2008
    Yet nothing could be further from the truth. In fact, often the more elaborately crafted a business plan, the more likely the venture is to flop.Why? Most plans waste too much ink on numbers and devote too little to information that really matters to investors. The result? Investors discount them.In How to Write a Great Business Plan, William A. Sahlman shows how to avoid this all-too-common mistake by ensuring that your plan assesses the factors critical to every new venture:· The people—the individuals launching and leading the venture and outside parties providing key services or important resources· The opportunity—what the business will sell and to whom, and whether the venture can grow and how fast· The context—the regulatory environment, interest rates, demographic trends, and other forces shaping the venture's fate· Risk and reward—what can go wrong and right, and how the entrepreneurial team will respondTimely in this age of innovation, How to Write a Great Business Plan helps you give your new venture the best possible chances for success.

If You Build It Will They Come?: Three Steps to Test and Validate Any Market Opportunity


Rob Adams - 2010
    In If You Build It Will They Come, business professor and strategy consultant Rob Adams shows you how to make sure you hit your target market before you spend a lot of money. He shows you the fast, systematic and proven approach of performing Market Validation in advance of making a large product investment.Adams outlines a simple and effective market validation and testing strategy that is proven, giving entrepreneurs and managers the ability to dramatically improve the prospect of product success. He explains how to quickly gather information on competitors, directly interview members of your target market, and figure out what the market really wants to buy, versus what customers say they want.The steps to quickly understanding the viability of your market Where to go to gather the information needed to hit the market requirements How to follow through with the right product launched in the right way Adams cuts through the fancy terms and expensive market research that gives lots of data but no real product oriented information about usage, pricing, features and competitive forces. In the end you'll produce results on your first release of a far more mature product, shipped in a faster timeframe with features customers will actually use. This book is for anyone involved with designing, developing and launching new products. Its examples and advice cover everything from the fledgling start-up that needs their first product to work just to survive to the successful Fortune Class company establishing new worldwide markets. Examples cut across all major industrial sectors including consumer, retail, manufacturing, technology, life sciences and services. This book offers the step-based guidance you need to make sure failure is not an option.

The Marketing Blueprint: Lessons to Market & Sell Anything


Jules Marcoux - 2015
    Whether your goal is to grow one of your side projects into a marketable business, to improve the revenues of your current brand, or to better the brand of the company you work for, The Marketing Blueprint is what you need. This step-by-step guide compiles all essential marketing strategies, such as: • How to market, from forming marketing strategies, to business development, to improving your selling skills • How to become a more efficient marketer, by understanding and using leverage effectively • How to market yourself and your brand's people, to ensure better business opportunities • How to create brands and products that make people talk and stay relevant for years To top it all off, this book has more than 30 lessons of practical content that you can use right away in your business. Longer hours and bigger textbooks aren't the answer to your success. By being the smartest marketer around, you can ensure you will grow your business' revenues. That’s exactly what The Marketing Blueprint is all about.

Risk Game: Self Portrait of an Entrepreneur


Francis J. Greenburger - 2016
    Greenburger risked it all to buy three older loft buildings at 50 West Street near the current 9/11 Memorial. He ultimately dreamed of one day erecting a magnificent skyscraper in their place. But disaster struck in 2008, just as his plans were coming together, and development came to a screeching halt. The global financial crisis had made the land practically worthless and it would be years before he could get back on track, but he refused to give up on his dream.Today, 50 West is a striking 780-foot skyscraper with curved glass windows that has become an iconic feature on the city skyline—but it took much more than a financial investment to get there. It required Greenburger to do what he does best—take huge risks at every turn.During his parallel careers, Francis J. Greenburger has made publishing and real-estate history. Whether risking the reputation of his agency for the super -star authors of tomorrow, such as James Patterson to Dan Brown, or pioneering the New York co-op market by taking “hopeless” properties and turning them into prized homes, he has successfully navigated the worlds of business, politics, and social change to become the quintessential American entrepreneur.A math and business prodigy who started working for his father at the age of 12. After a stop–and-start academic career, he voluntarily left one of the most elite and academically distinguished New York City high schools and started his adult life at 15. Greenburger has made it his life’s work to find value where others never thought to look, and his keen instincts and innovative strategies have taken him from a high-school "dropout" to a well-educated self-made billionaire.Francis has mastered the "risk game." Now, with Rebecca Paley’s gripping prose, he takes us behind the scenes in Risk Game and reveals firsthand how he has become a self-made force in the competitive world of New York real estate—and a champion for nonprofit organizations in the fields of art, education, and, most recently, social and criminal justice.

Power Friending: Demystifying Social Media to Grow Your Business


Amber Mac - 2010
    I think she's a leader in this space." -Tony Robbins, world-renowned speaker and entrepreneur Amber Mac wants to be your friend. She may be a tech-savvy webpreneur, the popular host of TV shows and video podcasts, and an in-demand consultant and speaker, but if you ask Amber Mac about her strategy for success, she'll tell you she's just trying to be a good friend. When it comes to social media-whether it's Facebook or Twitter or the latest video blog-the tools evolve quickly, the rules change rapidly, and the technology feels more and more complex. But making social media work for your company doesn't have to be complicated or expensive. In this compact yet thorough guide, Mac shows you how to effectively harness the online world to grow your business. The secret: think of your audience as your friends and then treat them that way. The Power Friending approach is all about developing real relationships based on mutual respect and support. While you may never meet some of your online friends face-to-face, they still expect you to follow the established norms of friendship: be authentic, reach out, listen. And don't lie to your friends. These same rules apply when building a strong brand online. Whether you're a blogger, a small company, a well-known global enterprise, or an aspiring queen of the Internet, Mac shows how to make the most of social networking tools, including: -Targeting the right networks -Feeding and seeding a community -Authentically engaging with customers and fans -Managing your online friendships on a daily basis and on a budget This isn't a book of abstract theories or complicated strategies. Mac writes from personal experience: she built a huge fan base through social networking. She also draws on real-life and up-to-date examples to give you the information you really need in order to establish and maintain credibility and meaningful relationships online.

The Slicing Pie Handbook: Perfectly Fair Equity Splits for Bootstrapped Startups


Mike Moyer - 2016
    Bad equity deals are the rule, not the exception. The Slicing Pie Handbook outlines a framework for perfectly fair equity splits for early-stage, bootstrapped startup companies. Based on the dynamic equity model popularized by the book Slicing Pie, a formula in use by entrepreneurs all over the world. The Slicing Pie Handbook will help you determine the right share for people who contribute the things you need to start your company including help, equipment, supplies, rent and even credit. You will learn how to fairly allocate equity when people contribute and how to fairly recover equity when people leave the company.