How often do you read a book and think that it was too long? You think to yourself the book could have been 50 or 100 pages shorter and still gotten the point across.
How about this? I have two books under 60 pages that are perfect for small businessperson who needs a boost.
The first book is The Book of Yo! by Simon Woodroffe. Simon is an award winning entrepreneur and the founder of Yo!Sushi! in the UK. The book was published back in 2000 and is out of print (you can find expensive used copies on Amazon and Abe Books). I mention this one because if you can find it, it is a gem. Each two-page spread is an idea. On the left is Simon's story and on the right is "advice" and list of things to think about. The topic are all ones entrepreneur's need to be thinking--overcoming fear, practicing failure, the need for speed.
The second will be much easier to find and equally inspirational. It's called Lucky or Smart? Jack will often say when judging a book look at the author, the publisher, and the editor. Bo Peabody, founder of Tripod and now runs Village Ventures, surely has some great stories. Random House published it (versus one of their smaller imprints). Finally, the editor was Jonathan Karp--a star in our humble opinion.
The book does not disappoint. Here is a piece from the chapter titled "Entrepreneurs are B-Students, Managers are A-Students":
When I speak to a group of business school students, I run them through a little game. I ask everyone who ever started a business to raise his or her hand. Typically, about half of the people do. I then ask those who are still running that same business to keep their hands up. Very few do. I then propose that those who raised their hands and then put them down are typical entrepreneurs: great at starting things, but not so great at managing them. I conclude by recommending that these entrepreneurs take a look at the people who didn't raise their hands, jot down their names, give them a call next time they are about to start a business, and ask them to run it. Those people are the managers.
(You can read the full Jack Covert Selects here.)
Both are short and very sweet. They will not disappoint. Check them out.
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