5 Great Books for Entrepreneurs

Great businesses can start with a simple idea. Here are some books to get you started:

The Accidental Entrepreneur: The 50 Things I Wish Someone Had Told Me About Starting a Business
by Susan-Urquhart Brown

Like many business owners, Susan-Urquhart Brown never expected to end up as an entrepreneur. Launching her own business spoke to her passions, but she soon realized there was much more to being a successful owner than she ever expected. In The Accidental Entrepreneur, she takes all the mystery out of going solo. For those who are just beginning to consider starting a venture as well as those who want to take their organization to the next level, she offers ad vice on what works and what doesn’t. With hard-won wisdom and empathy, she shows readers: the 8 questions everyone should ask up front * the top 10 traits of the successful entrepreneur * how to obtain a license and sellers permit * the best way to create a business plan * 10 simple ways to get referrals * the 6 secrets of marketing a business * smart tips for investing and finance * ways to avoid burnout * how to avoid the 7 biggest pitfalls in business Starting one’s own business should be exciting, not scary. This is the one book that will show readers how to create a successful and fulfilling venture they can be proud of.

Entrepreneur’s Notebook: Practical Advice for Starting a New Business Venture
by Steven K. Gold
Entrepreneur’s Notebook propels you on a whirlwind tour of the start-up process. It is an invaluable reference for new and experienced entrepreneurs that includes chapters on a wide range of topics, from entrepreneurial team building to business plans to financing. This excellent book provides an incredible amount of practical information that will help you make smarter decisions and avoid costly mistakes. The author, Steven K. Gold, is an accomplished entrepreneur who has co-founded and led five early-stage ventures. As an investor and mentor, he also advises many entrepreneurs and young companies. He earned his B.S.E. in Entrepreneurial Management from the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania, and his M.D. from Brown University Medical School.

The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur
by Mike Michalowicz

Never started a company before? Struggling with little or no cash? Have no experience, no baseline to judge your progress against? Thank God! You’ve got a shot at making this work.” So says Mike Michalowicz, author of The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur, a business book that is so uniquely useful, so raw and entertaining, it reads like the brainchild of Steve Jobs and Chris Rock.
The founder of three multimillion-dollar companies, including Obsidian Launch, a company that partners with first-time entrepreneurs to grow their concepts into industry leaders, Mike Michalowicz knows what it really takes to spin your great idea into pure gold.

Whether you’re just starting out or have been at this for years, Mike’s “get real” approach to business is a much-needed swift kick in the pants. In this book, you’ll discover:
* Why a business plan is a total waste of your time.
* Why fulfilling your own needs is the first and last order of business.
* Which three sheets of paper you need to successfully launch, manage and grow your business.
* How to get started in business with little or no money.
* How to find and exploit resources that no one else knows about.
* How to stop procrastinating and take action NOW!

The Portable MBA in Entrepreneurship
by William D. Bygrave and Andrew Zacharakis (editors)

The only book that offers a state-of-the-art education in entrepreneurship
. . . From an all-star team that includes:

William D. Bygrave, Babson College • Jeffry Timmons, Harvard University and Babson College • Abdul Ali, Babson College • Kathleen Seiders, Babson College • Andrew Zacharakis, Babson College • William Wetzel, University of New Hampshire • Joel Shulman, Babson College • Elizabeth Gatewood, Indiana University • Richard Mandel, Babson College • Joseph Iandiorio, Iandiorio & Teska • Steve Spinelli, Babson College • J. William Petty, Baylor University • Julian Lange, Babson College • Ed Marram, Babson College • Donna Kelly, Babson College

Starting your own business is an increasingly popular and feasible response to today’s changing job market, and the best entrepreneurial wisdom available is in The Portable MBA in Entrepreneurship, Third Edition. Edited by William Bygrave and Andrew Zacharakis, two seasoned professors of entrepreneurship at Babson College, it covers all the fundamentals–from opportunity recognition to venture capital to formulating smart business plans. This revised volume of the 600,000-copy bestseller includes a wealth of new case studies, as well as updated tax and legal information. Geared towards both MBA candidates and aspiring entrepreneurs, The Portable MBA in Entrepreurnership guides the reader through the startup process and beyond, culling wisdom from the best and brightest in the field. If you’re ready to see what the entrepreneurial world has to offer you, this book is your ticket.

Engineering Your Start-Up: A Guide for the High-Tech Entrepreneur
by James A. Swanson and Michael L. Baird

The economy may not be great, but there are still plenty of entrepreneurs around with great ideas for high-tech start-ups. If you are one of them, this book will help you succeed. It gives you all the basic information you need to make your great idea a business reality.
Updated for today’s business and economic climate, the new, fully revised edition of Engineering Your Start-Up is the complete guide to launching and growing a successful high-tech company. The authors, both successful veterans of many start-ups, focus you squarely on the fundamentals of making a new business work.

They demystify the start-up process with frank advice, insider’s tips, and in-depth analysis. On-point case studies show you what to do–and what to avoid. An expanded list of resources steers you to help when you need it. You’ll learn what it takes for you to create and manage a start-up, and the personal characteristics required for success in your new venture.

Engineering Your Start-Up offers a dose of reality for all aspects of the start-up world. Among the topics covered: securing funding (or surviving until you do), dealing with venture capitalists, writing a business plan, creating a management team, market positioning, stock ownership and grant practices, protecting intellectual property, and many other topics.

Engineering Your Start-Up is a distillation of the key lessons of the high-tech start-up world. As a new entrepreneur, you’ll find it a book you go back to again and again.