Straight Talk about Starting and Growing Your Business gives you the same innovative tactics successful entrepreneurs use to turn their visions into profitable and sustainable businesses.

Simple Numbers can guide you to increased business profitability Take the mystery out of small business finance with this no-frills guide to understanding the numbers that will guide your business out of any financial black hole. Author Greg Crabtree, a successful accountant, small business advisor, and popular presenter, shows you how to use your firm's key financial indicators as a basis for smart business decisions as you grow your firm from startup to $5 million (and, more ) in annual revenue. Jargon free, and presented in an easy-to-follow, step-by-step format, with plenty of real-world examples, Crabtree's down-to-earth discussion highlights the most common financial errors committed by small businesses, and how to avoid them. You'll be fascinated to learn: Why your numbers are lying to you (and why you are the cause ) How labor productivity is the key to profitability and simplifying human resource decisions Why the amount of tax you pay is your #1 key performance indicator Take advantage of Crabtree's years of experience teaching clients how to build successful businesses by ''seeing beyond numbers'' with this step-by-step guide to increasing your businesses profitability.

"Straight Talk for Startups memorializes age-old best practices and empowers both experienced and new investment professionals to beat the odds."—David Krane, CEO, Google Ventures "Straight Talk for Startups is filled with real, raw, and fact-based ‘rules of the road’ that you need to know when diving into our ultra-competitive startup world. A must read and a re-read!"—Tony Fadell, Coinventor of the iPod/iPhone & Founder of Nest Labs Veteran venture capitalist Randy Komisar and finance executive Jantoon Reigersman share no-nonsense, counterintuitive guidelines to help anyone build a successful startup. Over the course of their careers, Randy Komisar and Jantoon Reigersman continue to see startups crash and burn because they forget the timeless lessons of entrepreneurship. But, as Komisar and Reigersman show, you can beat the odds if you quickly learn what insiders know about what it takes to build a healthy foundation for a thriving venture. In Straight Talk for Startups they walk budding entrepreneurs through 100 essential rules—from pitching your idea to selecting investors to managing your board to deciding how and when to achieve liquidity. Culled from their own decades of experience, as well as the experiences of their many successful colleagues and friends, the rules are organized under broad topics, from "Mastering the Fundamentals" and "Selecting the Right Investors," to "The Ideal Fundraise," "Building and Managing Effective Boards," and "Achieving Liquidity." Vital rules you’ll find in Straight Talk for Startups include: The best ideas originate from founders who are users Create two business plans: an execution plan and an aspirational plan Net income is an option, but cash flow is a fact Don’t accept money from strangers Personal wealth doesn’t equal good investing Small boards are better than big ones Add independent board members for expertise and objectivity Too many unanimous board decisions are a sign of trouble Choose an acquirer, don’t wait to be chosen Learn the rules by heart so you know when to break them Filled with helpful real-life examples and specific, actionable advice, Straight Talk for Startups is the ideal handbook for anyone running, working for, or thinking about creating a startup, or just curious about what makes high-potential ventures tick.

Practical, simple, effective. That’s how real estate agents describe Every Day Agent by Whitney Ellis. An experienced agent and broker, Whitney witnessed good people giving up too quickly because they were licensed—but never really trained—in how to sell real estate. Whitney perfected her Every Day Agent system while helping 200-plus real estate agents jumpstart (or restart) their careers. Now, Whitney shares her proven strategies and profoundly simple methods—that add up to more listings, closings, reliable income, and lasting success. Working Florida's most finicky markets, Whitney practiced all that she preaches through good times and catastrophic downturns. Like bottled lighting in quick-to-read chapters, Every Day Agent tells new and seasoned real estate agents what they need to do every day to succeed. From how to get leads and listings to tried-and-true methods used by sales veterans, readers will get started on the right foot to ramp up in real estate sales.

In the hard-fought business world, only one new business in 20 lives to see its fifth anniversary. Typical management books do not address the unique nuances of early stage companies. Most entrepreneurial books often profile successful entrepreneurs or companies who are better known, which usually includes only the small percentage that achieve stratospheric success. Growing Your Own Business shares the secrets of long-term survival and success, detailing practical guidelines and relevant "tales from the trenches" to help entrepreneurs tackle common concerns and obstacles. A welcome combination of first-person how-to advice and peer mentoring support, this comprehensive, essential resource book provides sound, battle-proven advice for developing effective sales and marketing strategies, managing employees, and navigating business cycles. Growing Your Own Business continues after the first book, Starting Your Own Business. This resource is designed to work as independent resource or integrate into business curriculums.

Entrepreneurs believe nobody else understands what they are going through. They are hard-working individuals who feel like nobody gets it; but Shawn Burcham has been there. His experience in growing his company, Pro Food Systems, Inc., into a national success is the perfect primer for his debut book on how others can achieve the same kind of achievements for their own companies. Keeping Score with GRITT: Straight Talk Strategies for Success is for the CEO, the small-business owner, the manager, or the employee who feels stuck. Shawn's leadership lessons are geared toward those who know they want to be more efficient, have more fun, make more money, and have less stress--those that want to be more successful, yet can never seem to get ahead. Using Shawn's GRITT system, readers can transform those frustrations and challenges into positive growth and results. Praise for Keeping Score with GRITT "Shawn has captured the essence of today's entrepreneur His straightforward, detailed account of the development of PFSbrands illustrates each aspect of the leadership needed to successfully start, grow, and sustain a major business ..." --Gary Phillips Retired Chief Executive Officer, Associated Wholesale Grocers, Inc. "... Keeping Score with GRITT: Straight Talk Strategies for Success describes Shawn's leadership style perfectly ... I've always sought Shawn's advice on how to obtain success. It's great that he has finally written this book " --Brett Horn "Keeping Score with GRITT: Straight Talk Strategies for Success is a fun and no-nonsense approach to business and life. Shawn's straight talk about his hard-earned lessons and successes distill the daunting challenges faced by today's entrepreneurs, business owners, leaders, and employees down into simple, actionable items that everyone can relate to and implement ..." --Jair Drooger CT Assist

Powerful, unvarnished advice for growing through the work challenges all aspiring leaders face The business world is full of catchphrases: follow your passion; think positive; be authentic; suck it up; take risks; network. All well-intentioned, but let’s be honest. This inch-deep advice just isn’t very helpful. How do real people succeed in the real world of work? That’s the question bestselling author Joanna Barsh sets out to answer—not by asking motivational gurus or well-established CEOs but by diving into the trenches with today’s boldest, brightest, up-and-coming leaders. Distilling the stories of important work challenges from more than 200 rising leaders in 120 companies, this hands-on guide helps you grow through the challenges you face—not despite them. You’ll learn how to: * Handle rising pressure and recover from colossal mistakes * Bounce back from poor performance reviews and use them to up your game * Get people on board with you and your mission * Deal with office villains like a superhero * Take uncomfortable risks and dare to challenge * Grow when everything is falling apart around you * Know when it’s time to find another position Packed with raw experiences and on-the-job coping strategies from a rich diversity of voices—immigrants and first-generation Americans; blacks, Hispanics, and Asians; Ivy League alums and high school grads; and parents, some of whom are single—from all industries, this book offers the kind of nuts-and-bolts, real-world insights you won’t find anywhere else. Using these proven strategies, you can accelerate your growth with every new challenge. Best of all, you’ll be able to take the lead in your own career and build a future that works for you. This is how ordinary people turn challenges into extraordinary opportunities for action—and how you can Grow Wherever You Work.

The companion volume to the public television series explains what it takes to be a successful entrepreneur.

A menu of today's hottest business opportunities--each with a startup cost of less than $5,000