No B.S. Business Sucess: The Ultimate No Holds Barred, Kick Butt, Take No Prisoners, Tough & Spirited Guide

That's the closing sentence from Chapter 1, "The Decision and Determination to Succeed." Dan Kennedy is a unique star in the sales, marketing, and self-promotion galaxy. Unlike peers such as Joe Vitale, who will mix equal portions of cross-selling all of his other products and services to you with some kind of hoodoo soup that will leave you scratching your head and asking "HUH?", Dan cross-sells all of his other products and services to you while simultaneously delivering pragmatic, real world wisdom and "street smarts" that you can actually put into play right now. Success is an attitude, baby. Change your thinking, change your life. The single factor that determines whether or not Dan has produced a one, two, three, four, or five-star book is the balance between those extremes. Make no mistake about it..."No B.S. Business Success" is jam-packed with "irresistible offers" to buy more Dan Kennedy product, as well as ringing endorsements and testimonials about Dan written by...well, Dan. He's a marketing guy. A marketing guy who can't promote himself effectively can't promote his clients, either. The secret is that when they are patting themselves on the back, they need to make sure that they don't pat so hard that they end up dislocating something. Sometimes Dan walks right up to that line and knows when enough is enough. Other times he gleefully dances across the line and proclaims "Look at MEEEEEEEE..." That's why some reviewers of his books make comments like "I just paid ten bucks for an infomercial." Yes, they're right. But what else did you get WITH the infomercial? Was it the main course or the side dish? Dan's NEVER going to write a book in which he humbly takes himself out of the equation. NEVER. So don't get hung up on that. Or, knowing what you know, don't buy his books if that might be an issue for you. He stays on the right side of the line in this book. Yes, the almost 300 pages of "No B.S. Business Success" might have been better served with a little less about Dan and a little more about everyone and everything other than Dan, but he's a leopard who's not about to change his spots. It's a book that encourages you to stop making excuses, to stop seeking approval, to stop going to that job you hate more than a root canal. It's not for the weak or faint-hearted. As Kennedy points out, some people are better equipped to get in the car, sit in morning traffic, take up space for eight to ten hours in their cubicle, and come home so that they can have dinner, watch tv, and get up and do it all over again the next day. I'm not one of those people, and you probably aren't either of you're reading these reviews. Speed-read through Dan's infomercials and focus on the meat of what he's offering here. It's a well-spent ten bucks.

This book serves as a "not to be missed" foundation for anyone that wants to fine tune their business and stop floundering about with no direction. Our office would not have been able to think out of the box and have our own radio show every Monday at 5:30 PM EST (found at www.blogtalkradio.com/LaneArchitecture)without information that we were able to glean from books like this one. We welcome Dan Kennedy, the author, to call in as a guest on our show by dialing 646-595-2228. Larry R. Lane www.LaneArchitecture.blogspot.com

I must admit this book review is one of the hardest I've written. Usually, there are only a handful of golden nuggets I can easily bullet point in a review for one book. With Dan Kennedy's No B.S. Business Success - The Ultimate No Holds Barred, Kick Butt, Take No Prisoners, Tough & Spirited Guide, I found something tangible and applicable to entrepreneurialism in each chapter. As I read books, I keep a highlighter and sticky note pad close at hand to flag points to ponder or implement. You should see the numerous sticky notes poking out of this book. I'll share the most poignant ideas and encourage you to read the book to find out what speaks to you. My absolute favorite passage from the book is found on page 11 and if you are a true, spirited entrepreneur, I imagine it will speak to you as well. Here it is "The fact- and it is fact-the line between "work" and "play" is thoroughly blurred for the true entrepreneur and the corollary fact that entrepreneur's business life is often, frankly, bluntly, more important to him (her)than his (her) personal and social life are a huge source of befuddlement, annoyance, and tension for those around him (her)." (note I have inserted the reference to "her" because I don't want it to be overlooked by the "good ole boys club" that this applies to many women entrepreneurs as well. Kennedy counters this statement with sage advice pointing out that you don't want to marry your business, but rather marry the goals of the business. His point being, you own the business, don't let it own you. Throughout the book he shares ways to delegate and systematically reduce the dependency of your business on you. In order to truly experience wealth, security and freedom, you must embrace this notion and it's one of the hardest for entrepreneurs to do. The key, align yourself with sharp team members so you don't have lose sleep because you think if you don't do it, it won't be done right. Here are a handful of the nuggets that spoke to me (and trust me there are many more). · Hire support people to help with marketing but be careful who you hire and always check references. · Sell yourself on selling. It's one of the most important skills an entrepreneur needs to succeed. · Believe in your own abilities. You are probably a lot farther along than you would have guessed and you can be a success in your field. · Never rely on only one person to fill one critical, key role in your businesses. Always have support or a backup plan. · Don't become so absorbed in your success that affects other aspects of your life. Again, these are nuggets that really spoke to me. Kennedy gives sound advice and applicable strategies throughout including how to deal with legal aspects of business, how to stay sane in an insane world, how to manage cash flow, how to achieve peak productivity, how to attract good luck and more. This book is well worth the read.

If you are committed to achieving a measure of success as you define it, you are going to have periods where your core values are tested to the limit. Dan emphasizes this point with his own personal history and experiences of other people he has known. Dan's presentation should leave a lasting impression. Once you let this lesson sink into you brain and you are OK with it, the book then helps you minimize the frequency of those challenges by telling you very clearly the principles of entrepreneurial success. This is not a how to book. One paragraph in Dan's book can be the subject of an entire book or course. If you have the experience to know what to do, then this is a great roadmap and you should make this book an appendage. If you don't have the experience, then you will need to do some additional research (resources readily available everywhere) to develop precise action steps for your business. While Dan touches on being a manager and much of Dan's advice is applicable to traditionally organized companies, the material is directed toward the entrepreneur. If you are operating your own company, you will need more guidance on establishing a system for maximizing cash profits. Often companies use consultants for that purpose. You either love this man's material or hate it. Some people are not able to get past his style. Those who enjoy Dan's view of business success and life, benefit greatly from his insight. My clients and select others will receive this book as a gift this holiday season. I loved the book. I have it on my desk with parts underlined, annotated and I am developing separate action steps for areas of my business I need to strengthen. Buy the book and then use the book. Steve Pohlit, Owner Exec Net Consulting

I'm amazed -- Where else can you get so much great business advice for so little money? This is an absolute must read for anybody who is starting their own business. If you really want to know what it takes to be successfully self-employed -- read this book. Hard core advice for people who want to succeed in business. As true today as it was in 1993 when Dan wrote it.