Customer Reviews

The Chic Entrepreneur: Put Your Business in Higher Heels

5 star:		(18)
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2 star:		(1)
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One word describes this book - a "masterpiece." It's a book for wanta-be entrepreneurs and small business owners. It starts off in a conversational tone, and speaks by using wonderful hypothetical small businesses to make points. In a way, the author used the case approach to teaching I experienced in law school to emphasize how to best start a business and how not to start one. Very logically written and well outlined. It's no surprise the author graduated with high honors from one of North Carolina's finest universities. The book has the following 10 chapters:

1. What's your value?
2. Pick your niche
3. What do customers really want?
4. Attracting and retaining the best employees
5. Do you know your cash flow?
6. Sales and marketing go hand in hand
7. The importance of systematic processes
8. Strategically aligning yourself
9. Have a plan and measure results
10. The Chic message

Each chapter covers a topic that is, or should be, important to someone in the process of starting a new company or trying to build a successful small company that is not yet flourishing. Certain things make a successful company. Is it providing something that people want and are willing to pay for? Read chapters 1 and 3 to learn more. Is the company focused enough so the owner can put the necessary efforts into growing the company correctly? Read chapter 2 to learn more. Are operations systematized so the company is not being run by putting out fires? Read chapter 7. What about bringing in the revenues? Then read chaper 6. And what about being able to pay your creditors? Read chapter 5.

I loved Chapter 9. As a SCORE volunteer counselor I find I have to preach business plans all the time. It's not because I love them, but because every business needs one. The creation of a business plan forces the startup specialist to know the business before it gets started. It enables the founder to know how much startup capital is needed so the business will not run out of money and go into bankruptcy and cease to exist. It can help a small business owner qualify for funding, whether from a family member, a bank, or an investor. And a business plan provides the founder with a benchmark from which to compare actual results as the company grows. If things are not working to plan the founder can either change how things are being done or change the plan. But without having a plan in the first place there is no way to gauge how things are progressing. This book points this out.

I would have liked the book better if Chapter 9 had been closer to the front of the book. However, I think the way the book was written the topic of planning logically fell into place as Chapter 9. And Chapter 10 did a great job of pulling together all the points made in the book. 5 stars!

Elizabeth Gordon offers a step by step guide for building and effective company in her new book "The Chic Entrepreneur." She offers invaluable advice on success in business with insightful methods for building personal and financial freedom.

The book is designed in a user friendly, eye appealing, format which helps the reader assimilate and apply principles present in case studies and illustrations which detail the processes for setting up a new company. These case studies feature parallel start up approaches using people like Don and Donna as examples of the right and wrong approach. Elizabeth also features forceful assessments of well known successful businesses like Google, Nordstrom, and Whole Foods.

I especially appreciated the thought provoking questions and exercises for determining action steps which accompany each chapter. The tips provided in side bars throughout the chapters reinforce the valuable business techniques and success traits necessary for building a fast growing profitable business.

Elizabeth Gordon offers fresh perspectives and a proven formula for successful entrepreneurship. The final chapter "The Chic Message" with a "Flourishing Business Methodology" chart is worth the price of the book. Entertaining, engaging and practical "The Chic Entrepreneur" provides a map for building your business properly.

I work with a lot of women business owners. And it's apparent to me that Elizabeth Gordon does as well. She's seeing the same issues that I am.

I found the book very accessible. Another reviewer has stated that some of the comparisons are a bit outrageous. Well, they are. But the point is to have you sit up and take notice. Gordon does well at taking what is new (business knowledge) and marrying it to the world that most women understand -- relationships.

Start with the last chapter. Give yourself the entrepreneurship test -- are you really ready to commit? Gordon says: "Women tend to be eager to commit to relationships, to marriage, to their families, and even to their best friends, but when it comes to committing to business, ironically, women are the ones who can't commit."

Ouch! Yes, it sounds harsh. But I see it again and again. Given a choice between a $300 business education course and a $300 purse, far too many women choose the purse. Owning a business is work, and yet, at the same time it is the most exhilerating thing that you can do with your life, other than raising a family. Both have their own joys and pitfalls -- even more so if you are doing both.

When you first learned to make your way in the world, you did some trial and error. (Try to walk, fall down, get up, try to walk, fall down...) But you also had someone there to hold your hand and help you get the concepts.

Elizabeth Gordon has given you the concepts in manageable language and format. I recommend this book to any women thinking of starting a business, just started a business or hopelessly lost in business. Even if you don't fall into any of those categories, the book is a good read. You will probably pick up something that will lead you to explode your business in the next 12 months.

It was engaging, easy and entertaining all at the same time. It is a must read for anyone wanting to build a successful business. It gives a step by step guide on how to build a flourishing business with wit, humour, and applicable suggestions and examples.

I read it once and am reading it again to take notes. I'm in the process of opening my own business and I'm glad I had an opportunity to read this book. I've read many other books in this category and by far this one was the best.

Most of the time the word "Chic" refers to the appearance of a person or thing. I have always thought of Chic as something superficial. Well "Chic Entrepreneur" goes against the norm. This book provides information on more than the appearance of a business and the advice in it is not superficial, but very substantial.

As a consultant to and trainer of woman owned businesses I often see women think small, underestimate the effort it takes to run a business and fail to identify their true customers/clients. If they read "Chic Entrepreneur" and keep it on their desk they will avoid making these mistakes. One of the biggest mistakes I see women business owners make is that they do not collaborate; they miss a lot of opportunities because they do not attempt, or often even consider, partnering, teaming, and subcontracting. I applaud the authors for realistically addressing some of this in Chapter 8 "Arm's Length or In Bed Together: Strategically Aligning Yourself".

Any entrepreneur can benefit from this book. It's a book that you will want to keep around so you can re-read Chapters as they apply to your phase or situation. I know I will be suggesting it as a companion book to the purchasers of my book "Capitalizing On Being Woman Owned".

This book is great in a general way for all entrepreneurs. Hopefully it will provide the information and stimulus that will cause existing and would-be entrepreneurs to do the in depth research specific to their business that will help them be successful in a Super Chic way.

Elizabeth Gordon and Leanna Adams really lay it all out on the table. Putting your business in higher heels is an efficient business strategy for any woman who wants to be a wildly successful business owner and strong woman. I think Ms. Gordon's book, website and blog is of ongoing relevance to all women who want to be strong and independent.

Nobody knows how to write a book about women entrepreneurs like Elizabeth W. Gordon. The Chic Entrepreneur: Put Your Business in Higher Heels tells the truth, the whole truth, and nothing but the truth.

Gordon impresses with this down-to-earth (and very chic) how-to guide for women entrepreneurs. From knowing your value to figuring out what customers really want and measuring your results, The Chic Entrepreneur is packed with enough vital information to help entrepreneurs run their business while avoiding costly mistakes.

Most importantly, The Chic Entrepreneur is a fun and humorous read. Know that you are not picking up another textbook because Gordon provides us with humorous accounts of life in the business world. This is great book to add to your entrepreneur reference library.

An excellent book! It is fun to read with excellent comparisons and not the boring business book jargon. It gives you the strategies to make your business successful that may have been overlooked if you hadn't read the book. I bought a stack of business books, and this one was by far the best!

Have you ever dreamed of owning your own business and being your own boss? Well here's the book to get you started, Elizabeth Gordon's, The Chic Entrepreneur; a step-by-step manual written for women for want to develop a prosperous and thriving business.

Elizabeth's business strategy book offers a dose of sophistication and style, while teaching women these nine fundamental entrepreneurial lessons:

* What's Your Value?
* Pick Your Niche
* What Do Customers Really Want?
* Attracting and Retaining the Best Employees
* Do You Know Your Cash Flow?
* Sales and Marketing Go Hand in Hand
* The Importance of Systematic Processes
* Strategically Aligning Yourself
* Have a Plan and Measure Your Results

The Chic Entrepreneur isn't your typical dry and technical business guide; it offers itself to a user friendly arrangement that uses modern companies, like Nordstrom's, Google and Whole Foods to execute its main points. The key lessons are thoroughly explained and then followed up with relevant case studies using two types of people; those who practice sound and researched business methods, and those who venture out into the business world without any previous knowledge or examination.

Every chapter is filled with "Chic Tips" and every chapter ends with a "How Chic are You?" section which summaries some of the key lessons taught.

I highly recommend "The Chic Entrepreneur" to all small business owners, freelancers and anyone that is thinking about starting a new business. This book provides invaluable strategies, tips and advice all while being thoroughly entertaining!

For more resources for women in business, please see The Work at Home Woman: http://www.theworkathomewoman.com

I bought the book after hearing Elizabeth speak at a Ladies Who Launch event. I chatted with her afterwards and found her to be approachable and very common sense oriented. Her book did not disappoint--it surpassed by expectations. Easy to read; great "Chic Tips" and great examples. I found myself taking notes as I read it as a reminder to either "do something" or research something else. It made my entrepreneural wheels spin in delight! I am hoping there will be another book in Elizabeth's future.