Rules for Renegades: How to Make More Money, Rock Your Career, and Revel in Your Individuality [Hardcover]

Christine Comaford-Lynch (Author)

Book Description

Publication Date: August 15, 2007

WANT A RICHER LIFE?

BREAK ALL THE RULES

Renegade entrepreneur-and runaway success story-Christine Comaford-Lynch has lived the kind of life most of us can only dream about. From model to monk to multimillionaire, she does what she wants-and gets things done.

Now, in ten outrageous life lessons, she'll show you how to make your dreams come true. Your way. Your rules. Rules for Renegades distills what Christine has learned as she succeeded (and failed) in business, built strong relationships (and some disasters), and evolved spiritually and professionally. If you want to become financially independent, she'll show you how to do it. If you want to build your confidence and self-esteem, she'll give you a crash course. If you want a meaningful life full of rich connections, she'll share her secrets.

Ultimately, she lets you in on the greatest secret of all-how to build a fulfilling life while rocking your career. She has also filled her book with lots of cool free stuff: links to a sample business plan outline, tutorials on sales and marketing techniques, and tools to help you enhance your own power.

You'll learn the surprising truth behind her most offbeat rules. . .

• Everything's an Illusion, So Pick One That's Empowering.
• Rock Rejection and Finesse Failure.
• Learn to Love Networking.
• Work Your Money Mojo.

Rules for Renegades is not just the story of a remarkable entrepreneur. It's an amazing approach to life that breaks the rules-and makes life work for you.

Editorial Reviews

From Publishers Weekly

Starred Review. High school dropout turned self-made multimillionaire and five-time CEO, Comaford-Lynch presents an upbeat, irreverent business book for entrepreneurs, free spirits and eponymous renegades. Focusing on passionate young people who have grit and vision but limited experience and/or resources, the author presents practical, step-by-step advice for starting a company, making it in a cutthroat environment and reaching life goals in record time, while recounting her entertaining, often hilarious life story. To some extent, all first-time CEOs are making it up as they go along, she says. Sure enough, she's found herself brazening her way through plenty of bizarre and touching situations: hiring employees before she actually has a firm; posing as a man to score a programming job in the macho world of '80s Microsoft; dating Bill Gates to learn confidence; making (and losing) millions of dollars through guts, sales know-how and force of personality. Emphasizing visualization and self-confidence, she tackles the spiritual issues of prosperity as well as the down-and-dirty details of payroll and writing a killer business plan. Entrepreneurs and leaders at all levels of their careers will find this inspiring, rags-to-riches story as pleasurable to read as it is thought provoking. (Sept.)
Copyright © Reed Business Information, a division of Reed Elsevier Inc. All rights reserved.

From Booklist

As an entrepreneur, Comaford-Lynch has built and sold five of her own businesses and served as a board of director or advisor to 36 start-ups. She has also invested in more than 200 start-ups as a venture capitalist, counseled 700 of the Fortune 1000 and the Clinton White House, all without either a high-school diploma or college degree. With a background as a teenage runaway, Buddhist monk, and software engineer for Microsoft and Apple, her unique vision allows for a seat-of-the-pants style of management that is both refreshing and invigorating. The book combines humorous, fast-paced anecdotes with practical advice obtained from a whirlwind career building several million-dollar businesses from scratch before the age of 40, including an $8 million business loss and other failures and rejections that provided important life lessons. With an irreverent style all her own, Comaford-Lynch forges ahead with a stream of inspirational advice that readers will want to turn to often in times of both struggle and success. Siegfried, David

See all Editorial Reviews

Product Details

• Hardcover: 256 pages
• Publisher: McGraw-Hill; 1 edition (August 15, 2007)
• Language: English
• ISBN-10: 0071489754
• ISBN-13: 978-0071489751
• Product Dimensions: 8.1 x 5.6 x 1 inches
• Shipping Weight: 10.4 ounces
• Average Customer Review: 3.8 out of 5 stars  See all reviews (55 customer reviews)
• Amazon Best Sellers Rank: #772,834 in Books (See Top 100 in Books)

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Most Helpful Customer Reviews

232 of 249 people found the following review helpful

2.0 out of 5 stars Beware of the Professional F/T Reviewers August 14, 2007

By TD

Format:Hardcover

There are people who market their consulting services by writing glowing 5 star reviews of *every* new book that appears on Amazon. Ignore these people.

Here's an honest review.

This book is basically the business version of "Chick Lit". The author's real passion is for recounting her affairs with various billionaires. First, there's Bill Gates with whom she had a one stand. Frankly, I thought Bill was too much of nerd to do this sort of thing. Then there's another short-lived relationship with Oracle's Larry Ellison who, according to her, has "buns of steel." Talk about TMI! Finally, there's a third mystery billionaire who is never identified.

Then there is the tiresomely long section on her problems with her New Age guru. He turned out to be a con man just like most western religious leaders. Apparently she couldn't see this coming.

The remainder of the book consists of high school level "wisdom" on how to succeed in life. For example, you need to master GSD (Getting Stuff Done). What a great insight!

To pad RfR out to book length she throws in a completely out-of-place chapter (CEO as Cash Extraction Officer) near the end on business funding sources which feels like a quickie Google "cut n paste" job.

The book's greatest strengths are the catchy chapter titles. Just scan them and you will absorb the book's total value in seconds.

Before the dotcoms exploded the author claimed to be a venture capitalist. All I know of her exploits as a VC is that she appeared in a business magazine sitting in a bubble bath wearing nothing but a cowboy hat and holding a cigar. That picture sums up the author nicely: a self-promoter and lime-light seeker with little of substance to offer the reader.

I was really hoping to like this book since there's so little writing from female entrepreneurs. Unfortunately, it's just disappointing fluff.

35 of 38 people found the following review helpful

3.0 out of 5 stars Hoped for alot, got lost in the sexual relations December 28, 2007

By T. Villarreal

Format:Hardcover

Ok, found this book in Business Week. A HUGE ad. Should have listened to my intuition. Great book for breaking old thoughts, getting out there and doing it! Yeah! But... Then the numerous parts on her 'relations' with 'various billionaires'. Yes, she outright brags! It's ridiculous and ruined her credibility for me. I did get something from the book, but without the kissing scenes. I reaffirmed my empowered feelings etc... but not much else. I did join her website: she sends you 'SPAM' about her teleconferences (the 1st wasn't too bad). Then builds you up for the Finale: the $200 conference she's holding. You had me at 'Unsubscribe'. Don't really recommend this one, but would highly recommend: The Magic of Thinking Big by David Schwartz (Wow, REALLY gets you going) or 4 Hour work week (bit analytical but good inspiration and NOT just for those who want to quit their job). Hope that helps. Smile everyone, Have a great day!

18 of 20 people found the following review helpful

1.0 out of 5 stars Weak, confusing effort July 21, 2008

By Lois Lain VINE™ VOICE

Format:Hardcover

I used to review business books for a management magazine, so I've read a ton of books like this -- the "secrets" to getting ahead. Unfortunately, this book reads like more of a kiss-and-tell than a business how-to guide to success (the author lost all credibility when she started name-dropping about her affairs with Bill Gates and Larry Ellison).

I was eager to read this slim volume because the author -- a model-turned-monk-turned-programmer-turned-millionaire -- seemed to have a heck of a background to draw from. But instead of this being a concise instruction manual, it's a catch-as-catch-can recounting of various "rules" the author learned over her somewhat schizophrenic life. I wasn't sure if it was "do as I did" or "don't do as I did." Nothing was presented in any sort of cohesive fashion, so I found it nearly impossible to follow. Also, often major pieces of the story seemed to be missing (what was up with her guru-turned-criminal??).

I would skip this book unless you want a bit of an insider's look at how Bill Gates' mom used to plan his life (via whiteboard).