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Top 10 List

 

Cecil County Public Library's Top 10 Business Books

By Laura Metzler, Small Business Librarian

 

 

1. Start Run and Grow a Successful Small Business by Toolkit Media Group-  Fully updated with new laws and regulations, this comprehensive resource provides current and prospective small-business owners valuable insight and guidance for not only starting a business, but also successfully running one.  

 

2. Passion to Profits by Rhonda Abrams- Packed with business essentials and real-world advice, this unique book breaks down everything from start to finish-choosing a business, starting a business, running a business and growing a business. 

 

3. You Need to Be a Little Crazy: The Truth About Starting and Growing Your Business by Barry J. Moltz- The best way to debunk myths about start-up business is to tell the truth: You have to be crazy to start a business. Entrepreneurs live at the complex intersection of business, financial health, physical well-being, spiritual wholeness, and family life. Tidbits of insight will vaporize isolation, encourage self-reflection, and refresh the spirit of anyone running their own business.

 

4. Anatomy of a Business Plan: The Step-by-Step Guide to Building a Business and Securing Your Company's Future by Linda Pinson- Beginning with the initial considerations, this handbook offers proven, step-by-step advice for developing and packaging the components of a business plan-cover sheet, table of contents, executive summary, description of the business, organizational and marketing plans, and financial and supporting documents-and for keeping the plan up-to-date.

 

5. Hiring Your First Employee by Fred Steingold- The only book that addresses the specific needs of anyone hiring an employee for the first time! Hiring anyone can be intimidating -- but this is especially true if you're considering hiring your first employee. A new level of laws and regulations kick in, not to mention all the costs involved. Fortunately, Hiring Your First Employee provides a complete, easy-to-read overview of hiring an employee, as well as legal and practical advice at every step. 

 

6. Greening Your Small Business by Jennifer Kaplan- Filled with stories from small business owners of all stripes, Greening Your Small Business addresses every aspect of going green, from basics such as recycling, reducing waste, energy efficiency, and reducing the IT footprint, to more in-depth concerns such as green marketing and communications, green business travel, and green employee benefits. 

 

7. Guerilla Marketing by Jan Conrad Levinson- Based on hundreds of solid ideas that really work, Levinson's philosophy has given birth to a new way of learning about market share and how to gain it. Guerrilla Marketing is the entrepreneur's marketing bible -- and a book every small-business owner should read.

 

8. Win Government Contracts for Your Small Business by John DiGiacomo-  Packed with techniques necessary to find, negotiate, and win government contracts, this updated guide for small-business owners includes the latest processes for competing. Ten easy steps are detailed for entering a business into the federal procurement system, receiving bids for lucrative federal contracts, and successfully competing for government contracts. 

 

9. Legal Forms for Starting and Running a Small Business by Fred Steingold- Like most small business owners, you probably can't afford to hire a lawyer to draft the legal documents you need in the course of your day-to-day business.  This book provides you with over 60 legal forms and documents and all the step-by-step instructions you need to use them. 
 

10. LLC or Corporation: How to Choose the Right Form for Your Business by Anthony Mancuso- An in-depth guide to making the right choice when one's company has grown to the point where its legal structure needs to be upgraded to something that will protect one's assets and provide tax benefits. 

 

Free Online Courses:

Are you thinking of starting your own business and want to learn all you can about being your own boss? Try taking some free online courses from the websites below.  Topics include writing a business plan, accounting, tax preparation, preparing a loan package, and many more.