BOOKS: STARTING FROM SCRATCH

STARTING FROM SCRATCH:
Secrets From 21 Ordinary People
Who Made the Entrepreneurial Leap
by Wes Moss
(Dearborn, Nov. 2005)

Do you notice anything? About the book cover above, I mean. It's more in what is missing, from a book by a former Apprentice contestant: No big picture of said-Reality TV contender splayed all over the cover, no bright, bold proclamation,
"AS SEEN ON NBC'S THE APPRENTICE WITH DONALD TRUMP!"

There is a very nice review blurb from The Donald himself, which is well-deserved, not because Wes Moss was on TV, but because he's written a really good book, which (surprisingly?) has nothing to do with The Apprentice, Donald Trump, reality TV, or, really, Wes Moss - a 28-year-old Atlanta entrepreneur and former contestant on The Apprentice (Season Two).

STARTING FROM SCRATCH is all about the entrepreneur, and the very real experience of making the leap, from the alternating stress and frustration, comfort and security (often a misplaced assumption, as we all know) of working for the boss...to being the boss, in control of your own destiny and fortune. In a sort of modern version of the business inspirational classic THINK AND GROW RICH by Napoleon Hill, Wes Moss has profiled 21 highly successful entrepreneurs, in a variety of businesses, to demonstrate his updated entrepreneurial theory and process of the HUNT:

Harness what you have.
Underestimate your obstacles.
Notice your network.
Take the first step.

HUNT is much more than a cute, convenient acronym: It is the entrepreneurial process Moss illustrates through the four parts of his book, and the 21 step-by-step case studies of real people and real-life examples--these are not the Buffets, Gates, Jobs, or Trumps of mega-, mega-entrepreneurial success, but normal people, STARTING FROM SCRATCH (literally), following their dreams to success, often through failure and disappointment--real life learning experiences.

When I first heard that another one of Donald Trump's Apprentices had published a book, I was skeptical. The first two, Bill Rancic's You're Hired: How to Succeed in Business and Life from the Winner of The Apprentice, and Amy Henry's What It Takes: Speak Up, Step Up, Move Up: A Modern Women's Guide to Success in Business...well, I saw the show, and that was enough for me. In both cases, their attractive photos dominate the front cover of the book, and it's all tied to business 'wisdom' and experience gleaned from The Apprentice and their own lives -- these people are barely in their 30's, if that, whose major claim-to-fame might always be their 'fifteen minutes' from The Apprentice. How much practical life or business experience can these people fill a book with, at this point?

However, when the opportunity presented itself, I jumped at the chance to interview Wes Moss...well, he's a hottie (aren't they all?), and I am a must-see TV fan of The Apprentice. After reading STARTING FROM SCRATCH, I have to tell you, Wes Moss may not have won The Apprentice competition, but he may well be the bestseller: This is a great book for a general audience, well-written and interesting, appropriate to the day and age we live in, as more and more people consider the entrepreneurial leap. I went from pleasantly surprised to genuinely impressed--inspired, too.

If you are ready to consider the adventure of becoming your own boss, or know someone who is, buy this book!