The Business Bookshelf at Rodman Public Library

April 2008

This 200+ page book is a guide for all women who wish to think ‘outside the cube’. The book begins with information on finding a career you are really passionate about, how to go about breaking into your dream industry, and how to manage your time between pet projects and work. Part Two of the book deals with how to attain a flexible work schedule, working from home, being your own boss and finding work that makes you happy. Four appendix sections complete this quirky handbook. Those include No-Fear Negotiation, A Temp’s Survival Guide, Boss in a Box and Must-See Resources. This guide is a must-read for any woman who finds herself wishing she was not in that 9-5 office job, but doing work that truly makes her happy.

This 400+ page book is a step-by-step guide to writing a winning business plan. The first section focuses on evaluating your business idea. It presents guidelines for writing a plan, questions to personal and business success and showcases a sample business plan. Section Two presents the items that should be included in a winning business plan, from the company overview to the executive summary and everywhere in between. The third section revolves around implementing the plan; raising capital, the future of your business and helpful hints. Section Four is all about knowledge building. It presents financial ratios, a glossary and a chart of accounts. The final section contains several sample business plans. This is a way to find out what investors are really looking for and to get the money you need to start your business.

This guide for proposal writing begins with an introduction to persuasive proposal writing. Next are Analyzing Request for Proposal guidelines. Chapter three presents the complete grant application. Chapter four looks at perhaps the best known special purpose foundation in the US, The Robert Wood Johnson Foundation. Stage one in this section is the letter of intent. One must look at the relevance, feasibility and probability of the request. Stage two is the full proposal. The steps are the same between the two, with more in-depth information in the full proposal. Stage three is the site visit. This section looks at preparing for and announcing the site visit. Chapter five is an example of preliminary and final proposals from the US Department of Education, Fund for the Improvement of Postsecondary Education and Chapter six is a full proposal from the Emory T. Clark Family Charitable Foundation. With complete samples, bulleted lists and an alphabetical index in the back of the book, this is a very helpful to follow guide to proposal writing.