Book Reviews |

The Suitcase Entrepreneur by Natalie Sisson

There is no such thing as easy money and nothing worth doing was ever easy. But, if you’re prepared to work smart and develop a laser-like focus on achieving your ideal lifestyle, then anything is possible.

Natalie Sisson’s book, The Suitcase Entrepreneur is full of inspiration, advice and information on how anyone can build an online business that fits into their lifestyle or desired lifestyle. While written for the ‘digital nomad,’ it is useful for anyone who would like to build an online business that gives them more freedom in their life.

Natalie Sisson; who is resident in three countries, owns two passports and has three international bank accounts; has spent the last few years travelling the world while establishing her very successful business. She shares her own experience of travelling to 61 countries on five continents as well as the case studies of others to show that it really is possible to “create freedom in business and adventure in life.”

The book is steeped in reality. While demonstrating the amazing possibilities that online businesses have, from the outset she states that it takes perseverance, initiative and the meeting of challenge head on. Further, she accepts that continual travel is neither possible nor desirable for everyone.

The book itself is divided into three acts. The first is titled “Welcome to the new world of digital nomads.” This act is challenging from the beginning. She states that to make a real change that you need to get uncomfortable. Our comfort zone is attractive but as Natalie points out “if you do what you’ve always done then you’ll get what you’ve always got.”

Then Natalie proceeds to wipe away any excuses. The right time – there isn’t one. If you put it off, you are just delaying the living of your ideal life. Money – all you need is a laptop and less than $100. Lessons you need to know in order to become an online entrepreneur like finding your “sweet spot” or the need for testing – they are all covered in this act. The inspiration to begin the “rollercoaster ride” of an entrepreneur – again, found in this book.

Act two is titled, “How to build an online business you can take anywhere.” While passion for your business and a desire to create freedom in business and adventure in life is great, it needs to be backed up with a plan of action. This act provides the concrete steps and information that you need to know in order to create an online business.

After looking at why today is the best time to build your business, outlining eight trends that define the future of work, she reminds her audience of the importance of mobile. Natalie then provides the reader with information needed to build a business – from determining what business to start to Natalie’s six steps of building an online business, to things to consider when setting up a business and tax requirements. From only five essential tools to run a business, Natalie uses a virtual office set up to provide a wealth of information about useful tools that can be used to make your business more effective.

Reminding her readers of the need to be where our customers are, Natalie gives both the reasons we need to be on Social Media and also tips that we can use to optimise the use of Social Media for our business.

Then after providing some insight on how to build a virtual team it’s on to act three. While act one and two are valuable for anyone who is running or thinking of running an online business, act three is specifically for the entrepreneur who plans to travel. Act three is titled, “How on earth does one become a Suitcase Entrepreneur?”

Act three, as with the first two acts is full of useful tips and down to earth advice. From staying fit and healthy, to advice on visas and how to pack this section is filled with useful information.

In between your blocks of time you’ve carved out you need to leave time to stop, stretch, dance and get some fresh air. This actually makes you more productive and helps you focus back on what you’re doing.”

So, the freedom to do what you want and achieve your dreams? Yes, Natalie convinces the reader that with focus, hard work and determination it really is possible. I would highly recommend this book to anyone with an online business or thinking of starting one.

Cover-of-The-Suitcase-Entrpreneur

You can purchase a copy from:

Amazon.com

Amazon.co.uk

bookdepository.co.uk

The Lean Start Up by Eric Ries

Every so often a business book comes along that changes how we think about innovation and entrepreneurship… The Lean Startup has the chops to join this exalted company. – Financial Times

Since the Lean Start Up was written in 2011, it has revolutionized the approach of entrepreneurs to start-ups. The Lean Start Up methods are now being taught in some Business Schools. Some of the terms coined by Ries such as pivot, minimally viable product, and continuous innovation are now enmeshed in entrepreneurial circles.

The book, defines start-ups as “an organization dedicated to creating something new under conditions of extreme uncertainty.” Thus, he places start-ups in the realm of large corporations as well as small businesses.

The lean start-up model is based on the principles of Toyota including using small batch sizes, just-in-time production, inventory control and faster cycle times.

Startups often build things that no-one wants. It doesn’t matter how quickly or brilliantly or cheaply we build something, if no-one wants it. Ries wrote that the goal of a startup “is to figure out the right thing to build – the thing that customers want and will pay for as quickly as possible”.

Startups are more than the product, but an institution that requires management. Thus, entrepreneurship requires a managerial discipline. Ries, discusses in detail the role of the manager in a startup, to enable an environment in which experimentation and the lean startup principles can flourish.

The idea is to make a minimum viable product and then start testing with real customers. Ries suggests that anything added above that which is required to make a minimum viable product that can be shown and tested with early adopters is waste.

Startups have what Ries terms an “engine of growth.” Any changes to the product should drive the engine of growth. The lean start up model uses a measure of progress called validated learning, where any change requires the formulation and then testing of an hypothesis. The results of the constant testing can then guide the entrepreneur as to whether it is appropriate to continue or pivot. Ries refers to the as the build-measure-learn feedback loop. The measurement must include actionable metrics based on the hypothesis and not vanity metrics which can be misleading. In this way, waste of time producing items or features not wanted by the market can be avoided. He explains that this often involves one or more pivots of different types.

The lean startup model views problems and defects as an opportunity for learning. Its method of root cause analysis is the five whys – simply asking why five times. This very simple technique enables the root cause to be identified, which is often hidden behind more obvious symptoms. Then all five levels need to be addressed.

However, the lean startup model is more than a set of techniques to be ticked off from a list. It is a model that should be adapted to the business in question.

Pros: Many businesses have in the past spent months or even years in building their product before it is seen by a single customer. Then, often, after months or even years of development, entrepreneurs learn the hard way that customers do not need or want either the product itself or most of the product’s features. The lean start-up model reduces this waste.

Cons: A lot of his book talks about teams and management, which makes the book appear less useful for the small startup with only one or two people. The minimum viable product needs to be decided with care. Some have used the Lean Startup model as an excuse to rush incomplete or mistake ridden products to market. This can have consequences for how you are regarded in the market that can be difficult or impossible to overturn. Finally the pace of innovation and testing can increase the workload beyond the point that it is useful. In the book Ries gave the example of SnapTax, a part of Inuit. SnapTax tested over 500 innovations during the two-and-a-half-month tax period, up to seventy in a week, or 14 a day.

Conclusion: A longer book than necessary for the information that it contains. It contains a lot of useful concepts and techniques such as minimum viable product and the five whys. Interacting with customers from early on in development is important. Understanding how to predict and measure is useful and being given permission to pivot is, well pivotal. It deserves its place in the classics of business but must be taken with a good dose of common sense.

You can purchase a copy from: