Rating: 
Summary: Revealing and Instructive Guide
Review: "Being a lifestyle entrepreneur is not so much about being in business as it is being you," writes journalist Mark Henricks in this lovely new book. His guide for budding entrepreneurs straddles a fundamental challenge for books for this audience. How do you address the dynamic personal element of this process while answering the myriad and often generic questions that face all entrepreneurs? Henricks recognizes that starting a business engenders two simultaneous learning processes. Individuals must develop literacy with the business process itself, while developing a personal understanding of what you care about, what you're good at, and so forth. And success stems from mastery in both areas. Henricks, a veteran journalist in this field, addresses this dual learning curve by grounding much of Not Just A Living in his own experience. He writes about the choices he has faced in going solo, becoming a successful owner of his writing in the market. His book does an excellent job of sharing a wealth of instructive information for budding lifestyle entrepreneurs. He tells great stories. He provides spot-on information on everything from using technology to mastering your balance sheet. For folks early in the process of starting up a biz, I recommend it highly.
Rating:
Summary: Revealing and Instructive Guide
Review: "Being a lifestyle entrepreneur is not so much about being in business as it is being you," writes journalist Mark Henricks in this lovely new book. His guide for budding entrepreneurs straddles a fundamental challenge for books for this audience. How do you address the dynamic personal element of this process while answering the myriad and often generic questions that face all entrepreneurs? Henricks recognizes that starting a business engenders two simultaneous learning processes. Individuals must develop literacy with the business process itself, while developing a personal understanding of what you care about, what you're good at, and so forth. And success stems from mastery in both areas. Henricks, a veteran journalist in this field, addresses this dual learning curve by grounding much of Not Just A Living in his own experience. He writes about the choices he has faced in going solo, becoming a successful owner of his writing in the market. His book does an excellent job of sharing a wealth of instructive information for budding lifestyle entrepreneurs. He tells great stories. He provides spot-on information on everything from using technology to mastering your balance sheet. For folks early in the process of starting up a biz, I recommend it highly.
Rating:
Summary: Do You Wannt to...or Do You Have to?
Review: As I read this book, I was reminded of Socrates' observation that "the unexamined life is not worth living" and of Thoreau's assertion that many people "live lives of quiet desperation." If either or both describes your current situation, Hendricks offers information and counsel which can be of incalculable value to you. The origin of the word "entrepreneur" is a late-19th century French word meaning "one who undertakes." Today, we think of entrepreneurs as those who undertake risks. Obviously, a decision to leave a "job" to seek opportunities elsewhere can be perilous. It should also be noted that many of those who are self-employed are miserably unhappy, and, that many of those within an organization are enthusiastic, indeed passionate about their "job." Henricks makes a critically important distinction between standard of living and quality of life. Moreover, the latter refers to both personal and career issues. He provides rock-solid advice, anchored in a wealth of his own real-world experiences. obviously, he is a thoughtful and caring person. His counsel is practical, expressed with no-nonsense eloquence. The questions Henricks poses, in my opinion, are far more important than any of the answers he provides. Years ago, Rod Steiger was asked if young people sought out his advice. "Oh yeah, sure, all the time. And I always ask them the same question: 'Do you want to be an actor or do you [in italics] have to be an actor?' The longer it takes them to answer that question, the less likely they'll ever make it." Not everyone feels compelled to create a business. Fair enough. But surely everyone can "undertake" to obtain more than a paycheck for their labors; to take prudent risks; in Tennyson's words, "to strive, to seek, to find" a higher, more fulfilling quality of life. How easy it is to become hostage to what Jim O'Toole characterizes as the "ideology of comfort and the tyranny of custom." Henricks urges his reader to free herself or himself from such confinement. It is no coincidence that, year after year, the most highly admired companies (e.g. Southwest Airlines) are also the most profitable. Each has a culture in which the "lifestyle entrepreneur" (Henricks' term) is strongly encouraged, not merely tolerated. Who will derive the greatest benefit from this book? Those who now live unexamined lives of quiet desperation. Once having read this book, many of them may be unwilling and/or unable to free themselves from the "ideology of comfort and the tyranny of custom." But at least, thanks to Henricks, they will have completed a rigorous process of self-examination. Does he provide a map or a blueprint for personal fulfillment? No. Rather, he provides a mirror and a compass which, for many of his readers, will be of incalculable value.
Rating: 
Summary: Misleading title--but a decent effort!
Review: First things first, this is *hardly* a "complete guide," the title is very misleading. Rather it is a very general sketch of the main risks & rewards of freelancing it or building your own business.
The scope is very wide and the tone fairly realistic, but (contrary to the title) there is very little of the nitty gritty detail that taking the plunge would actually require.
That said, its a decent read for people toying with the possibility of striking out on their own: It answers a host of intriguing questions like, "Do freelancers\self-employed work more or less hours than their traditional counterparts?" Or, "How do freelancers\self-employed survive periodic\seasonal income patterns?"
It also mentioned some challenges (and benefits) you probably wouldn't think of on your own. For example, it reminded me that the 12% FICA social security tax is normally paid half & half (6% and 6%) by an employer and employee. But if you strike it out on your own, you must cover both sides of the tax yourself.
Lastly, I would add this read is pretty inspiring, filled with success stories from people who made the jump, and these stories in turn give you some *ideas* about how you might carve a business niche out of some activity you enjoy doing. There's definitely some creative brainstorming value here.
This is a good read for a dreamer who wants to ground those dreams with a little reality, and see where that leaves them...
Recommended.
Rating:
Summary: Excellent book on Lifestyle Entrpreneurship
Review: I thought this was an excellent read on a subject that has gotten little attention, Lifestyle Entrepreneurship. Part One of the book explains the difference between Lifestyle vs. Classic entrpreneurship and offers an alternative to those wishing to work for themselves, but without having to build a business. Part's Two and Three covers such topics as getting started, funding, people and technology. For those that have read other entrepreneurial books, these topics have been covered before, but the author gives a concise treatment of each topic. Finally, what makes this a good read is the author's writing style which is easy to read and concise, as demonstrated by the book length. The book should serve both as a first read on lifestyle entrpreneurship and reference manual to get started.
Rating: 
Summary: Emotion over facts
Review: Mr. Henricks wrote a book with a different perspective on starting a business; Instead of focusing on the manual hard work of starting a business, he focused on the emotional happiness that starting a business can bring. This happiness comes from being your own boss and being able to do more of the things that make you happy. I found the first couple of chapters interesting although Mr. Henricks repeated the same benefits and stories of individuals that made their lives better, which in turn made the book repeat itself.
The last third of the book, Mr. Henricks started to focus on the financial topics. He started to analyze balance sheets and answer questions like "what is revenue?", I then found that this book lost its goal and audience; The goal being emotionally focused on your own business would help you succeed. The audience seemed, at first, to be for individuals who have gone through the initial phases of starting a business and needed a reminder why they started. The financial analysis of a business lost that objective and made this book into a beginner guide to business with a fluff beginning.
Rating:
Summary: A must-read for those contemplating becoming their own boss
Review: Nine years ago, having achieved a level of business success after receiving an MBA from an elite American B-school, I faced the cold realization that my days in the corporate world were numbered. I admittedly have little tolerance for political/bureaucratic b.s. And I view "face-time" for face-time sake a stifling de-motivator. My motto has always been to "let my work speak for itself." Yet I was ambivalent even as I finally--if not hastily--took that classic "take-this-job-and-shove-it" plunge. I was happy to leave the maddening pace of corporate life behind. But I was petrified at the prospect of crafting a livelihood on my own. Reading "Not Just a Living" would have greatly eased my anxieties if it only were available all those years ago. As a firm believer in karma, I now feel compelled to share this excellent resource with anyone who's teetering on the brink of becoming a lifestyle entrepreneur. Mark Henricks' concise, well-written book successfully targets two broad groups of entrepreneurs-in-waiting: Those who have entertained the thought of becoming their own boss yet need handholding before making that leap of faith; and those who are ready to make the move but seek a roadmap to achieve their vision. Both sets of readers will come away from the experience exceedingly satisfied and energized. The book's particular strength is the author's liberal peppering of real world examples of small business successess...as well as failures. The latter is refreshing to see. After all, Mr. Henricks would have been negligent--not only as a journalist, but as a lifestyle entrepreneur "evangelist"--if he failed to expose the downsides of striking out on one's own. Not everyone is cut out for self-employment. Finally, it is Mr. Henricks' candid sharing of his personal trials and tribulations along his road to lifestyle entrepreneurial success which lends absolute credence to "Not Just a Living." The lucky reader will be rewarded by a writer who knows of what he writes and expertly writes of what he lives.
Rating:
Summary: Living it Up!
Review: Seven years ago today (Oct. 27, 1995), a high school friend of mine and I founded Healthy Options, the first natural products store in Manila. I have a marketing degree and had spent 15 years working for other people both in the Philippines and the United Kingdom. Healthy Options was my baby and my first plunge into going on my own. Seven years later, we have grown into 10 stores with almost 100 full time employees and Healthy Options has become the leader in the natural products industry in the Philippines. As we celebrate our anniversary this month, I find Mark Henricks' book simply priceless and serendipitous. It's a timely reminder for me as to why we put up Healthy Options all those years ago. As a business grows and expands fast, it's very easy to get carried away and start thinking "corporate". At the beginning of this year, I started having mixed feelings and a bit lost as I kept asking myself, seven good healthy years, now what do I do? I'm therefore so thankful to have found the book as it reminded me why I went into business in the first place and it has re-focused my priorities. Thanks Mark. I find the Seven Myths of Small Business Ownership invaluable. And I fully agree that growth, while very important, shouldn't be the ultimate goal of an entrepreneur. "Not Just A Living" is also a great benchmark for us. We did almost everything Mark Henrick said in the book (eventually) and got many things right (but not always the first time). I particularly feel vindicated about giving franchise (which I strongly feel against) when one of the entreprenuers related her sad experience about the uncontrollable franchisees she had which resulted in her going out of business. All in all, it's an insightful and enjoyable read. Now I wish Mark Henricks would consider giving lectures about Lifestyle Entrepreneurship to spread the "gospel" even wider.
Rating:
Summary: Not Just a Book!
Review: With a title as alluring as "Not Just a Life", a reader might justifiably anticipate a life changing read - and the author does not disappoint. Mark Henricks demonstrates a writing style that is rarely seen in business books. You will not be thumbing ahead to calculate how much longer until the end of the chapter on this one. If you are unhappy with your work go buy a copy. If you have a displaced friend buy a second copy. It could change their life.
Rating:
Summary: Take My Job - Please
Review: Wouldn't it be nice to truly enjoy what you do for a living? Henricks gives hope for all who have been afraid to peer around the bend at fulfilling self employment - and he emphasizes the extended positive impact this has on your family, finances, and emotional well being. Using real world and anecdotal examples, he lays out an excellent foundation on how to combine the requirement of earning an income without suffering the aggravation and burnout of typical corporate warhorses. He knows of what he writes - interspersed in this must read for those considering a lifestyle adaptation is Henricks' own well-documented and highly-credible migration to the freedom and financial well being he has achieved for himself and his family. Direct and to the point, his book is thought provoking, timely, and on target. For those of you in corporate limbo, it offers a pragmatic approach to achieving true independence. Better yet, buy an extra copy and put it in the boss' inbox...
| 
