[...] The incredible secret money machine [...]

[...] You can read his full review on his blog: Get Rich Slowly – personal finance that makes cents – The Incredible Money Making Machine. [...]

My plan is to put my skills as a translator to the task, and increase my “nickels” by starting a small translation firm! So far, things are just getting started, but I’m excited! (Shameless plug: I’m going to be documenting the whole process on my blog.)

Start Small, Finish Big: 15 Key Lessons to Start–and Run–Your Own Successful Business, by Fred DeLuca. His key argument is that you don’t need (or want) to borrow a lot of money to get started. You can pick up a copy on Amazon for less than $10 (including shipping), if you can’t find it in your library. It’s a good read.

The two best-known businesses he discusses are Subway and Kinko’s. The humble beginnings of those two companies should be very encouraging to anyone.

I know what you mean by ignoring the dated parts of a book. I have Dale Carniegie’s How To Stop Worrying and Start Living, the original edition from the 30s, and it’s incredibly dated – sexist, racist and just bizarrely quaint in parts. But I still found it incredibly helpful in dealing with my anxiety because the core advice is spot on.

Oh well, it could be worse…

We’re looking at our real estate investing as “buying my husband a job”, or our first small business, so I’ll have to check out “The Incredible Secret Money Machine” — groovy!

Yard work and financial setbacks…

This post comes from J.D. Roth at partner blog Get Rich Slowly . My wife and I did more yard work today;…

[...] Rich Slowly reviews The Incredible Secret Money Machine.  (That book title sounds like it came straight out of a Simon and Garfunkel album. [...]

I’ve always thought Reed could do even better if he just agreed to list on Amazon or something, even if he remained self-published. There was always too much mysteriousness for me to buy his book.

On an unrelated note, tried Camino yet?

I couldn’t help thinking that society has come full circle. Lancaster’s concept of ‘nickels’ reminds me a bit of Anderson’s “The Long Tail” – where technology is enabling more of us to build small niche businesses instead of an elite few creating blockbusters.

As usual, there is so much more that I wrote for this entry, but which did not make the final cut.

My father owned two books by Don Lancaster: The CMOS Cookbook and this one. I’m not sure which he liked more. Because he was a serial entrepreneur, Dad took a lot of Lancaster’s lessons to heart. But he also made great use of The CMOS Cookbook. I still have his copy out in my workshop.

Also, my cousin (with whom I work at the box factory) is another huge fan of The Incredible Secret Money Machine. He doesn’t refer to it ever day — or even every month — but it comes up in conversation relatively often. It’s a touchstone book for him.

Also, in case I didn’t make it clear enough in my review: this book is a product of the era in which it was written. There’s a very “hippie” vibe to it. I don’t think that matters. I think that people are smart enough to read it and find the important stuff.

Finally, I would love to hear about more down-to-earth books on starting a business, especially those that cover it from a broad view instead of trying to give you step-by-step instructions. Because the fact is: step-by-step instructions are meaningless. Each business is different. It’s the Big Picture stuff that more people can use…

I self-published my book entitled “Fix em Up, Rent em Out, How to Start Your Own House Fix-up & Rental Business in Your Spare Time.” I agree that is the best way to go. If you self-publish, sell at on-line stores like Amazon, and control the printing process through printers like Lightening Press, you are in complete control, and maximize profits.

Another good book to guide you through the entire process is Aaron Shepard’s “Aiming at Amazon.”