Good Book : Small Business for Dummies

This is a review of the book "Small Business for Dummies" by Eric Tyson and Jim Schell. I have the 2nd edition from 2003.

I personally like the "Dummies" series of books. They provide no nonsense guides for a variety of topics and put it into terms that everyone can understand. They generally provide good comprehensive overviews of topics. Some might be a little put off by the "Dummies" title since it implies the reader is a dummy, but lets not take it personal.

"Small Business for Dummies" covers all the basics of starting and running a small business. It starts with first by asking if running a business is for you and even gives a quiz to test yourself for "Small Business Owners Aptitude". Then it delves into finances about business with topics like covering your own health insurance and retirement and making sure you have personal assets to support yourself while you're in startup. Financing, organization (corporations and LLC), Buying a business, franchises, evaluating and negotiating to buy business.

The next major section of the book is on running a business. It focuses on operations including hiring employees, accounting, leasing property, marketing, dealing with customers, handling cash flow, managing inventory. The last major section of the book discusses keeping the business successful and afloat. They talk about hiring good employees and keeping them running, dealing with legal issues and obeying laws and regulations and then there's a chapter focused on tax issues.

The information in "Small Business for Dummies" is a good start if you are thinking of starting a business of your own. I'd recommend taking a look if you're interested in starting a business. Look for a copy in your local library.