Not Just A Living

"Being a lifestyle entrepreneur is not so much about being in business as it is being you," writes journalist Mark Henricks in his lovely new book, Not Just A Living: The Complete Guide to Creating A Business That Gives You A Life, from Perseus Books. This guide for budding entrepreneurs straddles a fundamental challenge for books for this audience. How do you address both 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.