Yes We're Open - Reviews

From the Hindu Business Journal - The National Newspaper of India - Looting kills small businesses. 

YOU can save your small business, assures William Manchee in Yes, We're Open from Corpus Collosum (www.corpuscollosum.com). "There are few experiences in life as painful and brutal as the failure of a small business," empathises Manchee in the intro. "For, a small business conceived and nurtured by its owner is like a living, breathing child." Why do small business fail? "Many small businesses are doomed from day one — not from competition or the economy, but from their owners," writes the author. "Many businesses look deceptively simple and people think they will be easy to run. Rarely is that the case. Running a business without training and experience can be as tricky and dangerous as piloting an airplane for the very first time." The primary reason for failure, according to the book is, hold your breath, `looting'. This results from the mistaken belief that the small business owner is owed a certain standard of living, points out William. "The owner either sets an arbitrary salary or takes money from the business as he needs it." A book worth looting, may I suggest?

Brian Higgins, Mind Yo Business,  Langer Broadcasting, Framingham, MA

This is a brilliant book...

Dottie Wade, North Country Speaks, WYBG Radio, Massena New York

This is a really good book and I loved the poetry too. Every business owner, particularly small business owners, should read this book!

Jerry Hutchinson, Morning Magazine, Radio KHCA 95.3, Manhattan, Kansas

I wish I would have had this book when I started this radio station. ... A must read for the small business owner.

Reviewed by Denise M. Clark - July 2003, Denise’s Pieces Author Site & Book Reviews http://www.denisemclark.com

Yes, We’re Open… is precisely what small business owners today need. Actually, it should be required reading. Filled with practical advice on how to avoid common mistakes made by many new small business owners, including but not limited to, lack of knowledge, no planning or goals, poor marketing plans and lack of proper budgeting.

Author Manchee shares his experience, knowledge and vast expertise in finance and organization to provide a highly informative and easily read book on the how’s and how-not-to’s of starting, running and growing a small business. A great deal of information is covered in a compact form, from how to deal with creditors and lenders to theft and embezzlement.

Learn how to compete with chains and other franchise owners, and how to deal with and take care of employees to everyone’s mutual benefit. Manchee also covers topics such as bankruptcy, taxes and the IRS - and all the while makes the reader feel as if they’re sitting down with a good friend who’s offering supportive and expert advice.

Yes, We’re Open… is Mr. Manchee’s first work of non-fiction, though he has published seven novels prior to this work. His writing skills and presentation certainly shine in this extremely well written book that no entrepreneur should be without.

Lori Ann Evans, Street Talk, WACK AM 1420,  Newark, NY July 28, 2003

...A great little book! There's no fluff--you can probably read it in an afternoon. It's full of good, solid advice for the small business owner....

Amanda Killgore, on the web, July 22, 2003,
Nonfiction Advice, Amazon.Com

This short and to the point book is addressed to the rising group of entrepreneurs in America. With no excess verbiage, topics from law to insurance to forms of business are concisely explained in easy to understand language. ............. **** However, this is a book that will not only be a handy resource for the fledgling businessman or woman, but for consumers in general, especially in its useful advice in credit matters. Much of the topics might be common sense, but there is precious little of that, so instruction in it is always of use. ****

Sherry Russell GMS/author/researcher, Books on Line Authors7@yahoo.com

The book is written in a fun style tackling the complicity of the American dream of owning your own business. The author does a fine job of uncovering all the sour lemons along the path of building a strong foundation while explaining available opportunities and strategies the SBO (small business owner) has within his/her reach to add sweetness to those lemons for a nice successful venture.

The book is organized into four parts. The first part deals with the reasons behind small business failures. The author energetically covers obstacles from starting a venture on a shoestring to the problems of dealing with theft. The second segment tackles the obstacles blocking achievement. One of the relevant topics spotlights IRS and taxes. The third section illuminates ways for rounding the corner of prosperity in your business by hiring the correct people, taking control of your own attitudes and interestingly covers depression issues. The final portion is the sharing of case studies. In reading the case studies, an SBO will have an opportunity to see a part of him/herself while being assured they are not alone in their struggles and victories in mastering small business.

The book is packed with absorbing insights, the actual case stories, a glossary of terms, and some hilariously effective poems.

In the poem The Banker, a sampler of the author’s delicious wit:

"If you borrow money

You should be aware

Of the truth about some bankers

Lest you fall into their snare

Interest is their magic wand

That brings them mighty riches

Keep a careful eye on it

Or you’ll lose your frickin’ britches"

The author dissects the honeycombed mechanics of small business and shows the SBO how to become revitalized by any struggles through the knowledge there is help and there are ways to keep your dream alive and in the black. For the reader, the book acts as an unseen advisor to their everyday situations. The author writes about each subject with intense clarity, focus and wit. The poems alone are worth the price of the book! Great book for every small business owner or person who is thinking about a business venture.