Product Description

Young serial entrepreneur Scott Gerber is not the product of a wealthy family or storied entrepreneurial heritage. Nor is he the outcome of a traditional business school education or a corporate executive turned entrepreneur. Rather, he is a hard-working, self-taught 26-year-old hustler, rainmaker, and bootstrapper who has survived and thrived despite never having held the proverbial "real” job.

In Never Get a "Real" Job: How to Dump Your Boss, Build a Business, and Not Go Broke, Gerber challenges the social conventions behind the "real" job and empowers young people to take control of their lives and dump their nine-to-fives—or their quest to attain them.

Drawing upon case studies, experiences, and observations, Scott dissects failures, shares hard-learned lessons, and presents practical, affordable, and systematic action steps to building, managing, and marketing a successful business on a shoestring budget.

The proven, no-b.s. methodology presented in Never Get a "Real" Job teaches unemployed and underemployed Gen-Yers, aspiring small business owners, students, and recent college graduates how to quit 9-to-5s, become their own bosses, and achieve financial independence.

Q&A with Author Scott Gerber

Author Scott Gerber

The title of your book is “Never Get a Real Job,” but are you suggesting that there’s an entrepreneur in everyone?
Millennials are no longer beneficiaries of the hand-out, resume-driven society of old. Boomers and Gen Xers need to stop training Gen Y to believe that the mantra of ‘work hard, get good grades, go to school and get a job’ that they were told to buy into, is alive and well. It’s not — it’s dead — and now it needs to be buried for good.

Fact: there are over 81 million young people unemployed worldwide. And this number does not account for the tens — if not hundreds — of millions more that are underemployed. It’s becoming more and more apparent that in today’s world, young people will need to create a job to keep a job. Millennials need to re-train themselves to become self-sufficiency experts capable of generating their own incomes. I truly believe everyone can become entrepreneurial and partner with individuals whose strengths fill in gaps and weaknesses. The key is for us to stop thinking “Facebook” and start thinking about practical, nuts-and-bolts, income-generating, on-the-ground businesses. When we finally turn that corner, Gen Y will truly become the most entrepreneurial generation in history.

How should young entrepreneurs go about determining if their “passion” can become a scalable business?
The Hollywood-esque scene for most young entrepreneurs, where two guys are sitting at a bar, write their idea on a napkin and then proceed to build a gazillion dollar business is fiction — at least for 99.9999% of us. In truth, every entrepreneur needs to have a gut-check moment. They shouldn’t simply “believe” their idea will work as a business and get started. Rather, they need to prove it to themselves, poke holes in it, determine if it can generate real revenues — as well as how fast those revenues will start rolling in — and be able to defend their assumptions to their harshest critic. I know my detractors will mention “revolutionary” and “game-changing” companies such as Facebook and other Silicon Valley darlings that went on to raise millions, get acquired for billions, or go public. However, I would never advocate to young entrepreneurs, especially in our current economy, that jumping right into a business on passion alone is an advisable way to start a business.

What made you want to be an entrepreneur?
The thought of working for someone else gave me chills. Office politics, dress down days, cubicle life, water cooler rants, a lack of real decision making ability--they all made me want to reach for Vodka and a bottle of Xanax. If I was going to fall flat on my face or go bankrupt, it certainly wasn't going to be because I let myself end up in a position where I could be underpaid or downsized without any warning. "Real" jobs, and the quest to attain one in the first place, didn't make sense for me--and they especially don't make sense now in the new, post-recession economy. I found all the arguments that "real" jobs are stable and secure to be ludicrous. After all, how stable and secure is ANYTHING that you don't control, own or have a real say in? And with ever-growing rises in outsourcing, globalization, on and offline educational institutions, and recessions, I know I absolutely made the right decision and have absolutely no issue telling others they should do the same in order to take control of their lives and financial futures.

Jobs are not going to materialize out of thin air just because politicians say they can make it happen.

The only job that is remotely safe for young people in this new economy is one of their own creation and design that they own and control. However, even though we live in a world of an over abundance of collegiate institutions, enhanced automation, increased globalization, and ever-growing outsourcing options, Gen Y is still being force fed that this age-old "send out resumes to get a job" is still relevant and applicable to today--when the reality is that this notion is anything but the actual reality. Yet there hasn't been any real action. Just empty promises and words from politicians and pundits. Nor has there been any sort of helping hand to teach Gen Y about the new way forward they must learn in order to stay competitive and effective. This needs to change.

Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #53100 in Books
• Published on: 2010-12-07
• Original language: English
• Number of items: 1
• Binding: Hardcover
• 250 pages

Features

• ISBN13: 9780470643860
• Condition: New
• Notes: BRAND NEW FROM PUBLISHER! 100% Satisfaction Guarantee. Tracking provided on most orders. Buy with Confidence! Millions of books sold!

From the Inside Flap
A lot of business books hold your hand, make you feel good, and are set to convince you that your passion and "unique" business idea are enough to plow through your competition, garner new leads, and make millions just because you can write a business plan that says so.

This is not that kind of book.

A twenty-something hustler, rainmaker, and bootstrapper who has survived and thrived despite never having held the proverbial "real" job, Scott Gerber is the ultimate "Generation Y-er." He's a self-taught serial entrepreneur who built several successful businesses without storied business connections, a business school background, executive training—or investment dollars. And in Never Get a "Real" Job, he shows you how he succeeded so you can overcome today's chronic conditions of mass unemployment, underemployment, and dead-end 9-to-5s.

Gerber gives you the no-bull reality on turning your business idea into a viable enterprise capable ofgenerating real income now—based on his hard-knocks lessons learned in the entrepreneurial trenches. From the perils of doing too much too fast, to bogging down a promising start-up with infrastructure long before it's needed, Gerber has experienced firsthand how you can sabotage your own business. Never Get a "Real" Job will help you avoid the costly mistakes that can take down your enterprise at any time, helping you to get off the ground, establish your business, and keep it successfully up and running.

But Gerber isn't just giving you a collection of war stories. He gives you insights from a fellow young entrepreneur on how to start from absolutely nothing—building a viable business model from the ground up. Along with straight-shooting advice on creating contacts and cultivating clients, he offers practical, affordable, step-by-step instructions on how to constantly analyze, refine, and target your business offerings—while minimizing wasted time and keeping you on track.

With vast resources like online tools, Web sites, checklists, and hard coaching, as well as thousands of dollars worth of connections to free and discounted small business services, Never Get a "Real" Job takes you off the unrewarding resume and cover letter cycle, while putting you on the road toward becoming a self-sufficient business owner, and creating a life that gives you a real shot at the success you deserve.

From the Back Cover
Praise for Never Get A "Real" Job

"Practical. Irreverent. Insightful. If you read just one book this year aboutbecoming an entrepreneur, make sure it's Never Get a 'Real' Job."
—Anita Campbell, founder, Smallbiztrends.com

"With the economic spiral of 2009, our world of work was blown up, and with it,traditional frameworks for career success. Thank god we have Scott Gerber, a member of the next generation, telling the truth about what it takes to succeed in the coming decades. Gen Y, and parents of Gen Y, you will put your livelihoods at risk if you don't read this book. Buy it."
—Pamela Slim, author of Escape from Cubicle Nation: From Corporate Prisoner to Thriving Entrepreneur

"Economic turmoil has made it more difficult than ever for Gen Y to have abreakout entrepreneurial success story. However, thanks to Scott Gerber, there's hope.He breaks it down, tells it like it is, and kicks you in the pants with his no-nonsenseguide to getting started and achieving real success—now."
—Jeff Sloan, cofounder, StartupNation.com

"Scott is the Simon Cowell of young entrepreneurship."
—Mike Michalowicz, author of The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur

"Wow! If all Gen Y-ers were like Scott, we'd never have to worry about our kids moving back into the basement after college. As filled with no-nonsense, practical, yet unpredictable advice as it is serious attitude, Never Get a 'Real' Job is a must-read for all aspiring entrepreneurs. No coddling here—just the straight-up truth from a very savvy guy who's been there and done that."
—Donna Fenn, author of Upstarts!: How GenY Entrepreneurs Are Rocking the World of Business and 8 Ways You Can Profit from Their Success

"Scott doesn't give the sugar-coated advice that wannabe entrepreneurs like to hear.He gives the blunt guidance that real entrepreneurs can actually put to use."
—Andrew Warner, founder, Mixergy

"Never Get a 'Real' Job will help any reader—even those withoutstart-up finances or previous entrepreneurial experience—quit their quest for9-to-5s and become self-sufficient small business owners."
—Steve Mariotti, founder, Network for Teaching Entrepreneurship (NFTE)

"Never Get a 'Real' Job is a straightforward, funny, and insightful book foryoung entrepreneurs looking to make a name for themselves."
—Dan Schawbel, author of Me 2.0, and Managing Partner of Millennial Branding, LLC

About the Author
Scott Gerber is the founder and CEO of Gerber Enterprises, an entrepreneurial incubator that invests capital, management expertise, and marketing services into early and mid-stage companies. A serial entrepreneur, angel investor, media personality, and in-demand speaker, he is also an internationally syndicated small business writer andEntrepreneur columnist. He lives in Hoboken, NJ, and can be reached at scott@askgerber.com or followed on Twitter at @askgerber. For more information about Scott and Never Get a "Real" Job, visit NeverGetARealJob.com.

Customer Reviews

Most helpful customer reviews

22 of 25 people found the following review helpful.
Never pay for something you can find on Google for free...
By Bob
I purchased this book on the recommendation of Peter Shankman via his Help a Reporter e-mail blast. I read the sample, read the reviews and thought that this would be one of those "must have" books for entrepreneurs.

I plowed through the first half but grew tired of Gerber's "get tough" attitude/lecturing. Gerber is not quite bloviating but his voice is pretty close. Luckily the second half of the book is much better. It's filled with useful lists of resources that you can probably find on Google using the right search terms* -- but it's nice to have them collected in one place.

This book is probably great for someone who just graduated from college and doesn't have a job. Although, if you've got a very limited budget, I might recommend The Zen of Social Media Marketing and -- perhaps -- Smarter, Faster, Cheaper: Non-Boring, Fluff-Free Strategies for Marketing and Promoting Your Business (another Shankman recommendation) as better choices for your buck. I can't fully recommend the latter, however, until I have finished reading it, Keep your eyes posted for the review....

*I only added the remark about Google because Gerber always stresses that you shouldn't pay for something that you can find on Google for free.

15 of 17 people found the following review helpful.
Disappointed
By Nicole Field
This wasn't worth the afternoon I wasted reading the entire thing. I kept going, hoping that the sinking feeling I had would go away, but it never really did.

Sure, I sort of bought into the first one or two chapters, as it reflected some of my own feelings and frustrations in my post-graduate life. But when he got into the actual nuts and bolts of his business approach, I found his attitude really off-putting, along with the constant references to MTV and other "culturally relevant" things that have apparently "warped" the thinking of my generation (seriously, even in the 90s MTV was hardly relevant anymore, dude).

I kept finding not only contradictions in his advice (you should be sincere and not put on airs, but you should also use "we" even if your enterprise is composed of entirely yourself, wha?), but also things that weren't that different from (and in many ways worse than) other entrepreneurial advice I've found on the internet (please check out some of the older entries in Lifehacker on the subject -- much more illuminating and less bitter and caustic). In addition, some of his approaches even made me feel really slimy or not at all useful for my own goals, and the book ends... with coupons. Yes, coupons, which he has so generously given to you, to "help" you toward your dreams! Keep it classy, Gerber :P.

Being a millenial, I was hoping he would have talked about more approaches specific to the internet, instead of the largely IRL stuff that has been covered better in other material. He seemed to only touch on the usual web services that can make cheapo-looking logos and websites that devalue the other hard-working professionals out there. What about some stuff on things like SEO, collaborating on github, working on open source projects in order to network with people and better your own skills, etc... everything he details seemed either really basic or stuff that I already knew. You'd think with all of the web startups and the really cool stuff that's been going on in the greater interwebs that he would do more things pertaining to that, but nope, not really. Just keep following all the big twitter names and such.

Use your google powers for better and completely free advice, and please avoid this book.

14 of 16 people found the following review helpful.
You Had Me At "Business Plans Suck"
By Mike Michalowicz
I had the good fortune of getting a pre-release copy of Scott's book... and gotta tell you, it is totally my style. He is "in your face" but he cares. This book is the kick in the ass to take the business idea you have been pondering and make it into a real (successful) company. Here are some of the must read parts:

1. Start on page 82 - Scott explains the trap of a traditional business plan, and why the goal to get it exactly right is by design impossible.

2. Then when that chapter gives you the slap in the head, jump back to the beginning and read this whole book, twice.

3. Read page 32, the "your not special" section. Now, while I argue you have special talents and experienced, that combined DO make you 1 in a billion, the fact is Scott is right.... you have to work yourself to the bone. Period.

4. Check to page 102 - 105, Scott gives a a cool analysis of the people to avoid when partnering. He categorized the personality traits that dictate a lot of cash but bring little value.

5. I like the break outs too... like the one on page 207 about becoming a Google superstar. While it could be argued to be "basic knowledge", I noticed I was only doing about 1/2 of what he suggested. These tips serve as a great check list.

Overall... very well done. Strong enthusiasm and backed by a guy that has been wildly successful... in his twenties. Great book!

- Mike Michalowicz, Author of
The Toilet Paper Entrepreneur: The tell-it-like-it-is guide to cleaning up in business, even if you are at the end of your roll.