The Big Idea: How to Make Your Entrepreneurial Dreams Come True, from the AHA Moment to Your First Million

by Donny Deutsch

Book Overview

It's the moment when you say, "There's gotta be a better way." It's the moment when you ask, "How can I solve this problem" Donny Deutsch's hit CNBC show The Big Idea has put the spotlight on that... This description may be from another edition of this product.

• Format: Hardcover
• Language: English
• ISBN: 1401323219
• ISBN13: 9781401323219
• Release Date: January 2009
• Publisher: Hyperion Books
• Length: 258 Pages
• Weight: 1.14 lbs.
• Dimensions: 0.9" x 6.3" x 9.4"
• Age Range: 18 years and up
• Grade Range: Postsecondary and higher

Customer Reviews

Exceptional And Timely Book From The Biggest Proponent Of Entrepreneurs In America Today

Love him or hate him, Donny Deutsch is the mouthpiece of and for entrepreneurs everywhere. On his show, The Big Idea on CNBC he showed again and again how anyone can make good no matter where they start or where they are at. He takes that one step further with the book and puts his ideas and his guests ideas into a workable blueprint. This book is very good. It is full of hard hitting, implementable insights about how to make things happen. Donny is nothing if not someone who knows how to make things happen and he shows you again and again not just how he did it but how others are doing it too. One of the things I really enjoy about this book is that it champions the little guy or woman. It shows how anyone can make it. The book inspires you to try harder and think about success in ways you probably haven't. There were several sections that I thought were exceptional. The section about writing your second story. It really highlights how NOW is the time to do something, not yesterday and not tomorrow, but right now. The section about making your mark and promoting yourself was invaluable too and Donny knows a thing or two about promoting himself (and he's got the goods to back it up). If you are starting a business or if you've found yourself wondering about your next step read this book, it will give you dozens of ideas you can implement now. A must read for every Entrepreneur, small business owner or person wondering about starting a business. Dave Lakhani

Inspiring

I am an inventor and I just finished reading this book. There were parts where I actually started crying because of how portions resonated with me, and the parallels to my own path. I currently have 5 patent pending, inventions. One of them is called the Parachute Skimmer (tm), [..]. It is the `push broom' for the pool, and has other uses as well. It opens up in the pool like a parachute, the top part floats and the bottom part sinks, a screen in the middle collects the floating debris as you pull it through the water and it is much more efficient than a traditional skimmer. I invented the device because it used to take me forever to skim my pool of floating debris with a traditional skimmer and I thought, "there has to be a better way to do this." The Parachute Skimmer also has other uses: pond and canal cleaning; and the search and rescue markets. Bounty Hunter, Leonard Padilla's dive team actually used my device to search for a missing 3 year old, in Orlando and the lead diver discussed my invention in November on CNN's Nancy Grace show. Reading this book was like reading my own story. I am now being considered for a reality TV show. A few months ago, as part of the application process I had to create a video answering their canned questions. Here are a couple of my answers/excerpts from that application: "I won't even consider not succeeding, I won't let that happen." "I ask people all the time what would they do if they won the lottery. Most people's answers are something different than what they are currently doing. So I ask them why they aren't pursuing their dream. Life is too short. Go for it!" "Most people probably think I am a little bit crazy for taking the risks I have taken. None of that matters though, because I believe in what I am doing. And when someone says, that's a really good idea that makes all the rejection, all the effort worth it. It keeps me going." "I want people to know it isn't crazy to pursue their dreams. It is scary it is like stepping off a cliff with your eyes closed and not knowing how far down you may fall. But that is okay the thermals just might make you soar! Go Ahead Jump!" When you read this book you will see many of us (inventor/entrpreneurs) share this same theme. It took me years to discover and learn what Donny has compiled in this book. Donny's book captures all the emotion, it is a great resource for all inventors and it will inspire anyone who reads it!

Suprisingly Exceptional

Because I enjoy occasionally watching Donny Deutsch's TV show by the same name, I thought I would try the book. I expected that I likely would get a ghost written pabulum of basic business information. I was very pleasantly surprised that I got so, so much more. Like with his TV show, Deutsch crisply communicates a wonderful blend of possibility thinking and entrepreneurial support. There are people who do each of the two subjects better, but no one who combines the two as effectively as does the author. Think Dr. Robert Schuller (Possibility Thinking) meets Michael Gerber (E Myth). The book has many power points, but for me the strongest takeaway was Deutsch's mantra that many of the best ideas come from a simple notion that we all have "there must be a better way." Before reading this book, my frame of reference for innovation was more oriented to scientific discoveries (because my consulting work intersects with the venture capital field). The author is very convincing that there are abundant opportunities that arise without deep research. Instead they come from that aha moment when we have identified a better way, and then back-up that moment by taking the resulting product or service to market. The book also does an excellent job of laying out the hurdles in transforming an innovation into entrepreneurial success. And, it does so with that same hi-speed, interesting communication that is a hallmark of the author's TV show. I enjoyed the book so much that I also bought the audio reading by Deutsch. It is one of the five best audios I have ever heard (and I have listened to 100's). The combination of the books excellent content and Deutsch's captivating reading style makes for an audio that kept my interest throughout the four CD's. Given the quality of Deutsch's TV show, I should have expected that his book would be as special. Shame on me for thinking otherwise. Kudos to the author for demonstrating multi-media excellence.

big idea

I like Donney. This is extremely useful tool for new business start up or reinforcement of current marketing & sales. This will provide you many hands on successful cases combined with actual and strategic guidance to make you attain successful achievement. I am sure that it will make you big difference. Especially timely and useful this time to neutralize or reverse the current recession for positive upturn and successful expansion! Colin YOON