Book Review - Mom Inventors Handbook, Written by Tamara Monosoff

On Funding Your Business: Tamara does give great ideas for finding capital from lenders and grant sources, but I wholeheartedly agree with her on “losing your pride” (page 162) when it comes to business:

“Entrepreneurship inevitably brings difficult financial times. Be prepared to swallow your pride to ask for help and money. When you need a discount, ask for it. When you need to borrow money, ask anyone you can.”

On the Internet: On page 139, Tamara wisely encourages all business women to tap into the power of the Internet. “Nearly every mom inventor that I have interviewed for this book said there is one tool she can’t do without: the Internet.”

She explains what a computer is, how to access the Internet and even how to set up a toll-free number and FAX machine. She explains e-Bay, weblogs, e-stores, websites, networking, and many other resources women should exploit.

On Problem-Solving: In an anecdote about building a “squirrel-proof bird feeder” (there is no such thing) she offers a clear message on problem-solving. A storekeeper asks a customer, Joe, how much time he spends thinking of ways to keep squirrels out of his bird feeder. Joe replies, about 30 minutes a day. The storekeeper asks Joe how much time the "squirrel thinks about how to get into that bird feeder?”

Her point, (page 249) is simple:

“…the more motivated the individual, the more likely she’ll come up with a solution to solve her problems. nventors seeking out a solution to their own challenges – rather than someone else’s – can offer creative and inspired insights borne of personal experience.”

Tamara writes in layman’s terms; not talking over the heads of business newcomers. She offers enough subject detail to be helpful without being insulting. The book contains many Internet and other resources for women to use and carefully lays out steps for starting, growing and managing a business – not just getting an invention into production. She also gives sample letters, charts, and plenty of examples to help you understand complex topics more readily.

I also like that her book offers photos of other mom inventors, along with personal stories to inspire, something that I always appreciate in a good business book – presenting the human side of the story.

The only thing I would improve on in this book is that Tamara has covered so many topics that some are not as in-depth as they could be. Her sales and marketing chapters offer some solid trouble-shooting tips I have not seen in other books but other subjects might not contain enough information for the true business beginner.

Still, she brings up literally just about every key aspect of starting a business so that even if you were not inventing a product, you would still gain some valuable insights into how to start and grow a business.

This foundational book, if nothing else, gives readers ideas about what more they might need to research on their own. Consider it the “Joy of Cooking” for mom inventors: Every business “kitchen” should have a copy.