But for the most part, What’s Stopping You? is a practical, level-headed guide that is packed with useful resources, especially online websites and directories. Each chapter presents topics that could fill whole books on their own, such as getting financing, utilizing the Internet, promotion (“getting noticed”) and strategizing how to compete in the marketplace. But What’s Stopping You? provides scores of websites, books and other sources of information for exploring each topic in greater depth.
Barringer and Ireland have both authored textbooks on small business and entrepreneurship, and this experience is evident in What’s Stopping You? Each chapter concludes with a summary of the points covered and a list of end notes, and there is a comprehensive index. Anecdotal examples are set off in shaded boxes. The layout is clear and attractive throughout and I didn’t spot one single typo.
The only aesthetic aspect of the book that puzzles me is the cover design, which simply doesn’t do the book justice. The red and black on plain white invokes an industrial safety poster, and the image on the front cover is just plain odd. The title is printed on a photo of a sign hanging from a doorknob, like the “do not disturb” signs in hotels. The relevance of this image to the book’s theme completely escapes me. This is a comment for the publisher, not prospective buyers — it has nothing to do with the quality of the book’s content. But I would hate to think that people who would benefit from What’s Stopping You? might miss out because the cover image is so obscure.
What’s Stopping You? is an excellent book for people who think rationally and mistrust the more colorful pitches so common to the “motivational” genre. The authors are passionate about entrepreneurship, and What’s Stopping You? presents their expertise in a highly accessible form. If you’re wondering just what the “nine myths” are, buy this book. It’s worth the price.
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