Start Something by Yeng Remulla : A Book Review

People who have followed my blog know that I love books that discuss personal finance management, business, entrepreneurship and marketing. I don’t really read fiction (but I’m tempted to read the Game of Thrones set that I got my hubby for father’s day). So, it was a pleasant surprise when I found out that Yeng Remulla wrote something now about entrepreneurship in his book called Start Something. Yeng is the Filipino author who wrote Productive Pinoy, which I read and liked, too.

Start Something by Yeng Remulla

Reading his book gave me a lot of AHA! moments. He says that one should get the right fit, meaning one should do what gives them fulfillment, exhibits their talents and gives them income. I know I have heard this time and again, and I know that a lot of us have. Although we think that it is drummed into our eats often, I personally sometimes forget the income part.

In my business, I deal with partners who would like to share their knowledge and skills with others through workshops. Sometimes, both my partner and I are so passionate with our cause (which we know exhibits our talents) that we forget that we need to earn. Why do we need to earn? To bring more workshops and to bring the news to more people. I realized that early in my ‘entrepreneurial’ career.

I started a business with a friend with a solid business plan. It was a social entrepreneurship project. We were so caught up with the ‘helping others’ dimension of the company that we forgot about revising the business model when it wasn’t earning as much as we have expected. In the end, we had to close the company and move on. For those with strong, good intentions behind their businesses, I hope you ponder on this.

Another thing that struck me was when it was mentioned that nobody can steal an idea if it isn’t yours yet. This is true! Just think that every time you come up with an idea, someone else is thinking of the same thing also. It’s a matter of who works on it first. Also, once you do implement an idea and you see someone who copies it, I personally think that a good entrepreneur sees this as a challenge to make his or her products or services better. They don’t sulk in the corner or spend energies complaining about what happened. Early on, you have to realize and ACCEPT that this will happen.

I also like the advice that Yeng gives in his book to ‘break it down into pieces’. If you don’t know where to start, try writing down tasks that you have to do. From there, try to cross out tasks.

I love the section on working with others the most. I believe in creating good and solid partnerships. I love that he said “Don’t wait. Initiate”. I think this is one of my strengths and why I became successful in my current endeavor. If I think of partnership that might work, I just go ahead and talk to that possible partner. If it doesn’t work out, then at least you tried.

The book is simply ‘inspiration’ to all of us who want to start our own businesses. If you need to jumpstart the work you’ve been dreaming of, grab a copy of this book!

Love lots,

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