BUY ENTREPRENEUR 5 P.M. TO 9 A.M. | KANTH MIRIYALA & REETHIKA SUNDER | BOOK REVIEW

SUBJECT: 4/5

RELEVANCE: 4/5

WRITING STYLE: 4/5

VALUE ADDITION: 4/5

“Entrepreneurship” – it’s the buzz word today. I want to do it, you want to do it and everybody else wants to do it too. But only a few actually end up doing it. Why? There are many reasons to it – financial security, social background, peer pressure, attitude etc. but the main reason is that you don’t want to quit your comfy & high paying job to enter into this murky world where you have to work your ass off. What if I tell you that you can be an entrepreneur even while working full-time? Well, don’t take my word for it; read Entrepreneur 5 P.M. TO 9 A.M. by Kanth Miriyala and Reethika Sunder. Being a budding entrepreneur myself and having recently started bookGeeks out of passion, not reading this book was not an option I could afford. I’m truly thankful to Reethika for sending this book to us for review. It has been a truly insightful read and has forced my brain to think in directions I had never imagined.

The concept of Entrepreneur 5 P.M. TO 9 A.M., as the title suggests, is about demystifying the thinking that one cannot work full-time and be an entrepreneur too. The authors have developed a new entrepreneurial philosophy called the Z2L roadmap which talks about the steps to be taken to convert a business idea into reality. The importance of a mentor and a co-founder is well explained (I am lucky to have Sankalpita and KC but I need to hunt for a mentor now). Few very important personal things have to be thought of before taking this sacred plunge – health, family life, finances, passions etc. – and these have been subtly touched in the book. The book also advises on the things to be done after you have your own start-up. The importance of minor things like time management, dreams, work-life balance, core values, passions, etc. have been stressed upon. Bits and pieces of suggestions from stalwarts like Robert Kiyosaki, Rhonda Byrne, Geoffrey Moore, Clayton Christensen, etc. have been included and add value to the reading.

The concept of this book, as the title suggests, is about demystifying the thinking that one cannot work full-time and be an entrepreneur too.

All the suggestions which the authors make in Entrepreneur 5 P.M. TO 9 A.M. are easy to understand and implement. They have craftily used diagrams, flow-charts, graphs and other pictorial tools to bring home the point. Example case studies have also been included which further boost the reading value.

Experience is the best teacher and so, I can strongly vouch for this book because I have got many ideas from it; I have experienced it. For example:

• I have understood the importance of a mentor and have already started looking for one.
• I have started understanding my target audience in a better way because of the Z2L framework and can produce content accordingly.
• I have understood the importance of stories in selling and am preparing the bookGeeks brochure accordingly.
• I have learnt a lot about competitor analysis beyond SWOT, PESTLE and CAF and am planning to do this exercise.

If you are an established entrepreneur or a budding one or are dreaming of becoming one, grab Entrepreneur 5 P.M. TO 9 A.M., read it, implement the principles it teaches and I’m sure the learning will not go waste.