Million Dollar Women

August 10, 2015
“Financial freedom is one of the last front lines of feminism,” writes Pimsleur, the CEO and founder of Little Pim, which creates language-learning materials for children. This spirited business guide identifies a relative lack of resources and opportunities available to female business owners. Aimed at women interested in running successful businesses, including CEOs preparing for fundraising drives, solo operators intent on improving their work, and budding entrepreneurs, this book seeks to help readers bridge that gap. There’s much to overcome: as Pimsleur relates, only 3% of businesses owned by women ever generate more than $1 million in revenue, 50% of all new businesses fail within the first five years, and, because of the glass-ceiling skew, women tend to have male advisors, coaches, and mentors who don’t understand the unique challenges facing women in business. Pimsleur takes on some of the major competency requirements and hurdles women may face, including getting angel or venture funding, nurturing allies, handling foes, assembling the best team, and building networks. Packed with case studies and stories of Pimsleur’s own history and rise, this enthusiastic, encouraging guide is a great Business 101 for entrepreneurial women. Zoe Pagnamenta, Zoe Pagnamenta Agency.

August 1, 2015

Be your own boss. This sounds tempting to many, but how can you make others see (and fund) your dream? While this new work treads some of the same ground as other books concentrating on successful business women, it is unique in its emphasis on the financing role. Pimsleur, capitalizing on her background in video production as well as her childhood experiences abroad as the daughter of the founder of the Pimsleur Language Programs, developed her personal interest for her son to learn a foreign language into a growing business producing foreign language videos for children. The focus on making pitches, networking, and the ins and outs of attracting investors is both practical and intimate as the author connects it to her own struggles with work/family life balance. Interspersed are sidebars and short cases based on other successful entrepreneurs and at the back is a series of exercises tied to each chapter, along with a brief list of online resources. VERDICT A useful book on angel investing and funding opportunities, primarily aimed at women entrepreneurs. Recommended for public libraries with strong business collections.--Susan Hurst, Miami Univ. Libs., Oxford, OH

Copyright 2015 Library Journal, LLC Used with permission.

September 1, 2015
Pimsleur, CEO of a multimillion-dollar company, shares her inspiring story to help other women reach that goal. The author recounts her own realization that she needed to change her mind-set, get new skills, and raise capital to achieve her success. Capital helped her solve many problems, including hiring more staff, investing in more marketing, and focusing on the profitable parts of her business. The author sets out to provide women entrepreneurs with the Triple Win: Money, for the ability to make decisions about where they live, where their kids go to school, and whom they marry (or make their own home); Meaning, which enables them to solve problems in their own life and to count for something beyond themselves; and Mobility ( I cherish having the freedom to work how, when and where I want ). With thought-provoking interviews of women entrepreneurs and other business experts and important exercises at the end, this resourceful book is rich in ideas and valuable insight.(Reprinted with permission of Booklist, copyright 2015, American Library Association.)