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PROFIT LIKE THE PROS

THE BEST REAL ESTATE DEALS THAT SHAPED EXPERT INVESTORS

Accessible and practical examples of the many ways to break into real estate investing.

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An expert provides profiles of investors and their successful real estate gambles.

In his book’s introduction, Corsini explains that he always had an entrepreneurial spirit—reselling Jolly Ranchers as a kid and looking for ways to make more money than the standard after-school jobs offered throughout college—and it soon led him to real estate. Now, with an impressive resume that includes more than 800 homes flipped, several companies founded, and a starring role on HGTV’s Flip or Flop Atlanta, the self-made expert continues to believe in “the unparalleled power of a real estate investor’s ability to inspire other investors.” In that vein, the author focuses his instructive work on stories collected from seasoned investors across the country. Each chapter profiles a different investor and breaks down the specific deal representing a turning point in the individual’s real estate endeavors. The list of 25 investors presents an intriguing diversity of projects: They range from a run-down mobile-home park in Dallas and storage units in Georgia to multimillion-dollar apartment buildings and simple duplexes across the United States. Corsini deftly builds each profile to deliver the maximum useful information for readers wanting to know more about investing. He describes the person in his humorous and good-natured tone before delving into a specific deal, detailing how the investor assessed it and funded it and its eventual returns. Punchy quotes from each investor and “Insider info” blurbs help to explain jargon so readers feel as if they have a good grasp of each project in just a few pages. Corsini has also taken care to puncture notions of the typical real estate mogul. His interviewees represent a balanced mix of men and women from different socio-economic backgrounds, with a few even coming from countries like Nigeria and Brazil. Their most common link is a desire for passive income, and their tales will make readers feel like real estate investments are within their reach.

Accessible and practical examples of the many ways to break into real estate investing.

Pub Date: Nov. 10, 2020

ISBN: 978-1-947200-31-9

Page Count: 256

Publisher: BiggerPockets

Review Posted Online: Sept. 18, 2020

Kirkus Reviews Issue: Nov. 15, 2020

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MAGIC WORDS

WHAT TO SAY TO GET YOUR WAY

Perhaps not magic but appealing nonetheless.

Want to get ahead in business? Consult a dictionary.

By Wharton School professor Berger’s account, much of the art of persuasion lies in the art of choosing the right word. Want to jump ahead of others waiting in line to use a photocopy machine, even if they’re grizzled New Yorkers? Throw a because into the equation (“Excuse me, I have five pages. May I use the Xerox machine, because I’m in a rush?”), and you’re likely to get your way. Want someone to do your copying for you? Then change your verbs to nouns: not “Can you help me?” but “Can you be a helper?” As Berger notes, there’s a subtle psychological shift at play when a person becomes not a mere instrument in helping but instead acquires an identity as a helper. It’s the little things, one supposes, and the author offers some interesting strategies that eager readers will want to try out. Instead of alienating a listener with the omniscient should, as in “You should do this,” try could instead: “Well, you could…” induces all concerned “to recognize that there might be other possibilities.” Berger’s counsel that one should use abstractions contradicts his admonition to use concrete language, and it doesn’t help matters to say that each is appropriate to a particular situation, while grammarians will wince at his suggestion that a nerve-calming exercise to “try talking to yourself in the third person (‘You can do it!’)” in fact invokes the second person. Still, there are plenty of useful insights, particularly for students of advertising and public speaking. It’s intriguing to note that appeals to God are less effective in securing a loan than a simple affirmative such as “I pay all bills…on time”), and it’s helpful to keep in mind that “the right words used at the right time can have immense power.”

Perhaps not magic but appealing nonetheless.

Pub Date: March 7, 2023

ISBN: 9780063204935

Page Count: 256

Publisher: Harper Business

Review Posted Online: March 23, 2023

Kirkus Reviews Issue: April 15, 2023

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#GIRLBOSS

Career and business advice for the hashtag generation. For all its self-absorption, this book doesn’t offer much reflection...

A Dumpster diver–turned-CEO details her rise to success and her business philosophy.

In this memoir/business book, Amoruso, CEO of the Internet clothing store Nasty Gal, offers advice to young women entrepreneurs who seek an alternative path to fame and fortune. Beginning with a lengthy discussion of her suburban childhood and rebellious teen years, the author describes her experiences living hand to mouth, hitchhiking, shoplifting and dropping out of school. Her life turned around when, bored at work one night, she decided to sell a few pieces of vintage clothing on eBay. Fast-forward seven years, and Amoruso was running a $100 million company with 350 employees. While her success is admirable, most of her advice is based on her own limited experiences and includes such hackneyed lines as, “When you accept yourself, it’s surprising how much other people will accept you, too.” At more than 200 pages, the book is overlong, and much of what the author discusses could be summarized in a few tweets. In fact, much of it probably has been: One of the most interesting sections in the book is her description of how she uses social media. Amoruso has a spiritual side, as well, and she describes her belief in “chaos magic” and “sigils,” a kind of wishful-thinking exercise involving abstract words. The book also includes sidebars featuring guest “girlbosses” (bloggers, Internet entrepreneurs) who share equally clichéd suggestions for business success. Some of the guidance Amoruso offers for interviews (don’t dress like you’re going to a nightclub), getting fired (don’t call anyone names) and finding your fashion style (be careful which trends you follow) will be helpful to her readers, including the sage advice, “You’re not special.”

Career and business advice for the hashtag generation. For all its self-absorption, this book doesn’t offer much reflection or insight.

Pub Date: May 6, 2014

ISBN: 978-0-399-16927-4

Page Count: 256

Publisher: Portfolio

Review Posted Online: June 22, 2014

Kirkus Reviews Issue: July 15, 2014

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