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When Grit is Not Enough: An Entrepreneur's Playbook for Taking Your Business to the Next Level
Ready to take your business to the next level? This book is for you.
As an entrepreneur growing your business, how will you respond when things don’t go as planned? How do you keep up with constant technology shifts? How do you successfully scale your teams and strategy as you scale your product? When Grit Is Not Enough is a tactical playbook that has answers to these questions and more. Its lessons show you how to create a strong culture of organizational learning and agility and build high-performing and engaged teams who will thrive in our ever-changing world. This road map will empower you to compete—and win—against heavily funded and resourced competitors.
Author and tech CEO Dean Guida, who took his company from a startup to a thriving multinational business, knows well that entrepreneurial grit can only get you so far. Packed with his knowledge from more than three decades of operating in an unforgiving marketplace, When Grit Is Not Enough covers a wide range of topics,
• Creating organizational alignment
• Setting meaningful measurements and goals
• Building a data-driven culture
• Running effective meetings
• Strategic planning
• Leadership and coaching
• Having tough conversations
• Hiring and retaining valuable team members
If you’re an entrepreneur whose hard work and grit have gotten your business off the ground and ready for the next stage, this book will get you there, enhancing your chances of success, happiness, and accomplishment with your company and journey in life.
As an entrepreneur growing your business, how will you respond when things don’t go as planned? How do you keep up with constant technology shifts? How do you successfully scale your teams and strategy as you scale your product? When Grit Is Not Enough is a tactical playbook that has answers to these questions and more. Its lessons show you how to create a strong culture of organizational learning and agility and build high-performing and engaged teams who will thrive in our ever-changing world. This road map will empower you to compete—and win—against heavily funded and resourced competitors.
Author and tech CEO Dean Guida, who took his company from a startup to a thriving multinational business, knows well that entrepreneurial grit can only get you so far. Packed with his knowledge from more than three decades of operating in an unforgiving marketplace, When Grit Is Not Enough covers a wide range of topics,
• Creating organizational alignment
• Setting meaningful measurements and goals
• Building a data-driven culture
• Running effective meetings
• Strategic planning
• Leadership and coaching
• Having tough conversations
• Hiring and retaining valuable team members
If you’re an entrepreneur whose hard work and grit have gotten your business off the ground and ready for the next stage, this book will get you there, enhancing your chances of success, happiness, and accomplishment with your company and journey in life.
320 pages, Kindle Edition
Published January 9, 2024
9 people are currently reading
7 people want to read
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Displaying 1 - 20 of 20 reviews
July 13, 2024
Navigating the Complexities of Business Scaling...
Dean Guida's "When Grit is Not Enough" is a practical guide for entrepreneurs looking to expand their businesses beyond the startup stage. Guida draws on his expertise as a tech CEO to present a detailed playbook for dealing with the challenges of today's dynamic business world. The book's strength is its tactical approach, which provides actual recommendations for difficulties such as organizational alignment and creating a data-driven culture. Guida convincingly demonstrates that success necessitates more than simply tenacity, presenting a comprehensive vision of fighting against well-subsidized competitors. This book is an excellent resource for entrepreneurs at all phases of their growth. Guida's emphasis on cultivating a culture of learning and agility is especially timely. "When Grit is Not Enough" is an essential guide for transforming startups into strong, long-term businesses. Highly recommended.
Dean Guida's "When Grit is Not Enough" is a practical guide for entrepreneurs looking to expand their businesses beyond the startup stage. Guida draws on his expertise as a tech CEO to present a detailed playbook for dealing with the challenges of today's dynamic business world. The book's strength is its tactical approach, which provides actual recommendations for difficulties such as organizational alignment and creating a data-driven culture. Guida convincingly demonstrates that success necessitates more than simply tenacity, presenting a comprehensive vision of fighting against well-subsidized competitors. This book is an excellent resource for entrepreneurs at all phases of their growth. Guida's emphasis on cultivating a culture of learning and agility is especially timely. "When Grit is Not Enough" is an essential guide for transforming startups into strong, long-term businesses. Highly recommended.
November 14, 2024
Improving Your business
In this book, Dean Guide, reflects all his experience in his working life, which is a great help for all business owners, because it will help them in making decisions when the business is not giving the expected results and for those who plan to form their own business because it helps them to avoid possible mistakes that may affect the expected results. It is written in simple language, easy to understand and the guidelines and advice it gives are easy to implement in the business. By considering the company as a unit, it takes into account all the aspects that must be taken into account for a good management and development. After reading the book, the reader will be able to create the organizational culture of his business, create a culture based on data, make a good strategic planning among many topics, which guarantee a good leadership and a good organizational climate, key factors for the achievement of the desired objectives.
In this book, Dean Guide, reflects all his experience in his working life, which is a great help for all business owners, because it will help them in making decisions when the business is not giving the expected results and for those who plan to form their own business because it helps them to avoid possible mistakes that may affect the expected results. It is written in simple language, easy to understand and the guidelines and advice it gives are easy to implement in the business. By considering the company as a unit, it takes into account all the aspects that must be taken into account for a good management and development. After reading the book, the reader will be able to create the organizational culture of his business, create a culture based on data, make a good strategic planning among many topics, which guarantee a good leadership and a good organizational climate, key factors for the achievement of the desired objectives.
July 19, 2024
The importance of adaptability and continuous learning
This memoir and business guide is amazing. The author shares very personal challenges faced during a critical merger at Infragistics. In order to make the emotional and practical turmoil of the entrepreneurial life clear he uses anecdotes. The writing style is quite engaging. It has a focus on grit and resilience. In me this evoked empathy and inspiration. The key message I got out of this is the importance of adaptability and continuous learning in building a "Next Business." I would say it's a valuable read for budding entrepreneurs, business leaders, and anyone interested in organizational development. The structure mixes personal history with actionable insights. I found this to work very well as it created a cohesive and motivating story.
This memoir and business guide is amazing. The author shares very personal challenges faced during a critical merger at Infragistics. In order to make the emotional and practical turmoil of the entrepreneurial life clear he uses anecdotes. The writing style is quite engaging. It has a focus on grit and resilience. In me this evoked empathy and inspiration. The key message I got out of this is the importance of adaptability and continuous learning in building a "Next Business." I would say it's a valuable read for budding entrepreneurs, business leaders, and anyone interested in organizational development. The structure mixes personal history with actionable insights. I found this to work very well as it created a cohesive and motivating story.
November 12, 2024
Being ahead of the curve
In Being Ahead of the Curve, the author emphasizes that success in business is not achieved solely through courage and grit. It is also essential to be methodical and to have a well-designed organizational strategy that can be effectively implemented and adapted to a constantly changing environment.
Guida shares several key points to consider when implementing strategies in our business to stay at the forefront of such a competitive world. These strategies ensure our survival, prevent us from being overtaken by the competition, and help make our business more efficient and effective, all while prioritizing the most important asset, the human team.
Overall, this book is a highly valuable guide for anyone looking to strengthen their business and make it more robust and competitive.
In Being Ahead of the Curve, the author emphasizes that success in business is not achieved solely through courage and grit. It is also essential to be methodical and to have a well-designed organizational strategy that can be effectively implemented and adapted to a constantly changing environment.
Guida shares several key points to consider when implementing strategies in our business to stay at the forefront of such a competitive world. These strategies ensure our survival, prevent us from being overtaken by the competition, and help make our business more efficient and effective, all while prioritizing the most important asset, the human team.
Overall, this book is a highly valuable guide for anyone looking to strengthen their business and make it more robust and competitive.
November 16, 2024
Very enriching
I must say that I'm old school, I understand little about innovation and startups but I'm in entrepreneurship and the need to seek new resources has prompted me to read books of this type and so far, I do not regret it.
The book has been of enormous help to me, because at the time of entrepreneurship many frustrations arise and more in a woman like me who is no longer a young girl, but needs to see results sooner rather than later.
With all the advice both theoretical and practical, I have taken careful note to transform it to my goals. What I have learned the most from this book and what I really take with me into the future is the teaching to always make decisions based on a strategic plan, a plan that actually comes from accurate and well analyzed data and information.
I must say that I'm old school, I understand little about innovation and startups but I'm in entrepreneurship and the need to seek new resources has prompted me to read books of this type and so far, I do not regret it.
The book has been of enormous help to me, because at the time of entrepreneurship many frustrations arise and more in a woman like me who is no longer a young girl, but needs to see results sooner rather than later.
With all the advice both theoretical and practical, I have taken careful note to transform it to my goals. What I have learned the most from this book and what I really take with me into the future is the teaching to always make decisions based on a strategic plan, a plan that actually comes from accurate and well analyzed data and information.
December 16, 2024
Interesting!
If you are an entrepreneur or businessman, I am sure you have wondered why if you make so many efforts, the result in sales is not always the expected and although it may be disappointing, this book explores the idea that using your best effort is not enough to succeed in business, you need many more tools that this same text proposes.
In my opinion, it is a very complete book because what it seeks is that you are the most strategic when making decisions through the theoretical teachings and practical tools proposed by the author, besides teaching you to take risks taking into account the numerical data that can give you very good insights into your growth.
The book is perfect for CEOs, entrepreneurs, business owners and others looking for a comprehensive guide to encourage strategic thinking and a data-driven culture.
If you are an entrepreneur or businessman, I am sure you have wondered why if you make so many efforts, the result in sales is not always the expected and although it may be disappointing, this book explores the idea that using your best effort is not enough to succeed in business, you need many more tools that this same text proposes.
In my opinion, it is a very complete book because what it seeks is that you are the most strategic when making decisions through the theoretical teachings and practical tools proposed by the author, besides teaching you to take risks taking into account the numerical data that can give you very good insights into your growth.
The book is perfect for CEOs, entrepreneurs, business owners and others looking for a comprehensive guide to encourage strategic thinking and a data-driven culture.
July 18, 2024
As an entrepreneur, I highly recommend this book.
In my case, this book helped and guided me in many ways, showing me strategies to grow my business. It is a read for everyone, no matter if your business is small, medium or large.
This is a book of tactics that help you consolidate an organization with high performance teams, organizational agility and a good learning culture. This book showed me that there cannot be a change without applying certain tactics, what it means is that every action has a result, the important thing is to apply the right strategies.
It is a book that all entrepreneurs should read, it opens your eyes to the mistakes that we usually make when starting our start-up and helps you to take it to the next level.
In my case, this book helped and guided me in many ways, showing me strategies to grow my business. It is a read for everyone, no matter if your business is small, medium or large.
This is a book of tactics that help you consolidate an organization with high performance teams, organizational agility and a good learning culture. This book showed me that there cannot be a change without applying certain tactics, what it means is that every action has a result, the important thing is to apply the right strategies.
It is a book that all entrepreneurs should read, it opens your eyes to the mistakes that we usually make when starting our start-up and helps you to take it to the next level.
July 19, 2024
This book is perfect for entrepreneurs, the author takes the role of educating us in this world very seriously. And he guides us to find ways to improve the business to make it grow. The good thing about this book is that it doesn't focus on one particular point but rather gives you a much broader view of the business in general. This book is full of advice, definitely the one that was most valuable to me is the advice to improve leadership and that can facilitate the way we are working as a team. It is an easy book to read and, above all, easy to understand. I consider that it does not depend on the size of the company, even so it has valuable insights to improve work. Without a doubt, it's a very good book which I recommend.
December 14, 2024
A great reading experience
Having the opportunity to read the experienced author and tech CEO Dean Guida, who transformed his startup into a thriving multinational company, is truly a real pleasure since not all those who thrive in business are generous enough to tell others how they have done so.
In this narrative, wisdom is spread, tips are passed on, strategies are shared, and decision-making is enhanced. All this through simple words and accessible concepts.
Anyone who is into business, owns one, or is thinking about delving into this amazing field should go and get a copy of When Grit is Not Enough. This has been a great discovery of mine, and I will keep on reading more from the author.
Having the opportunity to read the experienced author and tech CEO Dean Guida, who transformed his startup into a thriving multinational company, is truly a real pleasure since not all those who thrive in business are generous enough to tell others how they have done so.
In this narrative, wisdom is spread, tips are passed on, strategies are shared, and decision-making is enhanced. All this through simple words and accessible concepts.
Anyone who is into business, owns one, or is thinking about delving into this amazing field should go and get a copy of When Grit is Not Enough. This has been a great discovery of mine, and I will keep on reading more from the author.
July 17, 2024
What I needed
This book is the guide that every entrepreneur or every person with a business or growth perspective needs.
The author brings with him an excellent work of recommendations to open your perspective. It makes us reflect on the speed at which the real world changes, jobs, markets, and people themselves are constantly changing. It is no longer like before when changes took root much more gradually. Now, who does not keep updated, has all the chances of losing or not advancing.
This book precisely gives us the tools to avoid being left behind in the face of change and opens our eyes so that we can become more competitive, efficient and risk-taking.
This book is the guide that every entrepreneur or every person with a business or growth perspective needs.
The author brings with him an excellent work of recommendations to open your perspective. It makes us reflect on the speed at which the real world changes, jobs, markets, and people themselves are constantly changing. It is no longer like before when changes took root much more gradually. Now, who does not keep updated, has all the chances of losing or not advancing.
This book precisely gives us the tools to avoid being left behind in the face of change and opens our eyes so that we can become more competitive, efficient and risk-taking.
July 18, 2024
Useful book!
With so many changes every day, companies or businesses sometimes are not ready to apply new developments or be ready with innovations and social media. ''When Grit is Not Enough'' is a book that will guide you in this path. Here you will find how to strengthen your team, build strong data to use in your benefits, leadership style, rhythm of the business, and more. This book contains useful information that must help you to organize your business better. The information here is clear and easy to apply. I am sure you will find this book useful for you and why not share it with your friends? I recommend it.
With so many changes every day, companies or businesses sometimes are not ready to apply new developments or be ready with innovations and social media. ''When Grit is Not Enough'' is a book that will guide you in this path. Here you will find how to strengthen your team, build strong data to use in your benefits, leadership style, rhythm of the business, and more. This book contains useful information that must help you to organize your business better. The information here is clear and easy to apply. I am sure you will find this book useful for you and why not share it with your friends? I recommend it.
July 18, 2024
According to the author, Organizational Alignment is one of the key factors for the good performance of a business. In this way, the actions of the different areas of the company will be synchronized, greater collaboration will be achieved between the teams, and effectiveness will be ensured when defining priorities and business focus. Additionally, with this book readers will learn how to build a successful work and business culture.
I learned and enjoyed a lot with the approach proposed by author Guida, I think it is very accurate and easy to implement. I hope to be able to read more books by this author, so that I can continue to learn more about the topic in question.
I learned and enjoyed a lot with the approach proposed by author Guida, I think it is very accurate and easy to implement. I hope to be able to read more books by this author, so that I can continue to learn more about the topic in question.
July 19, 2024
A great book for businesses
Weather you have a small or big business, this book is perfect for you. Personally, I feel this book is very useful because of the important topics it covers such as building trust in a team, learning organizations, hiring, tough conversations, coaching, leadership style and recovery of self care, which are just a few of the chapters within this book.
The author uses personal examples and motivation to make his statements a reality. The book is like a manual for all business people as it gives the reader all the tools to be successful and have a successful business that not only thrive in its field but also has successful employees.
Weather you have a small or big business, this book is perfect for you. Personally, I feel this book is very useful because of the important topics it covers such as building trust in a team, learning organizations, hiring, tough conversations, coaching, leadership style and recovery of self care, which are just a few of the chapters within this book.
The author uses personal examples and motivation to make his statements a reality. The book is like a manual for all business people as it gives the reader all the tools to be successful and have a successful business that not only thrive in its field but also has successful employees.
July 19, 2024
Grow a business.
It is the kind of book where I value figures, graphs, and boxes. I can even say that I wish it had a few more. This business book exposes a lot of interesting questions - and necessary to ask them - when running a business; and offers smart and comprehensive answers.
Although the success in "When Grit Is Not Enough" is stated in very simplistic terms where the most important thing is to beat the competition, it has not only a little bit of truth but also proposes other interesting topics for this work. I liked it because the information provided is possible to put into practice, and the author demonstrates this with his years of experience.
It is the kind of book where I value figures, graphs, and boxes. I can even say that I wish it had a few more. This business book exposes a lot of interesting questions - and necessary to ask them - when running a business; and offers smart and comprehensive answers.
Although the success in "When Grit Is Not Enough" is stated in very simplistic terms where the most important thing is to beat the competition, it has not only a little bit of truth but also proposes other interesting topics for this work. I liked it because the information provided is possible to put into practice, and the author demonstrates this with his years of experience.
November 16, 2024
This is an excellent book on how to improve your business. The book talks about working with your talent pool or hiring the right people for the right roles. A chapter in the book also helps you streamline and make your meetings more efficient; no more busy work; everything and everything people spend at work has a purpose. Each chapter is carefully researched and structured for the reader to understand quickly, and it is reinforced with a summary of key points at the end of each chapter. I am a visual learner, so the multiple illustrations helped me understand the concepts. It would help that the illustrations and graphs would be colored since this is Kindle anyway.
November 15, 2024
How to create a happy company
Great book about how to make your business successful as a whole, i.e. happy employees as well as a financial success. The book first read like an ad for the author's business to me, but really the intent is to share the story of this particular business, all the ins and outs and the stuff behind the scenes that went into making it a long-lasting success. There are many acronyms featured in this book, I even thought the author was making them up and googled one to see if it was real (BHAG - Big Hairy Audacious Goal is a real acronym!). The book is positive and encouraging and would be a good read for an entrepreneur.
Great book about how to make your business successful as a whole, i.e. happy employees as well as a financial success. The book first read like an ad for the author's business to me, but really the intent is to share the story of this particular business, all the ins and outs and the stuff behind the scenes that went into making it a long-lasting success. There are many acronyms featured in this book, I even thought the author was making them up and googled one to see if it was real (BHAG - Big Hairy Audacious Goal is a real acronym!). The book is positive and encouraging and would be a good read for an entrepreneur.
November 17, 2024
Awesome book!
Today, many people want to create a business, but not everyone has the courage to continue building their ideas. This book is not just for entrepreneurs or business people, it is for all those who want to live differently with more self-confidence. It can be said that our life is our biggest and most important business and this book really reminds us that our life is unique and we should live it without boxes that lock us in and take away the possibility to dream. I really like the fact that the book constantly invites the reader to always be in constant motion to not settle. It is really motivating.
Today, many people want to create a business, but not everyone has the courage to continue building their ideas. This book is not just for entrepreneurs or business people, it is for all those who want to live differently with more self-confidence. It can be said that our life is our biggest and most important business and this book really reminds us that our life is unique and we should live it without boxes that lock us in and take away the possibility to dream. I really like the fact that the book constantly invites the reader to always be in constant motion to not settle. It is really motivating.
December 13, 2024
must read!
This was a really good book to read. It really helped me to understand how to scale my business beyond the different fundamental stages. I really loved to see that the book was written by an experienced person who knew pretty well the topic, as an extensive experience as a tech CEO who transformed his startup. I also really got to know many strategies and advice that may function on the challenges of modern entrepreneurship.
Overall, this can be a very valuable resource for entrepreneurs and CEOs trying to achieve their goals of taking their companies to a whole new next level.
This was a really good book to read. It really helped me to understand how to scale my business beyond the different fundamental stages. I really loved to see that the book was written by an experienced person who knew pretty well the topic, as an extensive experience as a tech CEO who transformed his startup. I also really got to know many strategies and advice that may function on the challenges of modern entrepreneurship.
Overall, this can be a very valuable resource for entrepreneurs and CEOs trying to achieve their goals of taking their companies to a whole new next level.
July 21, 2024
This is a guide book for entrepreneurs that are looking to go the extra mile with their business. The author and his years of experience give the readers the information in need to make smart decisions and align the team. There are a lot of important topics like how important it is to run good meetings and how crucial planning with a strategic in mind is.
The author makes a point of hard work and the repercussions it has but also mentions how to create a culture of learning and flexibility, and I found that to be really smart, because hard work is not done correctly may lead to nothing.
The author makes a point of hard work and the repercussions it has but also mentions how to create a culture of learning and flexibility, and I found that to be really smart, because hard work is not done correctly may lead to nothing.
November 16, 2024
a book you should check out
When Grit Is Not Enough is simple, clear, and full of practical advice. Honestly, I felt like I got a behind-the-scenes look at how real business leaders think and work.
The author makes a strong case for why grit alone isn’t enough. You need smart strategies, and he explains how to plan and align your team. The chapters on leadership and tough conversations really stood out to me. They felt relevant and gave me ideas I could use right away.
When Grit Is Not Enough is simple, clear, and full of practical advice. Honestly, I felt like I got a behind-the-scenes look at how real business leaders think and work.
The author makes a strong case for why grit alone isn’t enough. You need smart strategies, and he explains how to plan and align your team. The chapters on leadership and tough conversations really stood out to me. They felt relevant and gave me ideas I could use right away.
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