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<p>Foreword xi</p> <p>Acknowledgments xiii</p> <p>About the Author xv</p> <p><b>PART ONE Being All That You Can Be 1</b></p> <p>INTRODUCTION The Very Best Job in the World 3</p> <p>CHAPTER 1 Getting to the Next Level 13</p> <p>CHAPTER 2 Why Employee Size Matters: A Different Way of Measuring the Four Stages 23</p> <p>CHAPTER 3 Becoming a Five-Star Business Genius 31</p> <p><b>PART TWO Stage One: Infancy 41</b></p> <p>CHAPTER 4 The Supremacy of Selling 43</p> <p>CHAPTER 5 Your Optimum Selling Strategy and the Four Fundamental Secrets of Selling Your First Product 67</p> <p>CHAPTER 6 Mastering the Copy Side of Selling 91</p> <p>CHAPTER 7 Secondary—Yet Important—Priorities for Stage One Businesses 109</p> <p>CHAPTER 8 A Quick Review of the Problems, Challenges, and Opportunities Faced by the Stage One Entrepreneur 121</p> <p><b>PART THREE Stage Two: Childhood 129</b></p> <p>CHAPTER 9 From $1 Million to $10 Million and Beyond: How to Break through the One-Product-Company Syndrome 131</p> <p>CHAPTER 10 Innovation—the Key to Second-Stage Growth 147</p> <p>CHAPTER 11 Speed: Putting <i>Ready, Fire, Aim</i> into Your Business 167</p> <p>CHAPTER 12 Getting Ready 181</p> <p>CHAPTER 13 What Are You Waiting For? Start Firing Already! 195</p> <p>CHAPTER 14 Aiming the Product 205</p> <p>CHAPTER 15 Aiming the Marketing, Part 1: A Quick Crash Course 219</p> <p>CHAPTER 16 Aiming the Marketing, Part 2: Understanding the Buying Frenzy 239</p> <p>CHAPTER 17 <i>Ready, Fire, Aim</i> in Action 259</p> <p>CHAPTER 18 A Quick Review of the Problems, Challenges, and Opportunities Faced by the Stage Two Entrepreneur 271</p> <p><b>PART FOUR Stage Three: Adolescence 279</b></p> <p>CHAPTER 19 Making the Stage Three Transformation 281</p> <p>CHAPTER 20 Changing into a Corporate Leader 295</p> <p>CHAPTER 21 Filling Your Stage Three Business with Stars and Superstars 307</p> <p>CHAPTER 22 Bottlenecks, Bureaucracy, and Politics 321</p> <p>CHAPTER 23 A Quick Review of the Problems, Challenges, and Opportunities Faced by the Stage Three Entrepreneur 333</p> <p><b>PART FIVE Stage Four: Adulthood 339</b></p> <p>CHAPTER 24 The Last Big Change 341</p> <p>CHAPTER 25 Acting as Your Company's Main Investor 349</p> <p>Afterword 357</p> <p>Notes 361</p> <p>Index 365</p>

<p><b>Michael Masterson</b> has developed a loyal following of more than 250,000 subscribers with Early to Rise (www.EarlyToRise.com), an e-newsletter published by Agora, Inc. Throughout his remarkably successful business career, Masterson has been a partner in two businesses that grew beyond $100 million, two more that exceeded $50 million, and at least a dozen that surpassed the $10 million mark. He is also the author of the <i>New York Times</i>, <i>Wall Street Journal</i>, and Amazon.com bestsellers <i>Seven Years to Seven Figures</i>, <i>Automatic Wealth</i>, and <i>Automatic Wealth for Grads . . . and Anyone Else Just Starting Out</i> (all from Wiley), and <i>Confessions of a Self-Made Multimillionaire</i>. Subscribe to Michael Masterson's daily e-zine at www.EarlyToRise.com.</p>

<p>Praise for READY, FIRE, AIM</p> <p>“This is an extraordinary book—full of practiced, proven strategies and techniques to help you make more sales and greater profits than you ever imagined possible.” <p><b>—Brian Tracy, author of<i> The Way to Wealth</B></i> <p>“Wow! A powerhouse book packed with tried and tested street-smart wisdom. I’m impressed!” <p><b>—Dr. Joe Vitale, author of <i>The Attractor Factor</b></i> <p>“Michael Masterson’s <i>Ready, Fire, Aim</i> hits the mark—dead center. Masterson describes the phases of a business in a very helpful and perceptive way. No matter where you are in your business career … just starting out or already at the $50 million level … you’ll better understand the challenges you face. And you’ll get some bull’s-eye insights about how to overcome them.” <p><b>—Bill Bonner, founder and President of Agora Inc.</b> <p><i>“Ready, Fire, Aim </i>is vintage Michael Masterson. Every sentence in the book is on the mark —stuff you can use right now, today, to accelerate your climb to the top of the financial ladder. What sets Masterson apart from most of the gurus who write about how to do it is that he’s actually done it — over … and over … and over again. The number of successful businesses he’s built is no less than astonishing. Every serious entrepreneur needs to avail himself of the information in this book.” <p><b>—Robert Ringer, author of<i> To Be or Not to Be Intimidated?</i></B> <p><i>Ready, Fire, Aim</i> is both an attitude and a method that self-made multimillionaire and bestselling author Michael Masterson follows to achieve success in business. It’s helped him build and grow dozens of multimillion-dollar businesses, including one whose revenues reached $135 million and another still growing at $300 million. <p>Now, with <i>Ready, Fire, Aim,</i> Masterson reveals how you can use his approach to achieve unprecedented entrepreneurial success and enjoy life to its fullest. Written in a straightforward and accessible style, this engaging guide will prepare you to: <ul><li>Start a business from scratch and make it profitable quickly</li> <li>Keep a growing business growing as revenues climb from a million to tens of millions to hundreds of millions</li> <li>Get other people to do almost all the hard work for you, so you are free to do only the fun stuff</li> <li>Position yourself as an indispensable business builder, so you can enjoy a big share of the profits even if you are working only part-time</li> <li>Duplicate your winning strategy in several businesses, so you never have to worry about “needing” any one of them</li></ul> <p>It takes more than money to build a profitable business—it takes a unique set of skills and strategies. With<i> Ready, Fire, Aim,</i> you’ll discover how to develop these essential entrepreneurial skills and use them to vastly improve any business endeavor.

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