Zilch, Nancy Lublin
Zilch, Nancy Lublin
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Zilch
The Power of Zero in Business

Author: Nancy Lublin

Narrator: Nancy Lublin

Unabridged: 6 hr 40 min

Format: Digital Audiobook Download

Publisher: Ascent Audio

Published: 07/28/2010


Synopsis

"What we have to offer can be boiled down to one concept: the power of zero. We get more done with less of just about everything, from our people to our workplaces to our vendors. Zilch is what drives us to be more innovative, more passionate, more creative. So stop whining about your budget cuts and start asking yourself what you'd do if you had zilch. You'll be surprised just how powerful that is."

After years of being told to emulate the corporate world, not-for-profit CEOs like Nancy Lublin now find the shoe on the other foot. Tough times have forced businesses to slash their headcount, marketing budgets, and other resources. Managers at small startups and Fortune 100 companies alike are now expected to do more with less—but how?

No one is more qualified to answer that question than the leaders who always thrive on a shoestring.

Take Nancy Lublin, for instance. She learned firsthand how much you can accomplish with zilch (or close to it). As the founder of Dress for Success, which provides low-income women with interview suits and career development training, she turned a $5,000 inheritance into a global franchise. Then, as CEO of DoSomething.org, she helped turn a struggling startup into one of the largest and most successful youth volunteer groups in the world.

Now she draws on her experiences as well as interviews with other "rock star" leaders of flourishing not-for-profits-including Wendy Kopp of Teach For America, Darell Hammond of KaBOOM!, Greg Baldwin of VolunteerMatch.org, and John Lilly of Mozilla. Their examples prove the power of zero in business by teaching us how to:

* Motivate and retain good people without offering huge financial incentives
* Use the power of bartering to leverage every asset and minimize your liabilities
* Create cherished brands without throwing money at studies and focus groups
* Market your goods or service without paying a penny

Lublin's tone is a unique mix of "let's have some fun" and "here's the straight dope." Her expert advice will help any business or organization to get ahead through the power of zero.

About Nancy Lublin

Nancy Lublin is CEO of DoSomething.org; founder of Dress for Success, which helps women transition from welfare to work; and founder of Crisis Text Line, a nationwide text line for teens. Lublin is a Crown Fellow with the Aspen Institute, author of Zilch: The Power of Zero in Business, and was named one of the Schwab Foundation Social Entrepreneurs of the Year 2014.


Reviews

Goodreads review by Ken

NOTE: This review/interview originally appeared as a posting on my professional blog, "The Nonprofit Consultant Blog." The audience on that blog is others working in the nonprofit sector. One of my pet peeves has always been when well-meaning, but somewhat clueless outsiders tell us in the nonprofit......more

For the last few years I've read a few books about business, both nonprofit and for profit and while there were some good points in this book I found myself disagreeing with a lot of her thoughts. First: there was the passion aspect for nonprofit employees: because we work so hard we are at risk of b......more

Goodreads review by Dennis

In a recent post, Seth Godin, a master of marketing, recommended a book by Nancy Lublin "Zilch: The Power of Zero in Business". In the book, Lublin unfolds the power that zero has by sharing eleven lessons from the non-profit world. Anyone discouraged by a lack of resources or not knowing where to s......more

Goodreads review by Paul

Non-profits have a "zero amount" baseline for their approach to problem-solving that is inherent in how they are structured. This leads to a leadership approach that for-profit businesses could use in their own well-funded world. I hated, and loved this book in parts. The writing was quite difficult......more

Goodreads review by Hector

Takeaway theme from this book: run your finances like they are public record. What can be learned from noon profits? Run lean. Be resourceful. Barter. Borrow. Don't be shy about asking. Employ people passionate about your cause.......more