Successful entrepreneurship starts with donkey poop and watermelon juice, according to Derek Lidow. I couldn’t agree more.

Some people think that successful entrepreneurs roll around in expensive cars, giving interviews on CNN, and gracing the cover of the Wall Street Journal in pixelated glory. The reality of it is years of very hard work, financial sacrifice, lost family time, and unglamorous tasks.

Building on Bedrock by Derek Lidow uses the life stories of some well known (and some not-so-well-known) entrepreneurs to illustrate the path to entrepreneurship. Sam Walton started from nothing (and leveraged the aforementioned donkeys and watermelons), Estee Lauder was struggling against an unkind comment from a store patron, and “Jody” Maroni just didn’t want to work in his dad’s butcher shop.

I’d recommend this as a good read for anyone who might be wondering whether they’re cut out for being an entrepreneur. Using the interwoven stories of these successful men and women, the author provides a “gut check” of how, when, and why you might want to start your own business.

Continuing the lessons of the highlighted men and women, they all slowly built their empires one step at a time. Once the new business was launched, the real success came with control, low risk, and patience. We can all draw some inspiration from these stories.

There is a diversion in the book, going into detail on “high risk” entrepreneurs, and the venture capitalists and angel investors they typically deal with. At first glance, it seems off-topic; however in today’s world of high-flying tech geniuses, it’s useful to know the pros and cons of dealing with that type of business model.

The financial foundation of a quick-start, high risk tech startup is vastly different from the “bedrock” entrepreneurship of a Sam Walton (not that one is better or worse, they’re just different, and it’s best to go in knowing where you fit into the equation). The two different modes require completely different personalities and leadership styles.

Another recurring theme among the entrepreneurs is travel and face-to-face interaction with the team. Walton even bought a used plane at one point, so he could more easily visit his franchise locations. Estee Lauder spent years on the road while her husband took care of the family.

Ultimately, according to Lidow, it comes down to five core skills:

1. Self Awareness
2. Relationship Building
3. Motivating Others
4. Leading Change
5. Enterprise Basics

Are you thinking about starting your own business? Would you consider yourself a “bedrock entrepreneur?”

Disclosure: I was given a digital copy of this book for purposes of this review.

All of the personal branding gurus out there are leaving out an important piece of the puzzle.

Yes, you should try to discover your life’s passion. But what’s next?

According to Mark W. Schaefer, consultant, speaker, and author of Known, the missing piece is applying your passion in service of a long-term goal.

For example, talking about my obsession with cupcakes is not going to help my personal brand unless I’m opening a bakery.

Mark is a masterful teacher, and he uses extensive interviews with successful people to give the reader actionable advice. He pulls back the curtain on regular people who found the right niche, built an engaged audience, and then patiently activated that audience to achieve a goal.

He’s the right person to talk about this subject, since he left the corporate world and started over as a consultant, using blogging as his calling card to become known in a new professional niche. His blog, {grow}, is now one of the top marketing blogs in the world.

My favorite thing about this book is that it’s written in Mark’s inimitable voice, as if you’re old friends. It’s not a stuffy, by-the-numbers business book.

Each person interviewed brings a new insight to the story, whether it’s the “grandpa who shoots things on YouTube,” or the blogging pediatrician. You’ll just have to read the book to meet these interesting characters.

There is also a separate workbook that takes the lessons from the book and provides a step-by-step walkthrough of the process to become “known.” Each question or prompt will provoke deeper thought and encourage you to put some meat on the bones of your professional plan.

I’d recommend this book to anyone who is struggling to be heard and recognized above the din. You’ll find inspiration and solid ideas in one entertaining package.

Disclosure: I consider Mark a friend, but he did not request this review or send me a free book (what’s up with that?). I forked out my own hard-earned dollars to purchase it, and these are my unvarnished opinions.

Author’s Bio: Rosemary O’Neill is an insightful spirit who works for Social Strata — makers of the Hoop.la community platform. Check out the Social Strata blog. You can find Rosemary on Google+ and on Twitter as @rhogroupee