The Heart of Entrepreneurship - by Melissa Bernstein (Paperback)

About the Book

From the creator of Melissa & Doug toys, Melissa Bernstein offers entrepreneurs a guide to the creative and visionary process of bringing a business, product, or service to life. Each chapter offers insights and practical exercises to help you apply these ideas to your own life and business.

Book Synopsis

From the creator of Melissa & Doug, an entrepreneur's guide to discovering and launching your unique vision

"Her toys took the market by storm, and in this book Melissa Bernstein shows what it takes to follow in her footsteps with your next big idea." --Adam Grant, PhD, New York Times bestselling author of Think Again

Entrepreneurship isn't for the faint of heart. Melissa Bernstein, cofounder of the wildly successful toy company Melissa & Doug and cofounder of the wellness company Lifelines, knows this firsthand. Connecting deeply with your soul and crafting a clear vision are central to launching a successful business. In The Heart of Entrepreneurship, Bernstein offers a guide to the creative and visionary process of bringing a business, product, or service to life.

Bernstein walks you through the method she uses when launching a new product or venture―a process she has guided hundreds of students through at Duke University and in Sounds True's Inner MBA(R) program. She likens this work to creating a new recipe. It involves:

- Cultivating a mindset of curiosity
- Gathering ingredients
- Diving deep into your area of intrigue
- Allowing ideas to simmer
- Assessing and altering as needed
- Serving your perfected recipe to consumers

Each chapter offers insights and practical exercises to help you apply these concepts to your own life and business.

Turning your passion into ideas that serve others requires courage and commitment and offers a profound sense of fulfillment. Bernstein explains, "You'll come to see that the solutions to both entrepreneurial challenges and life's most important questions are waiting (and have always been waiting) within your very soul."

Review Quotes

"Her toys took the market by storm, and in this book Melissa Bernstein shows what it takes to follow in her footsteps with your next big idea. She distills a career's worth of entrepreneurial successes into practical tips." --Adam Grant, PhD, New York Times bestselling author of Think Again and Hidden Potential, host of the podcast Re: Thinking

"Inspiring and generous, filled with insight and encouragement from someone who's done the work." --Seth Godin, New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestselling author of This Is Marketing

"An illuminating road map for creators, dreamers, and builders ready to bring their most authentic ideas to life. Melissa Bernstein expertly shares the recipe that helped her build a billion-dollar brand and guide hundreds of founders in turning a vision into a reality. I highly recommend reading this book if you need a dose of inspiration to start and scale your business." --Reid Hoffman, cofounder of LinkedIn, New York Times and USA Today bestselling coauthor of Superagency

"A nourishing blend of insight and action, The Heart of Entrepreneurship serves up a recipe for unlocking the creativity and entrepreneurial potential that lives within all of us. With Melissa Bernstein's inspiring stories and actionable guidance, you'll feel both fulfilled--and hungry to begin your own journey." --Jamie N. Jones, PhD, director for Duke Innovation & Entrepreneurship and associate professor at Fuqua School of Business, Duke University

"Melissa Bernstein's The Heart of Entrepreneurship is a rare and radiant offering. With the clarity of a seasoned founder and the vulnerability of a truth-teller, she invites readers not only to build businesses but to build lives of purpose, patience, and presence. Melissa understands that entrepreneurship is never just about external success--it's about the inner terrain we must navigate: fear, ego, shame, love. This book is a gift to anyone who feels the call to create and is brave enough to start from scratch." --Jerry Colonna, author of Reboot and Reunion

About the Author

Melissa Bernstein is an entrepreneur, creative, and mother of six. She's cofounder of Melissa & Doug, a billion-dollar toy company, and Lifelines, a wellness brand offering sensory products to manage stress and enhance well-being. Melissa is the Entrepreneur in Residence for the Inner MBA(R) certification program created by Sounds True, LinkedIn, and Wisdom 2.0; cofounder of Duke University's Melissa & Doug Entrepreneurs program; and author of LifeLines and Practice Makes Purpose.