Page Turners! We’re Starting Off 2016 With Three Books by Three Successful Speaker Keynotes

Over the past few months we’ve devoted a series of posts to the best business books of 2015. We know that the best entrepreneurs never stop learning, which is why we like to offer our recommendations for reading material.

This year we want to start off our book recommendations with a few in-house selections, works written by some of our keynote speakers. In today’s post we’ve selected books that Carolyn Creswell, Tom O’Toole and Mary Coustas wrote.

The first two books are definitely business-oriented. The last book? Not so much, but still a very entertaining read we think you’ll enjoy.

Carolyn Creswell, “Rare Birds: Australia’s 50 Influential Women Entrepreneurs”

You’ve probably heard it said a hundred times – entrepreneurs need to dream big in order to accomplish big dreams.

Carolyn Creswell, one of our talented keynote speakers, took that philosophy to heart when she made it her mission to see 1,000,000 Australian women become entrepreneurs by the year 2020.

Carolyn has published two books under the Rare Bird initiative, a movement started a few years ago by female entrepreneur Jo Burston.

Here book, “50 Influential Female Entrepreneurs,” is an homage to the Rare Birds movement as well as a revelatory statement of support for the Australian female entrepreneur movement. Eventually, we believe, female entrepreneurship will become the norm rather than a movement.

Until then, Creswell’s book will play an important part in getting the word out about the skill, savvy and talent of the country’s leading businesswomen.

“Join these women on their real journeys and enjoy a rare look into their motivations, mindsets, sacrifices and what they still dream of achieving,” the book’s Rare Birds page says.

Tom O’Toole, “Breadwinner”

Is there an entrepreneur in Australia who can match the larger-than-life personality that is Tom O’Toole? The Victoria-born owner of Beechworth Bakery is as adept at baking as he is at humour, and over the years he’s built quite the reputation as an entertaining keynote speaker.

Now, while most people know Tom as a successful businessman, they may not know how he got to that point. His beginnings were quite humble, actually. He grew up poor.

In his book, Tom talks about the moment during his childhood when he realized he would one day be an entrepreneur.

He and a mate were wagging school, passing the time on the banks of the Murray River. As they were sitting there, Tom had a vision – call it that old Irish knowing – and he came away from the moment knowing most assuredly he’d one day find success as a business owner.

That success is chronicled in “Breadwinner”, Tom’s “business autobiography”. His book gives real-life stories and examples of how to (and how not to) chase a dream and start a business. It’s an entertaining read written in the ever-captivating voice of Australia’s most beloved baker.

“Breadwinner” is one of dozens of resources Tom created to help entrepreneurs find their sweet spot. You can view all his materials at Tom’s online store.

Mary Coustas, “Effie’s Guide to Being Up Yourself”

Mary Coustas is the definition of a one-woman show. She’s got a huge personality, a great resume of acting roles and a devoted following to her Greek-Australian comedy, Effie.

While Mary is pretty business savvy, her book, “Effie’s Guide” isn’t what you’d call a handbook to success. It’s a delightful journey into the mind of one of the country’s beloved fictional characters.

The straight-shooting, up-herself character is always on the prowl for a good (rich) man, but the Greek-Australian hairdresser is just part of Mary Coustas’ library. She recently wrote a book titled, “All I Know: A Memoir of Love, Loss and Life,” in which she talks about the pain of losing loved ones and the ups and downs of her entertainment career.

Looking ahead to another great year…

We saw a lot of changes at Successful Speakers in 2015. Our website grew, our list of speakers expanded, we launched our social-media channels and we continued to provide business and organizations with Australia’s most experience keynote speakers.

We don’t expect anything less in 2016, so here’s to a new year and another 11 months of opportunity!