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Tuesday, January 17, 2012 at 9:18AM 
Lavine's human and authoritative story makes this one of the most engaging and useful resources available for readers hoping to convert their passion into a healthy company—any man who perceives her lessons as gender-specific will lose out on a rare gem.
Sunday, January 1, 2012 at 8:00AM Her book is loaded with resources for a fledgling businessperson — woman or man — armed with a good idea and boundless energy.
Her story hits the age-old themes of stick-to-itiveness, grit and the value of believing in yourself and your business concept.
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Saturday, December 31, 2011 at 8:40AM Sunday, October 18, 2009 at 11:47AM 
By Kandace Chapple
Bestselling author Kim Lavine urges women to rebuild our economy one business at a time
“When passion walks in the room, everyone stands up,” Kim Lavine writes in her newest book The Mommy Manifesto. “Passion is what everyone wants and if you have it, people will either want to be like you or be with you. In a meeting or a party or in any group, the people with passion in their eyes are the people whom everyone else is listening to and watching.”
And Lavine is one of those people. If her tall stature and sassy heels don’t get your attention first, her passion will.
From afar, her wispy blond hair looks like a halo above the crowd, but a few pleasantries into meeting her, you suspect she spends the day with the devil on one shoulder and God on the other.
She’s kind and approachable; she’s brazen and bold. She’s wise and generous; she’s unexpected and shocking. She’s like every mom in the world; she’s unlike anyone you’ve ever met.
And it’s this spin and tumble that makes her newest book, The Mommy Manifesto, more of a ride than a read.
The Michigan mom and inspirational business icon is on a mission: Through her worldwide book tour from the United States to Hong Kong, she wants to help kick-start one million new businesses. (And if that’s not enough, she’ll be filming a pilot for a television series based on the book along the way).
Lavine signed the first copies of her book hot off the press right here at the GTWoman Expo in September. In it, she covers everything from why moms will rebuild America (we control $8.5 trillion dollars in consumer spending – three-quarters of the American economy) to tossing out mommy guilt to doing away with the “B” word.
She’s got ideas, she’s got mettle and she’s got a plan.
For the women of Northern Michigan facing job loss, looking to reenter the job force after having children or sitting on a great business idea they want to launch, Lavine says welcome to the revolution.
“Forget all the talk about doom and gloom. The economy’s not dying; it’s being reborn,” said Lavine.
Embracing the revolution is a message that Lavine wants every woman to hear – young, old, poor, happy, sad.
“We were sick before; what we’re going through now is the cure,” she said. “Old institutions are failing, but in their place new and better ones are being created. Barriers to entry in the business world are falling in an epic fashion, making it easier than ever to compete with the big guys from your kitchen table.”
And she should know. In 2002, she made her own product – corn-filled pillows in fun fabrics that can be heated or cooled – at her kitchen table and dubbed it the Wuvit. She turned the cuddly pillow that everyone loves (wuvs!) into a million dollar business within three years.
The success of the Wuvit spawned her bestselling book The Mommy Millionaire in 2007 and paved her way for appearances on The Today Show, CNN, CNBC, ABC, NBC and more. She is now the president of Mommy Millionaire Media—a multi-media company developing opportunities in publishing, TV, radio and social networking like her very own Mommy Millionaire online community—and of Green Daisy—a lifestyle brand that sells products like cozy daisy-covered pjs.
And she did it all with her kids (then ages 2 and 4) in tow and her house a mess.
This is the magical element that makes her one of us.
“Screw the guilt and screw balance too! Embrace the chaos,” Lavine writes in The Mommy Manifesto. “I see strong, capable, loving women who are struggling with feelings of inadequacy as mothers and businesswomen all because they made a decision to dedicate at least a small portion of their lives each day to doing something for themselves, to fulfill their dreams of self-expression, to find reward in starting a business, or to support their families.”
Lavine goes where few business books have gone for Moms: She implores women to answer the phone with noisy kids in the background when need be (If I can scream over them, so can you.), to take kids to meetings if the babysitter falls through (if you’re paying the person you are meeting with, they can deal with it), forget housekeeping (It’s not about how clean your house is, it’s about how happy your kids are.) and to never, ever apologize for having children (You’re a mom, own it!).
“Of all the problems in this world, children are not one of them,” she writes.
As more and more moms join the revolution, Lavine says it redefines what “mom” is.
“Mom is the new sexy,” Lavine says. “Forget soccer moms or alpha moms. Moms are powerful. And powerful is sexy.”
And there’s power in numbers: Women are starting businesses today at twice the rate of men.
“The forecasted growth of women-owned companies from 48 percent to 55 percent in the next five years is a powerful phenomenon that will rewrite the American cultural landscape, changing work and family life in revolutionary ways,” Lavine said.
And for mothers starting businesses with kids on their hips, technology has made meeting and matching the big guys a real possibility – through the infiltration of social mediums like Twitter, Facebook and My Space.
Women are now reaching people everywhere at anytime with their message, their product, their brand, and Lavine offers her readers concrete tips on how to use each medium.
“Everything in the business world is up for grabs,” Lavine writes. “The creation, distribution and control of money-making ideas is leaving the hands of the few and transferring to the hands of the many.”
And while the college kids are talking about the latest party on Facebook, the moms are talking about the newest product. Many businesses locally, including Grand Traverse Woman, have built a presence on Facebook and Twitter, garnering fans and followers.
“Moms are the new geeks,” Lavine said. “I have seen the future of media, and it is social and run by women.”
In her book, Lavine opines on topics rarely voiced in business circles. Most notably, she urges women to quit using the “B” word to describe women in power.
As one example, she cites the prevalence of the bitch drama in TV shows. It can be found even in tween shows like True Jackson, VP on Nickelodeon, where the female boss Amanda makes life miserable for 15-year-old True as they compete for accolades in the design world.
“(TV shows) make women compete in ways guaranteed to bring out the claws,” Lavine writes. “This is why we have bitches in the first place: There is a perceived need to compete against each other for limited success.”
And this, she points out, is the biggest business myth out there. The truth is that there’s enough success for everyone to go around. That doesn’t mean it won’t be tough to get your piece of the pie. Lavine acknowledges that many women won’t make it, and those that do will be taken to the mat over every thing possible, but still, there’s room for everyone to play if you do it well and do it right.
“Don’t give anybody any ammunition to use against you. Act with courage, self-conviction, integrity and always maintain your dignity,” she writes.
So, does this mean be a pushover?
No way, Lavine says.
“It doesn’t mean you’re not tough and savvy and smart and confident when you treat yourself and others with courtesy and respect. When you see other women branding your courage and strength with the bitch word – call them out every time! Demand the respect you deserve. Fight for what’s yours.
Lavine wants this book to rewrite how women feel about themselves as mothers and businesswomen.
“I’m convinced that 95 percent of success is in your head,” Lavine said. “The book is about fixing that message we’ve grown up with about guilt, time and kids. Motherhood is whatever you make it.”
And it won’t take long when telling Lavine about your idea, your dream or your passion, for her to cut to the chase. She will tell you, without hesitation, that the time is now, no excuses, no more waffling.
“What’s holding you back?” she will ask. “What’s keeping you from charging what you’re worth? What are you waiting for?”
And as you start acting on your passion and making things happen, Lavine says you’ll get two different reactions.
On one hand, you’ll spark jealousy.
“Don’t apologize for your passion,” she writes. “People are jealous of power and passion, even if it’s just power over your own life and passion for what you’re doing…. Some of them are going to try to sabotage your success by trying to make you feel guilty (as a mother) or wrong… tune them out.”
But, on the upside, others will find your entrepreneurial passion catching.
“When people see it, they want to do it. They’ll be drawn to you,” she said. “The entrepreneurial virus is catching.”
And if there’s anywhere in the world that Lavine would want to be out of a job?
Her answer: Traverse City.
“It’s a perfect mix of big and small business. When I was here, I couldn’t get over the community of women,” she said. “Find what people need, a service, a product, whatever, and get out there.”
Tips from The Mommy Manifesto
- Dream Big. Write your business plan. Then multiply by 10.
- Small is the new big. Pressures to buy-local and buy-American means a market for the mom-next-door.
- Innovate or Die. “You’re either part of the revolution or part of the problem.”
- No sissies, no cowards, no complainers, no quitters: The difference between those who make it and those who don’t.
Kandace Chapple is the co-publisher and editor of Grand Traverse Woman Magazine in Northern Michigan. Her column, “Momma Ain’t Happy,” has been a reader favorite for six years. She writes fiction and non-fiction (while hiding from her children) and also co-hosts “Twin Time,” a weekly TV spot on the local NBC-affiliate about all things funny and female.
Available wherever books are sold, or online
It’s personal and it’s business: Women start businesses because of messy emotions like love and passion and self-esteem. Embrace it. Business, after all, is about life.
Kandace Chappel, Kim Lavine, Mommy Manifesto, Review 
