As over a million of service men and women are returning to the civilian workforce in the next five years, entrepreneurship may be an attractive option for some of them. According to the Bureau of Labor Statistics, Report on Veterans Small Business Development, veterans own 2.4 million American businesses or 9 percent of all the American's business. When including businesses in which veterans are at least half owners, these numbers rise to 3.7 million businesses or 13.5 percent of U.S. businesses.

I don't want to neglect highlighting some of the newer business best-sellers from the New York Times (Sunday, April 1, 2012, page 7). I've also included a selection from Nielsen BookScan as published in the April 7-8, 2012 Wall Street Journal (page C10). Happy Reading!

Trade Associations exist for nearly every industry and can be valuable sources of information for new business owners and those doing industry research. Some trade associations offer continuing professional training and certifications, and many conduct market research, to keep their members up to date with industry data, reports and statistics.

Beverage Industry • Apparel • Tea & Coffee Trade JournalIf you’re writing a business plan or have recently started a new business, you need to keep up with industry news and trends. One way to do this is with trade journals.

This Sunday's paper listed the New York Times business best sellers. Rankings reflect sales for January 2012. Below are several of the titles culled from that list, sorted by genre, with links to our catalog.

At the suggestion of the Manhattan Chamber of Commerce (MCC), SIBL recently hosted a lively orientation for NYC-based foreign trade commissioners and their staff. The attendees learned effective and efficient ways to mine business-to-business (B2B) contacts from online business directories accessible at NYPL's Science, Industry and Business Library.

The New York Public Library with its sponsor, Citi Foundation, has announced the New York StartUP! 2012 Business Plan Competition for New York-based startup entrepreneurs with cash prizes totaling over $30,000. The third annual New York StartUp! gives aspiring entrepreneurs the opportunity to bolster their business acumen. Entrants gain practical insights about starting and growing a business, while learning about the comprehensive small business resources at NYPL’s Science, Industry and Business Library (SIBL).

If running your own business is your goal, let SIBL help! It's not too late to enter the 2012 New York StartUP! Business Plan Competition with three remaining orientations scheduled for December. In this posting, though, I glance back to September's lively Awards Ceremony closing the 2011 New York StartUP! Business Plan Competition. The evening epitomized the synergies that SIBL creates as it connects its users to organizations, experts, information sources — and each other.

Do I have your attention? OK! Yes — the money is real. It's time for SIBL's New York StartUP! 2012 Business Plan Competition! If you've been thinking about starting a business in Manhattan, The Bronx, or Staten Island, this money could help make your dreams a reality.