I was disappointed to hear it had been reported by Forbes magazine that The Justin Timberlake Foundation had spent $146,000 on expenses in 2006 but only donated $32,500.

Obviously I am not an “insider” at Forbes (or anywhere else for that matter) but I do see them as a credible source of information.

This is a common problem for fund-raising organizations because the people who give intend for their donations to go to the cause or work they choose to support, not to foundation overheads and other dubious black holes of spending. When they find out this is not happening, they think twice about donating again.

Let us state again you can rest assured the generous micro-donations you make to SMARTSTART Giving are indeed being directed to Kiva.org. As we have previously disclosed, only the small amount deducted by your credit company (something we do not control) is taken from the $10, $25 or $40 that you donate. Your money is then pooled with that received from other donors for the current month and is given to Kiva on the first Friday of the following month.

Certainly there are expenses involved in operating SMARTSTART Giving. Alex and I cover those expenses (which are not insignificant) personally as part of our ongoing monthly commitment thus ensuring the money you want to be used to support other entrepreneurs in the developing countries of the world is, in fact, doing just that.

To see the people whose lives you are changing by supporting our work, just click on Loans (in the navigation bar) and check out their faces and stories. Together we are doing some really great things. Thank you for helping us by supporting our vision for SMARTSTART Giving.

If you’ve been following the Alex Mandossian Giveaway you know that it will soon be coming to an end.

On Friday, November 7 we did another call explaining the SMARTSTART Business Success Program and what Alex and I are both giving between now and the end of 2009 to help you, our fellow entrepreneurs closer to home, achieve your business dreams.

If you were on that call, or have listened to it since, you would also know I promised to announce the names of our next 3 winners here today at noon.

We asked Ms. Samantha Jones (not the one from Sex and the City but just as cute) to draw the names for us this morning. Today’s winners are (drum roll please):

Jeannie Fitzsimmons, Beverly Hills, California
Lorraine Beasley, Greenwood, Indiana
Cynthia Barnett, Norwalk, Connecticut

Congratulations, ladies! We’re glad to have you on our winners team. I just called you to welcome you to the program and our team personally. You’ll receive further information by email over the next few days and I look forward to working with you.

Our winners receive private coaching and management consulting until December 2009 to help them build their businesses or move a business idea forward. Their fees for all SMARTSTART Mentoring Programs are waived for life (or as long as they stay in the program since you can leave at any time — there’s no fixed commitment).

Now, don’t despair if your name has not been drawn yet. It’s not too late to get in on the next and final draw!

The final 3 winners will be announced live at the end of our SMARTSTART Giving Final Friday call on November 28th. To qualify for the draw, you must first purchase a seat in the SMARTSTART Business Success Program.

You can do that here: www.SmartStartCoach.com

Just scroll down to the bottom of the page and you’ll see that Alex himself is paying more for you to be in the program than you are paying to be in it (if you decide to join that is).

A year from now, you can still be talking about your business, or you could actually have one working for you. The decision to take action on your own behalf is all yours. We’re doing all we can personally to help you but you have to step up too. I encourage you to take advantage of Alex’s offer and let this be a gift you give to yourself.

Well it started as a $2.7M Giveaway but we have since expanded our list of winners and, instead of having just 9 people in the SMARTSTART Business Success Program receiving a year’s worth of management consulting and coaching, we’ve doubled the number of winners to 18 lucky entrepreneurs!

Listen to Alex explain why he’s doing this and more!

For example, he’s willing to pay more per month than you will just so you can be in this program. That’s how much he wants you to have this opportunity to succeed in creating your business dreams.

(A seat in the SMARTSTART Business mentoring program costs $99. You pay $49 and Alex will pay the other $50 for you. How many teachers do you have that would be willing to do that just to help you succeed hmmmmm?)

Brad Taft is a career coach based in Scottsdale, Arizona.

He is also one of six entrepreneurs who won a SMARTSTART Business Success package, including a year of private consulting and coaching support, in the Alex Mandossian Giveaway draw held October 31.

Congratulations, Brad! We look forward to working with you over the coming year!

You can learn more about Brad and his business at www.WorkingMyWay.com (isn’t that a great web site name?) or by listening to his post-win interview!

At the end of our SMARTSTART Giving Final Friday micro-fundraising call October 31, 2008 Alex will be giving away 3 more opportunities for lucky business owners to work with an internationally renowned professional management consultant for one year for free to build or develop their business.

Will you be one of the lucky ones who join our previous six winners?

All you need to qualify for the draw is to have claimed your seat in the SMARTSTART Business Success Program! And, if yours is one of the next 19 seats sold, you’ll have 10 chances in each of the next 3 draws to win.

Read all about it here. Get the Details about the Giveaway! Then take action and claim your seat now to be in the draws here. (Just scroll down to the bottom of the web page presented to join the program.)

Carol Ann Wagner of South Pasadena, California is the last of our winners from the October 3 giveaway (but not the last of our winners as we’ll be selecting 9 more entrepreneurs for this opportunity before we’re done)!

Carol Ann has a fascinating business specializing in selling gerontological courses (she runs the Gerontological Learning Center) and she’s planning to expand her course offerings to service other professions as well.

You can visit Carol Ann’s website at www.bestsourcelc.com to learn more about her current programs and you can bet we’ll keep you posted on her next adventures.

Sandra Dean from Whitby, Ontario is a former school principal and our first Canadian winner in Alex’s history-making giveaway! Sandra is a leader in the education field. Her proven research-based models and programs have been used as the foundation of many highly acclaimed initiatives.

A tireless advocate for children’s education and well being, Sandra has been honoured with many awards for her achievements. Among other accomplishments, Sandra’s work has been showcased by the OECD and the United Nations as well as the International Centre for the Prevention of Crime. She also was the only non-American invited to present to a White House Presidential Commission on Hispanic American Affairs.

Sandra is the developer of the “Together We Light the Way” and the “Creating Safe and Caring Learning Communities” models, and is now an advisor to the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario’s “Aboriginal Literacy Initiative.” Having touched the lives of thousands, she invites educators to “think with her” to create personalized solutions to specific problems. And we’re looking forward to working with her in the SMARTSTART Business Success Program to see what more can be done as she pursues new directions in her business.

William Young hails from Seattle, Washington and his story is interesting because he doesn’t yet have a web site! He’s built a successful coaching practice from scratch on the strength of personal referrals for his work alone. But he is looking to expand his business and develop new methods of marketing his professional services so we’re thrilled to have him in the SMARTSTART Business Success Program and he’s thrilled to have won professional support to help him expand over the coming year.

Our winners come from all walks of life and backgrounds and that’s what makes my work so interesting. Meet Dr. Kerry Tilton from Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Dr. Tilton is an NLP trainer, energy practitioner and licensed nutritionist with dozens of project ideas to explore for revenue potential.

On the day of the draw, Kerry was having a challenge getting her order through but she did not give up and, as it turned out, she would not have won had this delay not happened. She was obviously meant to be in the SMARTSTART Business Success Program and she and I and her entire family are excited to see what can be made of her many creative ideas.

Cathy Perkins of Hickory, North Carolina was a winner in Alex’s October 3 draw for a seat in the SMARTSTART Business Success mentoring program and is looking forward to using her opportunity to work with me on building her business.

Cathy is the WordPress Wizard and she’s on a mission to help you in turning your blog posts into profits. Visit Cathy’s web site at www.thewordpresswizard.com.

Congratulations, Cathy! We’re looking forward to working with you!!