Reflections Of An Inspirational Book

 

Few authors that I have worked with have made a lasting impression on me. Many had good books and were fine people, but time would put them into the distance. One person who is top of mind is Steve Mariotti. He was an incredible person who had an amazing story to share, and he did so a few years ago, before he died last fall, with the publication of Goodbye Homeboy: How My Students Drove Me Crazy and Inspired a Movement.  

Though I didn’t promote his memoir, I did work with him numerous times, dating back to as early as 2000, and he always seemed like a passionate, energized, and good-natured guy - because he was.  

He founded a non-profit organization that taught financial literacy and encouraged our youth to become entrepreneurs. He especially helped underprivileged, minority kids. Over 1.4 million children have utilized National Foundation for Teaching Entrepreneurship, founded some 35 years ago.  

That’s an incredible story and very positive. But how and why he created this organization is inspiring, powerful, and hard to believe.  

Back in the early 80’s, Mariotti was a rising genius in the business world. While walking on the streets of New York City, back then one of the most dangerous American cities, he was attacked by a half-dozen teens, robbed, intimidated, and assaulted. Mariotti, a little guy, was devastated by the event. 

He was advised by a therapist to turn his fear and anger into something positive. He decided to become a teacher in a crappy inner-city school where dropout rates and violence were high -- and school attendance and class participation were low.   

Mariotti bounced around from one bad school to another, always trying to get kids who were left as lost causes to rejoin society and be empowered by learning how to be consumers, sales people, and entrepreneurs. People dismissed him as a well-meaning loon who won’t get anywhere, while he endured many run-ins involving violence and disrespect from the kids he was teaching.  

Goodbye Homeboy is a story of courage and conviction of bucking the odds, of second chances, and of changing the trajectory of at-risk-lives. I encourage everyone to read it.  

From the South Bronx to the bowels of Brooklyn, he taught students who would end up dead, in jail, hospitalized, or pregnant. But he also made a difference in some students and they graduated school and had solid careers or launched small businesses. 

Mariotti gave his entire life for the last 40 years to helping children and showing how capitalism can be a solution to one’s problems. 

He went on to write several books and to raise millions of dollars for NFTE, developing relationships with people who would become a governor, like Maryland’s Wes Moone, or successful rappers. He and NFTE would be featured in The New York Times and receive many awards. His story is the story of those he helped, one that shows how we can overcome the odds.  

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Brian Feinblum, the founder of this award-winning blog, with over four million page views, can be reached at brianfeinblum@gmail.com  He is available to help authors like you to promote your story, sell your book, and grow your brand. He has over 30 years of experience in successfully helping thousands of authors in all genres. Let him be your advocate, teacher, and motivator!

 

About Brian Feinblum

This award-winning blog has generated over four million pageviews. With 5,000+ posts over the past dozen years, it was named one of the best book marketing blogs by BookBaby  http://blog.bookbaby.com/2013/09/the-best-book-marketing-blogs  and recognized by Feedspot in 2021 and 2018 as one of the top book marketing blogs. It was also named by www.WinningWriters.com as a "best resource.”  Copyright 2025.

 

For the past three decades, Brian Feinblum has helped thousands of authors. He formed his own book publicity firm in 2020. Prior to that, for 21 years as the head of marketing for the nation’s largest book publicity firm, and as the director of publicity at two independent presses, Brian has worked with many first-time, self-published, authors of all genres, right along with best-selling authors and celebrities such as: Dr. Ruth, Mark Victor Hansen, Joseph Finder, Katherine Spurway, Neil Rackham, Harvey Mackay, Ken Blanchard, Stephen Covey, Warren Adler, Cindy Adams, Todd Duncan, Susan RoAne, John C. Maxwell, Jeff Foxworthy, Seth Godin, and Henry Winkler.

 

His writings are often featured in The Writer and IBPA’s The Independent (https://pubspot.ibpa-online.org/article/whats-needed-to-promote-a-book-successfully).

 

He hosted a panel on book publicity for Book Expo America several years ago, and has spoken at ASJA, BookCAMP, Independent Book Publishers Association Sarah Lawrence College, Nonfiction Writers Association, Cape Cod Writers Association, Willamette (Portland) Writers Association, APEX, Morgan James Publishing, and Connecticut Authors and Publishers Association. He served as a judge for the 2024 IBPA Book Awards.

 

His letters-to-the-editor have been published in The Wall Street Journal, USA Today, New York Post, NY Daily News, Newsday, The Journal News (Westchester) and The Washington Post. His first published book was The Florida Homeowner, Condo, & Co-Op Association Handbook.  It was featured in The Sun Sentinel and Miami Herald.

 

Born and raised in Brooklyn, he now resides in Westchester with his wife, two kids, and Ferris, a black lab rescue dog, and El Chapo, a pug rescue dog.

 

You can connect with him at: https://www.linkedin.com/in/brianfeinblum/ or https://www.facebook.com/brian.feinblum