Matthew Lesko is a propagator
of a unique moneymaking strategy, which is essentially to avail of government
grants for one’s projects. Matthew Lesko reaches out to people through
an eye-catching infomercial in which he dresses in a suit with question marks
made on it. He presents his strategy and its possibilities with the aid of a
flamboyant book with arms and legs. The infomercial has caught the attention of
many observers, as has Matthew Lesko’s peculiar dressing style.
Matthew Lesko’s book outlining
his strategy sells for between $30 and $60. Those who have bought his book
claim that it is simply a listing of government grants and the agencies and
does not present even a strategy on which grants one should apply to for what
purposes or any case studies of those who have used this strategy and made
money. Some of the grants mentioned in the book are an overseas travel grant of
$20,000,
$50,000 for building a website on hiking trails, $80,000 for making pasta for
the government, hundreds of thousands of dollars a year for framing artwork for
the government, and even $5,000 grant to put on a new coat of paint.
Critics claim
that Matthew Lesko has hugely oversimplified
the subject of government grants. For one, it takes a lot of research and luck
to find a grant that suit one’s situation and purpose. Second, the process
involves several stages of form filling with preliminary and follow-up forms.
The whole process to get a grant can take weeks and even months. Matthew Matthew Lesko’s book is not
updated frequently enough to keep up with changes in government policy. The
Federal Government publishes an updated list of government grant and loan
programs every summer which Matthew Lesko does not seem aware of. Matthew Lesko also includes a
tape of six hours of training and lecturing along with the book, which
listeners have found repetitive and oversimplified. Overall, Matthew Lesko’s government grant
strategy is eye-catching but his methods are not refined enough to be true
guidelines for those who want to try them.
