2. "Rich Dad, Poor Dad, " by Robert Kiyosaki Key takeaway: Know the difference between an asset and a liability. There's a reason the rich get richer: They understand the vital yet often misunderstood difference between assets and liabilities. An asset puts money in your pocket. A liability takes money out of your pocket. In order to get rich, you must buy assets and leverage the income generated from them to buy luxuries and fund your lifestyle. 3. "The E-Myth, " by Michael Gerber Key takeaway: Work on your business rather than in your business. "I understand the technical work of a business, therefore, I understand a business that does that technical work. " This is a costly assumption new entrepreneurs make. Understand that everybody who goes into business has three identities: An entrepreneur, a manager and a technician. You need all three to build a company that can thrive without you. 4. "The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing, " by Al Ries and Jack Trout Key takeaway: Marketing is a battle of perceptions, not products.
Thanks to the lessons in this business book, you'll be able to master complicated things and produce better results in a shorter time. Deep Work is divided into two parts and comes packed with a bunch of stories to help you understand the concepts better. Cal explains that distraction is inevitable and that learning how to avoid them could help you achieve powerful results. Through the book, you get to understand the importance of work ethic, and four disciplines of execution you can apply to create time and space to get things done and avoid burnout while at it. 10. The Lean Startup: How Today's Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses by Eric Ries According to Eric, a startup is any business that is creating a new product under extreme uncertainty. In this business book, he defines an approach that startups across the globe can apply to ensure they do not fail. The book features lessons from lean manufacturing. Eric insists that businesses shouldn't waste their time creating elaborate business plans.
The book is a celebration of women who took charge of their careers to create lasting business legacies. Best for Startups: Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future Launching a startup is a different animal compared to launching a small business solo. You may have employees or investors to manage, for instance, or your initial costs to open up your doors may be much higher. It's a lot to juggle and the startups that can't pull it off successfully are often the ones who inevitably close up shop. "Zero to One" offers advice on how to avoid that scenario. PayPal co-founder Peter Thiel drills down to the qualities that are required to run a thriving startup in today's business environment. One of the points he underscores is how to use creative innovation to establish a footing in the market, without triggering disruption that could threaten your business's staying power. Best for Productivity and Time Management: Atomic Habits Time can be one of the most valuable resources you have as an entrepreneur and when you're starting a business, you want to make every second count.
Brand-building is something to start working on before you even launch so that once your business is up and running, you can start connecting with your target audience and making sales. Gary Vaynerchuk understands the importance of strong branding and he's established himself as an influencer in entrepreneurial circles. In "Crushing It! ", he walks you through why having a clearly defined brand matters and explains the foundational principles of good branding. The book is a how-to guide for establishing your business brand in a way that resonates with the people you're trying to attract while remaining authentic to who you are. If you're planning to use social media to market your business, you'll want to check out Vaynerchuk's tips for leveraging it to its full potential. Best for Managing Business Financials: Profit First Figuring out the financial side of starting and running a business can be one of the biggest challenges for new entrepreneurs. You want your business to make money but you also have to understand the mechanics of how to invest for growth and what to do with the money you're earning once it starts rolling in.
Explore deals with assessing and experimenting with both pattern and habit change to achieve essentialism. Elimination deals with getting rid of low-value distractions while executing highlights daily tips and practices to achieve maximum essentialism. 7. How to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie Sale How to Win Friends & Influence People How to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie 1998 Paperback New Brand New Officially Licensed Dale Carnegie (Author) English (Publication Language) Your business cannot succeed without learning how to deal with people. This business book contains timeless advice to help you get more people to like you, influence people to your thinking, and change people without offending them. This bestseller by Dale contains actual steps you can take to get the most out of your business and your life. It is divided into six parts, all of which contain gems to better your relationship with others. One of Dale's key lessons in the book is that you need to see people's points of view and understand it if you want to succeed in dealing with people.
It explains the psychology of marketing and persuasion, which you can learn for using yourself or for defending yourself against it. In the early 1990s, Charlie Munger gave a series of talks on the psychology of human misjudgment (which have been combined and condensed in his book, Poor Charlie's Almanack) in which he heaped praise on the book for filling gaps in his knowledge. This is the book that I give most often as a present and is my top recommendation on this list. Purple Cow by Seth Godin The book that made the word "remarkable" clear to me (worth remarking on). This book delves into the importance of differentiation and of creating things that other people find worth pointing out. I would also highly recommend Seth Godin's blog where he has published once a day for 12 years now. Entrepreneurship 1. The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz Written by a successful entrepreneur and venture capitalist, this book doesn't sugarcoat how hard it is to run your own business. Filled with practical wisdom from Horowitz's business experiences, including the near failure of his own company, this is a worthwhile read for aspiring entrepreneurs and managers alike.
You always want to be the "first. " And in today's competitive online landscape, a "me-too" copycat has little chance of getting into the prospect's mind once another company has gotten there first. Not every first is going to be successful, though. If you don't get into the prospect's mind first, create a new category you can be first in, instead. It worked for Dominos and it can work for you, too. 5. "How to Win Friends & Influence People, " by Dale Carnegie Key takeaway: Remember that a person's name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language. This book is just as important for today's digital age as it was when it was first published in 1936. There are innumerable takeaways from Carnegie's classic best-seller, but the most important one is that you can't go wrong with smiling, becoming a good listener and of course, making others feel important. 6. "The Hard Thing About Hard Things, " by Ben Horowitz Key takeaway: "Embrace your weirdness, your background, your instinct.
If the keys are not there, they do not exist. " "The hard thing about hard things, " writes Horowitz, is that "there is no formula for dealing with them" — and he's absolutely right. While many business books tend to prescribe solutions to challenges that aren't really challenges at all, few, if any, tell it like it really is, which is that there is no one-size solution. 7. "Blue Ocean Strategy, " by W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne Key takeaway: Avoid trying to beat competitors. Instead, focus on making them irrelevant by creating a leap in value for buyers and your company. Most markets are red oceans. They're full of blood because all the sharks feed on the same small pool of fish. Over time, submarkets developed as a reaction to those red markets. In order to differentiate yourself from competitors, you must create a blue ocean for yourself, an opportunity people can't wait to dive into. 8. "Shoe Dog, " by Phil Knight