For the past several years, I have read six books per quarter. During that time, I’ve read a ton of great books that have shaped my thinking and enlightened my management style as well as my life as an entrepreneur. Several employees have asked me for a book list of sorts, so I figured I’d toss it up on the blog, in case it’s of use to others. It was hard to narrow it down to 25, but here they are, in no particular order.
- The Power of Positive Thinking — the all-time great by Norman Vincent Peale. The title says it all. This is a MUST read for all entrepreneurs. It changed me and the course of our business back in 2003.
- Crossing the Chasm — a classic book by Geoffrey Moore (who is an advisor to our firm) that teaches how to take high-tech products to mainstream markets. I’ve read this book about a dozen times. Seriously.
- The Richest Man in Babylon – rock-solid, enduring principles of investing and personal finance. There is serious wisdom packed into this little book.
- Built To Last and Good to Great — okay, these are two books, but these Jim Collins masterpieces go hand in hand. Built to Last shows leaders how to create a company that deserves to be around for the ages. Good to Great teaches us the distinguishing traits of the best companies and their leaders.
- The E-Myth — nobody has ever nailed life as a small business owner like Michael Gerber did in this classic. Business owners absolutely HAVE to read this book.
- Magnetic Marketing — Dan Kennedy teaches entrepreneurs how to attract customers and effectively sell to them. He’s written a bunch of books, but this one is probably the best.
- Duct Tape Marketing — another book on small business marketing. Practical, specific and cost-effective, the principles laid out by John Jantsch are awesome.
- Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert Cialdinni — Not only is he a professor at my alma matter (go Sun Devils!), but this book is KILLER if you want to understand why people buy… and how you should speak to him if you’re trying to sell.
- Groundswell — the best book on social media. This book got our company to really start engaging in social media.
- Made to Stick by Chip and Heath Beck — It’s about how to communicate ideas so that people remember. It’s great stuff for marketers, teachers, leaders, parents and anyone who wants to effectively convey their ideas.
- One-Minute Manager — a simple, practical book that teaches all of us how to effectively manage our employees.
- Getting Things Done — a masterful book on the tactics of being productive and removing the clutter in our lives. It’s not just time management. It’s about how to get organized and efficient.
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People — Great principles that lead to success. This is one that I re-read every so often to stay sharp on the concepts.
- Gung Ho — if you want to create a great culture and build your people, this is a great little book to teach you how to do it.
- First, Break All the Rules and Now, Discover Your Strengths — These two books also go hand-in-hand. They show the strategic side of HR management. These books teach leaders how to get the most out of their people by discovering and dwelling on people’s strengths.
- The 5 Dysfunctions of a Team — an awesome book that teams can use to work together more effectively. There are a bunch of exercises and concepts in this book that provide a methodology to help leaders progressively build and improve their team cohesion.
- Mastering the Rockefeller Habits — gives a methodology for strategic planning that is very similar to what I learned in a previous life. I have incorporated a few of Verne Harnish’s suggestions into our planning at Infusionsoft.
- The Tipping Point — Malcolm Gladwell’s book that discusses the dynamics of fads, trends and big concepts that seem to burst onto the scene. As I write this, I realize I need to re-read this book. It’ll be on my book list for Q2.
- Banker to the Poor - the book by Muhammad Yunnus that details how micro-credit started and how it became a powerful force in leading people out of poverty. I love the concept of micro-credit and the way it gives birth to capitalism and entrepreneurship on a small scale. I will soon get more involved in micro-credit.
- How to Win Friends and Influence People -- the Dale Carnegie classic that I try to re-read every couple years to stay sharp on the principles of being likeable.
- Anything by Peter Drucker. He’s the leading philosopher on business management. I recommend The Effective Executive but all his stuff is outstanding.
- Blue Ocean Strategy is a book about how to create value and maximize profit without competing head to head with others. How to avoid apples-to-apples comparison with competitors is the thrust of this book.
- Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill is an oldie but goodie. It’s another one that’s indispensible for entrepreneurs because it helps us learn how to conceive and believe what we want to achieve.
- The Holy Bible. Do I really need to expound here? So many pearls of wisdom, so much inspiration to live by, so much perspective on the big picture, I can’t imagine life without it. There’s a reason it’s the most-read book in the world.
- The Book of Mormon. Like the Bible, it gives me the inspiration I need and the desire to be a better person, more like Christ. I’ve found that if I read a few verses of scripture every day, I have a much better day.
So, those are my top 25 books. Like I said, there are many others that I really like that didn’t make the cut. What are YOUR favorites? I’m always looking to add books to my list of stuff to read next quarter.
Clate,
We’ve conversed many times about cherished principles and favorite books. I appreciate you putting together this list and am even more grateful that you stopped at 25. I definitely have some catching up to do. From your list I’ve read:
*Crossing the Chasm
*The Richest Man in Babylon
*Built To Last (just started)
*The E-Myth
*Magnetic Marketing
*Think and Grow Rich
*One-Minute Manager
*The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
*Think and Grow Rich
*The Holy Bible
*The Book of Mormon (changed my life for good)
I have many of the others in the library queued up for this year:
*Duct Tape Marketing
*Good to Great
*Duct Tape Marketing
*Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion
*Made to Stick
*How to Win Friends and Influence People
*Getting Things Done…I know I should read this one because I’ve been so unorganized I just can’t seem to get it done
Here’s a few that didn’t make your Top 25 list but I have thoroughly enjoyed reading:
*The Dip by Seth Godin
*Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
*Cashflow Quadrant by Robert Kiyosaki
*The 4-Hour Workweek by Timothy Ferriss
*Who Moved My Cheese by Spencer Johnson
*The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John C. Maxwell
*Freakonomics by Steven D. Levitt
and along the lines of spirituality and inspiring myself to think of Christ and become more like him, I recommend “Jesus The Christ” by James E. Talmage.
Well, I’m going to wrap up what was originally intended to be a 4 word comment “Nice list Clate, thanks.” Thank you for your ongoing mentorship and ability to lead and teach by example. I value your friendship and look forward to each time we get to rub shoulders.
Best,
Jarrod Morris
Clate–GREAT list. I share many of your “best of” list. I agree with Jarrod–missing is 4-hour work week. On my nightstand waiting to be read this week is Tribes by Seth Godin–I’m guessing that would be a good addition to the list too.
Thanks for putting this together.
Thanks for the additions to the list, Jarrod and Kathy. I agree with both of you: 4-hour Work Week is a great book. There are tons of practical little things in that book. It always makes me laugh when people bash it because it’s “not realistic to work a 4-hour week.” I’ve always thought the title was more about selling his books than the reality of the work week. In that sense, Tim Ferris nailed it.
I’ve read the others you mentioned (all good books), except Freakonomics and Tribes. Now that I think of it, I need a little more Seth Godin in my library. I think I’ll add that to my list of 6 for next quarter.
I’ll add a suggested book, too. It’s “Personality not Included,” written by Rohit Bhargava, about companies and the personal brands associated within them to the world. The book covers the theory behind branding and customer experiences as well as a tactical approach to managing a corporate personality. I’ve been reading it for a bit now and I really enjoy it.
Stop by and pick it up anytime you want, Clate.
~Joe
Tom Hopkins has some great books and CDs. I was at his “Boot Camp Sales Mastery” program in Scottsdale the week before I attended the Infusion soft training program in Arizona.
Tip: Give your spouse and/or family members an on-going list of books that you would like to read. They never know what to buy for you on your bday, holidays, etc. Books make great gifts. That is what Amazon has been pushing via their wish list…
Ron Cook
Thanks for the additional suggestions, Ron and Joe. And thanks for the tip, Ron. I’ll pass that along to my wife and kids–I know they’ll appreciate it!
Cheers Clate. I had hoped to leave the house and celebrate the Webinar we just did together “Concept to Profit – How to Create and Distribute Marketing Videos that Sell!” But now it looks like I will be catching up on my reading
My all time favorite is “Think and Grow Rich.” It’s the foundation for success!
Flywheel
If you missed the Webinar, you can sign-up for a similar one on the jiveSYSTEMS homepage (http://www.jivesystems.com)
Hey Clate,
Here are two book, that I am sure that are not in your radar. Read them and send me your comment if you like.
1) The Path of Least Resistance (Robert Fritz)
2) The Managerial Moment of Truth (Robert Fritz)
Enjoy your reading,
Gus Sertage
Clate,
What a great reading list! This has served as a reminder that I’ve got some catching up to do on my reading. My favorite all-around book from your list is definitely “7 Habits”. I also must agree with Jarrod and other comments on “The 4 Hour Work Week”. Though it’s a bit sensational in its approach (you can tell Tim Ferriss is quite the salesman), it shows entrepreneurs that we can run a business and still enjoy our lives outside our business.
A couple books on my reading list (those I didn’t find in your top 25):
*”The Question Behind the Question” by John G. Miller – this is a book recommended by Dave Ramsey (a successful financial consultant, radio/TV talk show host, and business owner) about personal accountability as a core value
*”Outliers” by Malcom Gladwell – I’m reading Gladwell’s “Blink” and I really like it. My friends tell me that Gladwell’s “Outliers” is even better. It talks about how and why people succeed in life.
Thanks for the additions to the list, folks. I’ll check out a few of the books you’ve mentioned. I’d definitely like to take you up on your offer, Joe, and borrow “Personality not Included.” Sounds great.
Chad–one of my books this quarter was Outliers. I read it a couple weeks ago. It’s outstanding! I’d probably add it to my Top 25, but I wouldn’t know what to bump.
If you don’t have the time to read an entire book, you might check out TED.com . It’s a database full of “riveting talks by remarkable people”, including successful entrepreneurs. You can filter by terms such as “most inspiring” or “most ingenious” to find talks from motivational speakers like Tony Robbins, successful entrepreneurs like Evan Williams (cofounder of Twitter), and popular authors like Malcom Gladwell (author of “Outliers”, “Blink” and “Tipping Point”).
I like to visit TED on occasion for a brief moment of inspiration.
What a Great book list!
My name is Angela Kyer, newly joined infusionsoft a week ago. Very excited about the software, can't wait to implement the system…
Great job! Founders!
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