Recommended Reading - Business

Below are my favorite books on business organized by major thematic area. I have tried to list my favorite ones to the top of each section.

Strategy

Favorites

Boyd by Robert Coram
Innovator’s Dilemma by Clayton Christenson
The Innovator’s Solution by Clayton Christenson
Good Strategy, Bad Strategy by Richard Rumelt
Different by Youngme Moon
7 Powers by Hamilton Helmer
Creating Great Choices: A Leader’s Guide to Integrative Thinking Fantastic book by Roger Martin – I wrote a longer blog post on this book here

Others

Entrepreneurship

Management Theory, Leadership, Etc.

Favorites

Essentialism by Greg McKeown
4 Disciplines of Execution by Chris McChesney, Sean Covery, Jim Huling
Excellence wins by Horst Schulze
Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz
Creating Great Choices by Roger Martin
Managing the Professional Services Firm by David Maister
Setting the table by Danny Meyer
Team of Teams by Stanley McCrystal
What it Takes by Charles Ellis
Primal Leadership (Unleashing the Power of Emotional Intelligence) – This was recommended to me and is an amazing exploration of the brain science behind emotional intelligence. The book also connects leadership aptitude with corporate performance.
With Winning in Mind – This book is short and fantastic. For anyone looking to level up in any field of endeavor, this book is a must read.

Others

It’s Your Ship by Michael Abrashoff
How Google Works by Eric Schmidt
21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership by John Maxwell
Confessions of a public speaker by Scott Berkun
Creative Selection: Inside Apple’s Design Process During the Golden Age of Steve Jobs by Ken Kocienda
Entreleadership by Dave Ramsey
Extreme Ownership by Jocko Willink and Leif Babin
G2 – Building the Next Generation by Philip Palaveev
HBR Guide to Making Every Meeting Matter by Greene
High Output Management by Andy Grove
How to Fail at almost everything and still win big by Scott Adams
Leading from your gut by John Townsend
Lessons for Corporate America by Warren Buffet
Mastery by Robert Greene
Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss
Only the Paranoid Survive by Andrew S. Grove
Reboot by Jerry Colonna
Rework by Jason Fried David Heinemeier Hannsson
Scrum: The Art of Doing Twice the Work in Half the time by Jeff / JJ. Sutherland
So Good they Can’t Ignore You by Cal Newport
TED Talks by Chris Anderson
The Captain Class by Sam Walker
The End of Competitive Advantage by Rita Gunther McGrath
The Ensemble Practice by Philip Palaveev
The Innovation Stack by Jim McKelvey
The Irresistible Consultant’s Guide to Winning Clients by David A Fields
The Mckinsey Mind by Ethan Rasiel
The Mckinsey Way by Ethan Rasiel
The One Minute Manager by Ken Blanchard
The Service Profit Chain by Heskett, Sasser, Schlesinger
The Toyota Way by Jeffrey Liker
Trillion Dollar Coach by Eric Schmidt
What the CEO wants you to know by Ram Charan
When Professionals Have to Lead by Delong, Gabarro, Lees
TED Talks: The Official TED Guide to Public Speaking – Interesting look behind the scenes of the TED conference
Confessions of a Public Speaker – Entertaining
Awaken the Giant Within and Unlimited Power – I’ve always been skeptical of the Tony Robbins complex. I listened to these 2 of his older books on a drive. What struck me was how much of Tony’s material has now been validated with research.
The Talent Code by Daniel Coyle. In The Talent Code, award-winning journalist Daniel Coyle draws on cutting-edge research to reveal that, far from being some abstract mystical power fixed at birth, ability really can be created and nurtured.
Practice Perfect by Doug Lemov This book puts practice on the front burner of all who seek to instill talent and achievement in others as well as in themselves. This is a journey to understand that practice, not games, makes champions.
Little Bets by Peter Sims. Reporting on a fascinating range of research, from the psychology of creative blocks to the influential field of design thinking, Sims offers engaging and illuminating accounts of breakthrough innovators at work, and a whole new way of thinking about how to navigate uncertain situations and unleash our untapped creative powers.
Wooden: A LIfetime of Observations by John Wooden. Evoking days gone by when coaches were respected as much for their off-court performances as for their success on the court, Wooden presents the timeless wisdom of legendary basketball coach John Wooden.
Incognito – The Secret Lives of the Brain by David Eagleman. If the conscious mind—the part you consider to be you—is just the tip of the iceberg, what is the rest doing?
Visual Thinking by Temple Grandin. A quarter of a century after her memoir, Thinking in Pictures, forever changed how the world understood autism, Temple Grandin—the “anthropologist on Mars,” as Oliver Sacks dubbed her—transforms our awareness of the different ways our brains are wired. Do you have a keen sense of direction, a love of puzzles, the ability to assemble furniture without crying? You are likely a visual thinker.
Quit by Annie Duke. Business leaders, with millions of dollars down the drain, struggle to abandon a new app or product that just isn’t working. Governments, caught in a hopeless conflict, believe that the next tactic will finally be the one that wins the war. And in our own lives, we persist in relationships or careers that no longer serve us. Why? According to Annie Duke, in the face of tough decisions, we’re terrible quitters. And that is significantly holding us back.
Traction – This was great – “All entrepreneurs and business leaders face similar frustrations—personnel conflict, profit woes, and inadequate growth. Decisions never seem to get made, or, once made, fail to be properly implemented. But there is a solution. It’s not complicated or theoretical.The Entrepreneurial Operating System® is a practical method for achieving the business success you have always envisioned.”
Tribal Leadership. Within each corporation are anywhere from a few to hundreds of separate tribes. In Tribal Leadership, Dave Logan, John King, and Halee Fischer-Wright demonstrate how these tribes develop—and show you how to assess them and lead them to maximize productivity and growth.
Organization Theory and Design – If you are looking for an interesting textbook to read, I enjoyed this – “Discover the most progressive thinking about organizations today as acclaimed author Richard Daft balances recent, innovative ideas with proven classic theories and effective business practices.”
Organizations: Rational, Natural and Open Systems. Not for the faint of heart here, I read the first third and then was worn out – This broad, balanced introduction to organizational studies enables the reader to compare and contrast different approaches to the study of organizations. This book is a valuable tool for the reader, as we are all intertwined with organizations in one form or another.
Book of Five Rings – I know this one is famous, but I much prefer The Art of War
Working Backwards: Insights, Stories, and Secrets from Inside Amazon. In Working Backwards, two long-serving Amazon executives reveal the principles and practices that have driven the success of one of the most extraordinary companies the world has ever known.

Recommended

Reading

Strategy

Entrepreneurship

Management Theory, Leadership, Etc.

Marketing

Profiles of Leaders, Entrepreneurs and Companies

Corporate Governance

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