Book List

I read a lot - these are the books I recommend for every business leader

Relationships / Soft Skills

The Anatomy of Peace
A fable teaching conflict resolution for peaceful relationships
Emotional Intelligence: Why It Can Matter More Than IQ
Explores how self-awareness and empathy enhance personal and professional success
How to Win Friends and Influence People
Timeless strategies to build relationships and effectively influence others positively
Getting Naked
Build trust and openness with clients to improve business relationships.

Leadership

The Five Dysfunctions of a Team
Identifies and addresses key obstacles to effective teamwork and collaboration
Leaders Eat Last
Encourages leaders to prioritize team well-being to build trust and collaboration
Dare to Lead
Empowers leaders to embrace vulnerability, foster trust, and cultivate courageous, empathetic teams
The Leadership Challenge: How to Make Extraordinary Things Happen in Organizations
Offers practical strategies to inspire and lead teams to achieve extraordinary results

Financial Management

Financial Intelligence for Entrepreneurs
Demystifies financial statements, empowering entrepreneurs to make informed business decisions
The Essentials of Finance and Accounting for Nonfinancial Manager
Simplifies finance and accounting for managers without a financial background
HBR Guide to Finance Basics for Managers
Simplifies financial concepts, enabling managers to make informed business decisions

Business Operations

Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business
Provides a framework for business growth through the Entrepreneurial Operating System’s six key components
Scaling Up: Rockefeller Habits 2.0
Strategies to grow businesses focusing on people, strategy, execution, and cash
Built to Sell
Guides entrepreneurs to create scalable, sellable businesses through specialization and systems

Marketing

Building a StoryBrand
Clarifies brand messaging using storytelling to effectively connect with customers
Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind
Strategy for placing products in customers’ minds to achieve competitive edge
Traction: How Any Startup Can Achieve Explosive Customer Growth
Offers proven methods for startups to achieve rapid and sustained customer growth
22 Immutable Laws of Marketing
Timeless principles guiding successful marketing strategies and avoiding common pitfalls

Change Management

Who Moved My Cheese?
A fable teaching adaptability and embracing change for personal and professional success
Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard
Strategies to overcome barriers and successfully implement personal and organizational change

Communication

Conversational Capacity
Enhances communication skills to manage and sustain effective, meaningful conversations
Crucial Conversations
Master strategies for handling high-stakes, emotional discussions effectively
Fierce Conversations
Master communication to tackle difficult topics and build stronger relationships
That's a Great Question
Improves communication skills for confident, effective interactions in work and personal life

Productivity

Atomic Habits
Small habit changes that compound to create remarkable personal and professional transformations
Essentialism: The Disciplined Pursuit of Less
Prioritize essentials, eliminate non-essentials for greater effectiveness and fulfillment
Grit: The Power of Passion and Perseverance
Demonstrates how sustained effort and passion lead to exceptional achievement.
Getting Things Done
Organizes tasks systematically to boost productivity and reduce personal stress

Culture

Start with Why
Inspires leaders to define and communicate their core purpose to motivate others
The Culture Code
Unlocks the secrets to building highly successful, collaborative, and innovative team cultures
Culture by Design
Systematic approach to intentionally shaping organizational culture for lasting competitive advantage
Be Our Guest
Teaches Disney’s method for delivering exceptional guest experiences through an intentional service culture

Strategic Planning

Blue Ocean Strategy
Creates uncontested market space, making competition irrelevant and unlocking strategic growth
The Art of War
Ancient Chinese treatise on strategy emphasizing deception, adaptation, and superior planning

Accounting

The Accounting Game: Basic Accounting Fresh from the Lemonade Stand
Explains fundamental accounting principles using a simple, engaging lemonade stand analogy.
Accounting Made Simple: Accounting Explained in 100 Pages or Less
Explains accounting fundamentals in an accessible, straightforward manner for beginners and non-accountants.

Sales

The Sales Contrarian: Opening the Minds of Salespeople and Sales Leaders for the Greater Good
Challenges conventional sales thinking to foster ethical, customer-centric practices for lasting success
Hyper Sales Growth
Boost sales performance, leadership, and culture for rapid business expansion.
Fanatical Prospecting
Persistently leverages multiple channels to consistently fill and sustain sales pipelines.

Negotiating

Never Split the Difference
Negotiation tactics from an ex-FBI hostage negotiator emphasizing empathy and effective persuasion
Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In
Emphasizes principled negotiation, focusing on interests to achieve mutually beneficial agreements

Artificial Intelligence

Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence
Explores AI’s future impact on humanity, urging responsible innovation and mindful progress
The Singularity is Nearer
Foresees technology merging humanity with super-intelligent machines, radically transforming our future
Mastering AI: A Survival Guide to Our Superpowered Future
Offers strategies to thrive by harnessing AI’s power in an accelerating future

Biographies

The Ride of a Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company
Lessons in leadership, risk-taking, and innovation from Disney’s longtime transformative CEO, Bob iger
Walt Disney: The Triumph of the American Imagination
Comprehensive biography revealing Disney’s visionary spirit, creativity, and empire-building legacy

List updated periodically as I read more

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