These are the 10 books that I believe every entrepreneur should read:
- The Entrepreneur’s Guide to Business Law
– LLC vs C-corp vs S-Corp? Founder’s vesting? Liquidation Preferences? Equity vs Debt financing? This book will educate you enough to be able to answer these and many other important questions.
- Bootstrapping Your Business
– From the founder of RightNow. The amazing story of how a geographically-challenged (Montana) entrepreneur built a world class business.
- Purple Cow – Dead simple premise, the key to marketing is to build something remarkable.
- The Art of the Start – The Art of Pitching, Marketing and Funding your Startup.
- The Innovator’s Dilemma – If your startup beats all the odds and becomes hugely successful prepare yourself for the innovator’s dilemma, cannibalize your product before someone else does.
- The E-Myth Revisited -
How-to create a business not a job.
- Permission Marketing -
The greatest marketing asset your startup can build is the permission to market to your customers and prospects.
- Growing a Business – Sincere advice for creating a company culture that your team and customers will love.
- The Cluetrain Manifesto
– Successful marketing is a conversation.
- Bottom-up Marketing -
Pure bottoms-up execution. Marketing tactics to grow your business.
And please don’t build your website without reading these books:
- Always Be Testing
- Designing for the Social Web
- Web Analytics: An Hour a Day
- Don’t Make Me Think
- Call to Action
Do you have any favorites that I’ve missed?
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{ 40 comments… read them below or add one }
thanks for this great list.
Designing for the Social Web is a great read.
We revisit it when implementing new stuff on our website.
I see you already picked out “Purple Cow”, I would also add Seth Godin's “Tribes” and “Meatball Sundae”. Both have been such a huge influence on all aspects of my business.
I'm on it.
The Entrepreneur's Manual: Business Start-Ups, Spin-Offs, and Innovative Management (ISBN: 0801964547) gets rave reviews on Amazon. The book was published in 77 but numerous reviewers say the book is as relevant now as when it was published. The book has 19 reviews and all are 5/5 stars. The book is out of print so there is no benefit to anyone to pitch this book. It seems to me that the reviews are genuine.
I would add Reality Check and Socialnomics
Hey David, this is a great list. I just ordered the 3 books that I haven't read.
Glad you enjoyed it!
I would definitely add Steve Blank's book to the list.
Cheers,
David
Cool. Thanx for the share !!
Can you add a description of each and what you learned from it? Otherwise this just seems like an Amazon affiliate link push.
Hi Paul,
Great point, I'll do that. I posted this too quickly, should've spent time explaining “why”.
By the way, huge loyal fan of your blog!
David
Thanks! No worries, I've definitely had posts that I just wanted to “get out there” and wrote really quickly too! That being said some of these books look interesting just from what I've seen on amazon.. might end up buying a few!
Best,
Paul
I would add:
The Ten Faces of Innovation: IDEO's Strategies for Defeating the Devil's Advocate and Driving Creativity Throughout Your Organization… by Thomas Kelley
and
Crowdsourcing: Why the Power of the Crowd Is Driving the Future of Business… by Jeff Howe
Finally, Don't build a website without
In Search of Jefferson's Moose: Notes on the State of Cyberspace… by David Post
4 Steps to the Epiphany is a favorite of mine on product marketing and customer discovery.
I've been wanting to read Purple Cows and Tribes. You should add Six Pixels of Separation and Guerrilla Marketing. They've really helped me establish my web development business, and I've gotten quite a few followers on social media from their tips.
Nice list. But a little e-marketing-centric, maybe. So I'd add:
How to Make Friends and Influence People, by Dale Carnegie
Accounting For Dummies, by John A. Tracy CPA
The Art Of War, by Sun Tzu
You found me out… I'm e-marketing centric…
Good list, I need to pickup that Accounting book (despite majoring in accounting)…
Thanks brother,
;dc
Thanks Amber. I've never heard of the first and always wanted to read the second. Adding both to my reading list.
Thanks. I just checked it out on amazon and I'm going to buy that, it sounds good!
I am suggesting:
Free by Chris Anderson
Tribes by Seth Godin
Outliers (Afvigerne) by Malcolm Gladwell
Orbiting the Giant Hairball by Gordon MacKenzie (So amazing…)
Thanks for the list! I'm just starting out as an entrepreneur so definitely need this.
I loved Purple Cow, Tribes and “Sundae” by Seth Goldin. Great list. I have some catching up to do. thank you!
David, great list. I'd suggest adding “Raising Venture Capital for the Serious Entrepreneur” by VC Dermot Berkery. He gives advice to company founders on how to start a business that will also be fundable by VCs. Very practical advice from a very nice guy (who just happens to be a successful VC.) I'm sure you can find it on Amazon.
Cool, will check it out. I've never run across it before.
Cheers,
David
“CEO Logic” by C. Ray Johnson (maybe a little dated, but very, very clearly lays out the (learnable and actionable) skills a CEO should have)
“The Leader as a Mensch: Become the Kind of Person Others Want to Follow” by Bruna Martinuzzi
I second the call for Dale Carnegie!
“From Idea to Launch at Internet Speed” by Catherine Kitcho
Thank you for directing me to “Bottoms-Up Marketing” by Al Ries and Jack Trout – I found “Differentiate or Die” very useful too!
Trust Agents by Chris Brogan in respect of the importance of dialogues – not just in social media spheres, but generally…and have to just add that The Cluetrain Manifesto is an absolute classic..10 years on and still loving it..
Good list. I have read most of them, and highly recommend some of the books other commenter's made. Such as, Trust Agents, Four steps to Epiphany, Etc.
I never read #2 on your list, but I did read Seth Godin's free version of the Bootstrapper's Bible: http://sethgodin.typepad.com/seths_blog/2004/11…. Great alternative if you need to save a couple bucks this holiday season.
Thanks for the list!
I've just finished The E-Myth Revisited and was very impressed and it did definitely help me. Will check some of the others out.
For the “please don't build your website without….” section, I would add 'Landing Page Optimization' by Tim Ash.
Not necessarily E-focused, but good business books that will help you lead a company:
You’re in Charge, Now What?
Managing Growth in an Emerging Business
Jump Start Your Business Brain
Execution
Management of Organizational Behavior
Thanks a lot for the list… I’ve just started blogging on various aspects of my journey in Entrepreneurship, Startups and IE Business School
I have to add this one: It’s A Jungle In There by Steven Schussler the founder of Rainforest Cafe and many other themed restaurants.
The gist of it: it’s about the highs and the lows…the very lows I mean, and how he was able to stick with it and succeed despite what others said. It’s such a great read.
Wow! That’s a great help! Thanks David
I’d add ‘Business Model Generation’ by Alex Osterwalder, http://www.businessmodelgeneration.com/book.
One of my personal favourites, “A Good Hard Kick in the Ass: Basic Training for Entrepreneurs” by Rob Adams.
http://www.amazon.com/Good-Hard-Kick-Ass-Entrepreneurs/dp/0609609505
No Crossing the Chasm, etc from Moore?
Thank you for not including “Atlas Shrugged” on this list.
Add :
-How to Win Friends and Influence People
-Think and Grow Rich
“Ready, Fire, Aim”
by Michael Masterson
One of my all time favorites.
I’d definitely recommend Little Bets and Poke The Box.
Permission Marketing is Number One on my list. Good call!
A great one is Pursuit of Happiness by Tony Hsieh
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