My favourite books
Give how much I read, I thought I may as well share my curated favourites. This page is designed so you open a few tabs, then go through them, I have hooked up Amazon affiliate links, so if you grab anything, it helps me get a few more books 🙂 I hope you don’t mind.
If you’re not sure where to start, simply buy all the books in a section, why not? Investing in yourself is the best investment (and return) you can make, an extra $30-$50 will only return dividends.
My most recommended books
The War of Art, by Steven Pressfield
This talks through the process of creating something from nothing, it just gives you that prod you need to keep at it. Another second read by Steven is Do the Work, also excellent.
Steal Like An Artist, by Austin Kleon
This encourages us all to collect and then curate ideas that interest US. You, being the key filter, it’s about the things you like, that inspire and motivate you. As these are what help provide the input to all the work we create.
Tremendous read, it’s for the moments when you’re evaluating, should I continue or leave this project. Often I find, the projects that you care about the most, to then read this book are the ones that you should absolutely stick with. But buy it, give it a read now, then revisit as you need to.
For people on the start of a journey
- So good they can’t ignore you by Cal Newport Especially good for young people & graduates, talks about how you figure out what to do.
- Small Bets by Peter Sims One of my all time favourites, it talks about how famous creators create and gives you some mental models on building things, whether that’s a business, project or personal goals.
- Daily Rituals of Artists It’s refreshing to read, how those we have admired, started their day, some surprising habits but good to read. Well paired with The Power of Habit.
For first time entrepreneurs
- Built to Sell by John Warrillow A checklist of what makes a sellable business, co-incidentally they are also what makes a strong business. An important read even at the formation of a new enterprise, then every 18 months. I read it, and then used it as a checklist of things to improve on.
- The E-Myth by Michael Gerber One of the most popular small business books, it helps founders adjust their mindset to building systems & processes, which create repeatable value – and steps them through how to do that step by step.
- Four Hour Work Week by Tim Ferriss An early favourite of mine, helps you focus on what’s most important, and maximise effectiveness.
- Rules of Thumb: 52 Truths for Winning at Business Without Losing Your Self Alan is the co-founder of Fast Company, over the years he’s picked up some interesting insights, a favourite of mine is “Crisis is opportunity hidden in disguise”. Worth a quick read.
- Anything You Want: 40 Lessons for a New Kind of Entrepreneur Similar to Rules of Thumb, this book by Derek Sivers, founder of CDBaby, authors of the infamous customer service email – shares some thoughts & ideas on how to think about your business.
- 80/20 Principle by Richard Koch Timeless classic, identifying the 20% of causes which create 80% of the outcomes. I’ve done this time and time again. Where can I as a founder focus my time most effectively. What one or two things if I achieve those, the rest don’t really matter.
For downtime
- Any Clive Cussler book, a great adventure series that’s an easy read.
- An Idiot Abroad by Karl Pilkington You know him from the podcast (if you don’t look it up) a comical look at day to day life and customs around the world.
- Both by Paul Carr: The Upgrade: A cautionary tale of a life without reservations and Bringing Nothing to the Party An entertaining read of Paul Carrs journey as a young journalist, till he started at TechCrunch.
For travelling
- Vagabonding by Rolf Pott An inspiring read to help you get out the front door and travel more frequently. Some great tips on travelling cheaply but also to be more daring in your travel.
- The Art of Nonconformity by Chris Guillebeau Hand in hand with vagabonding, Chris shares great tips for travelling, as well as sharing his journey on going independent. Lots of learnings all round.
For business stories
- Business Adventures by John Brooks We’ve all heard the Apple story, the Google story, Amazon – but have you heard any Xerox stories? This is Bill Gates favourite book, and it shares business stories from the 50s-70s, some great reads and universal learnings.
- The Greatest Trade Ever by Gregory Zuckerman
- Losing my Virginity by Richard Branson I read this at a young age (it’s perfect for young entrepreneurs) and re-read over time, it’s great to hear the story and how far back it goes.
- The Wolf of Wall Street by Jordan Belfort An inside view of Wall Street at its worst – a fascinating read.
- King of Capital by David Carey
- Barbarians at the Gate by Bryan Burrough
- The Hard thing about Hard things by Ben Horowitz A must read, a REAL account of what goes on in startups going through tough times, what goes through your mind. If you’re fatigued by business books this is the one to read it’s not like the rest.
For leading
- Extreme Ownership: How US Navy Seals Lead and Win by Jocko Willink My favourite book on leadership, a good reminder of servant leadership, prioritising and executing. A must read.
- Leading at the Edge: Leadership Lessons from the Extraordinary Saga of Shackleton’s Antarctic Expedition Really good, focuses on how to build a strong leadership team.
- Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap and Others Don’t by Jim Collins A good read, academic, but provides a checklist for leadership. At the time I read it I was 24 – and used it to focus on where I could improve.
- # harvard book
- Endurance Shackletons Incredible Journey: A must read for leaders, you see how Shackleton navigating the perils of antarctica without loss of life. An incredible read.
For Culture
- Rework by Jason Fried This is how millenials think, I hate using the term – but if you’re a founder/entrepreneur this is worth a read, if you’re wanting to adapt your culture to the emerging workforce a great place to start.
- Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh A reminder of how the customer is king, practical tips for building a culture around that.
- Maverick by Ricardo Semler The business book in early experiments in radical transparency and empowering staff to grow the business.
Best biographies
- Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson A thoroughly enjoying read of the man behind Apple.
- Losing my Virginity by Richard Branson I read this at a young age (it’s perfect for young entrepreneurs) and re-read over time, it’s great to hear the story and how far back it goes.
- A Man and his Ship by Steven Ujifusa I loved this, the Steve Jobs of his age, talks you through the shipping industry in its prime.
- The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life
- Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson There’s a lot to the Einstein backstory, in terms of where he came from, and where he got to.
- My Life & Work by Henry Ford This is scarily relevant, the lessons Henry Ford shares on managing staff, business growth are just as timely today as ever.
For business planning
- Blueprint to a Billion: 7 Essentials to Achieve Exponential Growth by David G Thomson – like Jim Collins, find the things you can change to position yourself for a billion dollar company.
On international business & entrepreneurship
- Poor Economics: A Radical Rethinking of the way to Fight Global Poverty This is great, if you haven’t experienced poverty, it helps you understand WHY people with no money will still splash out for fast food, or buy things on credit.
- Brilliant, Crazy, Cocky: How the Top 1% of Entrepreneurs Profit from Global Chaos by Sarah Lacy Despite her controversial reputation this book is great in exploring how entrepreneurs around the world build businesses.
- Stealth of Nations by Robert Neuwirth EXCELLENT! Discusses System D the informal economies which really drive the world. Thoroughly enjoyed it.
- Confessions of an Economic Hit Man by John Perkins
Economics
- The Invisible Hook: The Hidden Economics of Pirates by Peter T Leeson Pirates, economics, what’s not to like? It talks about basic organisational principles used by pirates in their democratic environment.
On design
- Do you matter? How great design will make people love your company by Robert Brunner
- Dieter Rams: As Little Design as Possible
- Jony Ive: The Genius Behind Apple’s Greatest Products by Leander Kahney
- Prioritizing Web Usability by Jakob Nielsen The must read on web and app usability with insights from research.
On investing
- Get rich with dividends: A Proven System for Earning Double-Digit Returns The title is cheesy but it’s a great read around how you can identify solid companies in which to invest in for the long term. It also teaches you more about how to invest if you’re starting out.
- What I learned losing a million dollars by Brendan Moynihan This teaches you to remove the emotional attachment to wins & losses in the stock market and how to act accordingly. As entrepreneurs this can be the basic mistake we make when we start investing.
On change
- The Power of Habit: Why we do what we do in life and business by Charles Duhigg We are what we repeat, this book brings to life how to change habits to get the change you’re after.
- The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right by Atul Gawande Checklist, checklist, checklist. Following The Power of Habit, this ensures that you repeatable outcomes by building the habit of building checklists.
- Self Reliance by Ralph Waldo Emerson
- The obstacle is the way by Ryan Holiday
- How to change when change is hard by Chip Heath & Dan Heath
- Box, how containers changed the world by Marc Levinson A fascinating read on what we think now was a basic infrastructure change which dramatically changed how the world traded and shipped goods.
Workbooks, some guided workbooks to help you achieving a specific goal or project
- The ShipIt Journal by Seth Godin – lay out your plan, and make it happen.
- Goal Planning Books by Zig Ziglar – lay out your plan, and make it happen.
On business growth
- Win without pitching manifesto by Blair Enns So good, reminds you of how to reset business pitches and frame them up for success.
- Predictable Revenue by Aaron Ross The book all SAAS startups read, building out your sales operations for predictable revenue, it’s a great first read and has enough to get you started.
- Harvard Business Review on Business Model Innovation
Great stories
- Shantaram by Gregory David Roberts
- D Day from the germans eyes by Holger Eckhertz [and the second book] You don’t often think about the other side of the second great war, this book shares the stories of soldiers on the western front in the first 48 hours and there are a few surprises that might have changed the war.
On creativity
- Ignore Everybody: And 39 other Keys to Creativity by Hugh Macleod So good.
- Steal Like an Artist by Austin Kleon Build the habit of collecting and scrapbooking ideas, creativity is the re-mixing of previous ideas, with the common connection being you. A short but good read.
On excellence
- The art of client service: 58 things every advertising & marketing professional should know, revised and updated edition by Robert Solomon Perfect for service businesses and account success/service roles, it helps upskill on all the basic skills that help build for excellent service. From handling mistakes, to when the client is wrong, to communicating effectively.
- The Little Big Things: 163 ways to pursue excellence by Tom Peters
- Never Eat Alone by Keith Ferrazzi
On marketing
- The 22 immutable laws of marketing by Al Ries
- Any Seth Godin book! All Marketers are Liars, Purple Cow and Tribes. View all this stuff here.
- Confession of an Advertising Man by David Ogilvy and Ogilvy on Advertising
- Made to Stick: Why some ideas survive and others die by Chip Heath
On War Stories
Challenging Thinking
- The magic of thinking big by David Schwartz -> as it says, helps you focus on thinking big.
- What Technology Wants by Kevin Kelly
On startups
- Zero to One by Peter Thiel A contrarian view, which challenges your basic business building principles and helps your team refocus on making bigger plays. Helped particularly with my goal of making bigger moves.
- The founders dilemma: Anticipating and avoiding the pitfalls that can sink a startup by Noam Wasserman A weird one, it covers all the icky scenarios which don’t really need a whole book but need answering. A must have ‘dictionary’ for startup problems. Had it for a month and opened it every week.