15 successful CEOs share the one business book they think everyone should read

books
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  • Books are an accessible way for anyone to gain business acumen.
  • We spent two months talking to CEOs about their daily schedules and how they find inspiration.
  • Unsurprisingly, many CEOs turn to business-related books for inspiration — here are the features you'll want to add to your bookshelf.

 

We've spent more than two months gathering insights from CEOs across a variety of industries to learn more about their daily schedules. From what time they wake up, how often they workout and what they do in their downtime, we've been able to paint a picture of the structure that business leaders follow.

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We also asked them, "If you had to recommend just one business-related book, what would it be?"  

The end result unsurprisingly includes a number of business and marketing classics, but also features authors we're confident you'll be looking to add to your bookshelf.

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1. ‘Scaling Up’ by Verne Harnish

Scaling Up
Gazelles, Inc.

Bruce Clay, founder of the marketing agency with the same name, has been on the Inc 5,000 list of America’s fastest growing private companies nine times in a row(!). He recommends "Scaling Up: How a Few Companies Make It … and Why the Rest Don't" as a book that helped him in his business life.

The book comes 10 years after the publication of his business classic, "Mastering the Rockefeller Habits." The focus here is on building the tools and techniques for growing a company that is not only profitable, but industry dominating.

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2. 'How to Win Friends and Influence People' by Dale Carnegie

2
Simon & Schuster

Will Schenk, CEO of HappyFunCorp, a New York-based engineering firm that works with Fortune 500 companies thinks everyone should read this Dale Carnegie classic.

First published in 1936, this is one of the bestselling self-help books of all time, selling more than 30 million copies worldwide. It is Amazon’s 11th highest selling nonfiction book; in 2011 it was the 19th book in Times Magazine’s list of the most influential books of all time and the Library of Congress has ranked it as the seventh most influential book in American history.

Warren Buffett claims it changed his life and he still has the diploma from the course Dale Carnegie ran in conjunction with the book hanging in his office.

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3. 'Do More Faster: TechStars Lessons to Accelerate Your Startup' by Brad Feld and David Cohen

3
Gildan Media, LLC

Hurree Labs — which develops notification software for applications — is the brainchild of Aaron Gibson, an alumni of the Techstars London Accelerator program. It should be no surprise then that he recommends a book by its founders.

Operating in 29 cities, TechStars is a mentorship driven startup accelerator. Once a year it funds ten startups in each of the cities it's based in and provides them with access to fifty top Internet investors and entrepreneurs.

The book is a series of essays, edited by TechStars founders, featuring stories and lessons from those who have worked successfully with the program.

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4. 'Startup CEO' by Matt Blumberg

4
Wiley

Dirk Paessler, founder of Paessler AG, provides IT infrastructure monitoring software for some of the world's biggest brands, including the UK’s Fulham Football Club. He recommends adding "Startup CEO" to your bookshelf.

In 1999, Matt Blumberg started a company called Return Path and detailed his experiences in a blog named "Only Once" — "because you're only a first time CEO once." In this book, Blumberg shares his experiences and uses the knowledge gained to help others in the same position to ensure that their startups flourish.

The book focuses on the practical application of his own advice and has a companion website filled with additional materials.

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5. 'The Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference' by Malcolm Gladwell

5
Little Brown and Company

Robin Stephens' Vuture was recently ranked 16th in a list of the world's top 1,000 Saas companies, and number #1 in the UK, where they are based. Robin recommends Malcolm Gladwell’s "The Tipping Point" as a must-read.  

First published in 2000, before the age of "social media influencers," "The Tipping Point" investigates how certain individuals can provoke a trend; whether in fashion, thought, or social activity. Gladwell investigates how some people are the ones who create the momentum that can create a nudge effect to alter the way in which products are sold, among other things.

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6. 'Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action' by Simon Sinek

start with why
Amazon

With clients including Electrolux and Sky, Klipfolio founder Allan Wille suggests everyone pick up a copy of Simon Sinek's oft-recommended book.

Too many books look at the how we can get actions done; this book looks at the why. Using the examples of Martin Luther King Jr, Steve Jobs, and the Wright Brothers, Sinek investigates how the motivation to succeed, not for the sake of success but for some greater reason, provides greater inspiration than just money or fame.

Not only is "Start with Why" a bestseller all over the world, but the TED talk based on it is the third most watched of all time.

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7. 'Only the Paranoid Survive' by Andrew Grove

7
Crown Publishing Group

Pallav Nadhani, founder of FusionCharts, is developing a Javascript library used by companies including Google, Dell, Facebook and IBM. He recommends you read "Only the Paranoid Survive" by Andrew Grove to keep your wits about you in business.

As the president and CEO of Intel, Grove has steered the company to become the world's largest chip maker; that said, the path has not been easy, with massive changes in technology and expectations occurring during his tenure.

In this book, Grove reflects on the various "strategic inflection points" he has experienced — those periods where a company must either change radically or become irrelevant, and how the company overcame them. Using examples from his own and others' careers, the author provides insights into the management of change and how to lead under these circumstances.

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8. 'Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook: How To Tell Your Story In A Noisy Social World' by Gary Vaynerchuk

gary
Amazon

Based out of Chicago, Illinois, Nikki Csek helps companies with their design and marketing needs through her agency, Csek Creative. She recommends Gary Vaynerchuk's second book, "Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook," a New York Times bestseller, for those starting out in the world of business.

In addition to writing books and running VaynerMedia, Gary Vaynerchuk was an early investor in Twitter, Facebook and Tumblr.

In this book, Vaynerchuk uses a boxing analogy to indicate that while most marketing and PR departments are looking for the strong "right hook" knockout marketing campaign, a more effective strategy in these days of social media is to provide a constant "jab, jab, jab" strategy by creating effective online content, tailored for each social media platform.

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9. 'Rich Dad, Poor Dad' by Robert T. Kiyosaki

rich dad poor dad
Simon & Schuster

Waqas Pitafi, founder of DevBatch, has built mobile applications for companies ranging from Pepsi to Georgetown University. A financial classic is on the top of his list of books he thinks you should read.

"Rich Dad, Poor Dad" has been translated into over 50 languages and has been a bestseller all over the world with 27 million copies sold.

Inspired by the experiences of his own father (his "poor dad") and those of the father of his best friend (his "rich dad"), the author explores the ways in which much of the conventional wisdom on how to earn and acquire money is a myth and that you don't necessarily need to work for your money if your money can work for you.

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10. 'Influence: The psychology of persuasion' by Dr. Robert B. Cialdini

Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion
Harper Collins

AppBuddy CEO Marc Aubin, who counts Experian and Adobe among his company's clients, recommends Cialdini's book as a must for those looking to grow their business.

Cialdini is a leading expert in the field of influence and persuasion. "Influence" delves into reasons why people say "yes" and how to apply these understandings to one's own life.

Grounded in years of behavioural research, Cialdini deftly sets out six universal principles of persuasion and how they operate.

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11. 'Year of Yes: How to Dance It Out, Stand In the Sun and Be Your Own Person' by Shonda Rhimes

Years of Yes
11. ‘Year of Yes’ by Shonda Rhimes Simon & Schuster

Lacey Picazo has designed websites for the Royal Bank of Scotland and beauty brand PureSilk through her company, ZocoDesign. She put forward "Year of Yes" as her all-time favourite business book.

Rhimes is the hitmaker behind ABC shows such as "Grey's Anatomy" and "Scandal." She is also the executive producer of "How to Get Away with Murder."

In "Year of Yes" she sets out how simply saying "yes" more changed her life, and how it could change yours, too. The book is a funny and passionate look at how our fears can hold us back.

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12. 'The Ladybird Book of the Meeting' by Jason Hazeley and Joel Morris

The Ladybird of the Meeting
Penguin Random House

Andy Golpys is the co-founder of MadeByShape, a Manchester-based web design firm that has worked with clients as big as the UK's National Health Service. His recommendation is one you likely haven't heard of before.

"People at work spend a lot of the day in meetings. Meetings are important because they give everyone a chance to talk about work. Which is easier than doing it."

Or so goes the book, "The Ladybird Book of the Meeting." This tongue-in-cheek little volume provides some comic relief and makes an ideal gift for office workers or those who spend a lot of time in meetings.

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13. ‘High Output Management’ by Andrew Grove

Vintage
Penguin Random House

Mohit Bhakuni is the founder of Contify, a marketing intelligence company that has worked with brands like DELL, Bosch, and Deloitte. "High Output Management" is the book he thinks you should read.

Based again on author Grove’s experiences at Intel, this book looks at how you can create highly effective teams and inspire people to reach their highest performance levels.

While of particular interest to CEOs, entrepreneurs and startup founders, this book is also recommended for anyone looking to improve their management techniques and provides insights for anyone needing to encourage groups or individuals to provide or create something of value.

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14. ‘Shoe Dog’ by Phil Knight

shoe dog
Amazon

London-based Patryk Pawlikowski is the founder of Shoplo, a software platform that helps brands run their own online ecommerce stores. His book recommendation, "Shoe Dog," was an instant hit when it was released in April of 2016.  

"Shoe Dog" is author Phil Knight’s personal story of how he created the wildly popular shoe brand, Nike. Lauded for being honest about the challenges involved in creating a company of this magnitude, the book is a popular narrative about how success is not “simply a step away” as other business narratives might have one believe.

The book is funny, insightful, and examines the chaos inherent in the growth of a major company.

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15. ‘The Five Levels of Leadership’ by John Maxwell

‘The Five Levels of Leadership’ by John Maxwell
Center Street

Indico is a venture-backed startup co-founded by Slater Victoroff that has raised over $8.4 million to offer AI solutions for enterprise businesses. Victoroff touts "The Five Levels of Leadership" as a must-read for any new business owner.

With a focus on "developing the leader in you," Maxwell, a New York Times bestselling author, delves into the 5 levels of leadership, as he defines them.  

Maxwell has positioned himself as somewhat of an authority when it comes to leadership. A popular speaker, he garners listeners that number in the hundreds of thousands each year.

Glen Allsopp is a founder and CEO who collaborated with MarketResearch.biz, a specialized market research company, to find invaluable insights from CEOs across borders and industries.

Read the original article on Contributor. Copyright 2018.
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