My Reading List: Every Book I've Read Since January 2014
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The Books I’ve Read Since 2014

The original purpose of this post was to share:

Every book I’ve read since January 2014.

So what is this post about?

It’s an answer to one of the most common questions I get… “can you recommend a good book that has helped you grow your business?

Here’s the list of every book I’ve read since 2014 (I’ve removed the “how to raise a happy baby” books and travel guides from the list!)

The books are not listed in any special order, other than the most recent book I’ve read is at the top of the list.

I hope you find this list useful, and I’d LOVE to get a recommendation from you on what to read next, so leave a comment!

The Latest Books I’ve Read (Updated to August 2023)…

Focus

This book by Al Ries talks about focus, but not just personally, but for a company and their growth and vision. Ries talks about how to successfully manage a business by focusing on core products, and not spreading yourself (and your company) too thin by venturing into unrelated enterprises.

Buy on Amazon

The Story of Lululemon

This is a really interesting book from Chip Wilson, the founder of Lululemon, and a great book for any entrepreneur looking at starting any sort of business. He’s brutally honest in this “unauthorized” history, talking about his own mistakes and those of others.

Buy at Amazon

Antifragile

Nassim Nicholas Taleb coined the term “Black swan event” in his book “The Black Swan”, about unpredictable events with potentially severe consequences (it came out one year before the massive 2008 financial meltdown… another event, of course, would be Covid in 2020-2021.)

This book is sort of a sequel, in that it offers solutions to black swan events. He proposes how to build and think in an antifragile manor, and how to behave and thrive in an unpredicatble world.
Buy at Amazon

Rework

This is a book written by the founders of Basecamp, a popular project management tool. Having software companies myself, it’s interesting to read about their journey and pick up some of the things that they have shared.

Buy on Amazon.com

Traction

I’m about to start this book, as well as it’s sister book, Rocket Fuel.

Find on Amazon.com

I Will Teach You To Be Rich

I read this years ago, but love to revisit it every once in a while. As well, it gets regularly updated, and every time I re-visit a book like this, I get something new out of it. For instance, I do have a wealth manager I regularly communicate with, but books like these gives me extra perspectives and different points of views on investing strategies.

Find it on Amazon.com 

Words that Sell

This is a classic I keep coming back to for copyrighting. It’s more of a reference or thesaurus for marketing words, so I find a lot of inspiration when writing.

Available at Amazon

Blue Ocean Shift

The 2015 book Blue Ocean Strategy is one of my all-time favourite marketing books, and that book talks about how to differentiate yourself and find your own space in a crowded marketplace. This is a sort of sequel and builds upon the original. I haven’t yet read it yet but look forward to checking it out!

Available at Amazon

The Subtle Art of Not Giving a F*ck

I put off reading this book for a while, because I thought it was about being indifferent and not caring about what happens. It’s actually quite the opposite. It’s about deciding what you care about and focusing on that.

Available on Amazon

Everything Is F*cked

I found the previous book so good I went out and bought his follow-up, which is definitely another interesting name. The book is actually about hope, and so far I’m really enjoying it.

Available on Amazon

Mastery

An older book, but still has some great nuggets of wisdom. The author George Leonard, an expert in the martial art of aikido, talks about how to use the process of mastery in our business and personal life.

Available at Amazon

Breath, James Nestor

This book is all about… you guessed it, breathing. A simple topic but the book explores it beyond the fact that we do it naturally, like the way we breathe impacting our health.

Will, Will Smith & Mark Manson

You’d think that moving from one of the biggest rap stars of his generation to one of the biggest Hollywood stars is epic enough, but that’s only half his story. The other half is how he realized that success in life doesn’t always translate into success in your personal life. Without knowing it, he often alienated his family and friends, and so began a journey of self-knowledge and transformation to balance work and family life and overall become a better person… a good biography is one where you learn something about yourself as well, and I found it to be the case when taking the emotional journey with him.

Total Recall, Arnold Schwarzenegger

A pretty interesting story that I got a lot more out of than expected.

The Road Less Stupid, Keith J. Cunningham

Yes, smart people do dumb things. Keith basically says that you don’t need to do more smart things to find financial success in life… you just have to make fewer dumb mistakes! I found the tidbits of wisdom in this book to help in running my own business more effectively and minimizing financial risk.

Deep Work, Cal Newport

One of the worst things to come out of this digital age is… take a look at this video of cute cats! Oooh, new email! … Seriously, it is DISTRACTION. This book helps you relearn the lost art of focusing without all the distractions of 21st century life. I find that I get my most productive work done when I am deeply and intensely focused on one task at hand.

How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big, Scott Adams

Everybody knows Dilbert, one of the most famous comic strips about a bumbling office worker… but did you know that Scott Adams, the cartoonist, failed at almost everything else? A funny yet serious book full of his personal stories and life lessons.

American Kingpin, Nick Bilton

Definitely one of the more exciting non-fiction books I’ve read in recent memory, this is how a programmer named Ross Ulbricht built the $1.2 billion Silk Road, one of the most infamous websites on the “Dark Web” … where you could buy pretty well anything illegal.

The book goes into detail about his enterprise and the twists, turns, false leads and red herrings as the feds tried to figure out who was behind it all.

Work Less, Make More, James Schramko

A fantastic book full of bite-sized and actionable steps to truly work less and make more. The author, owner of a respected coaching system and a business podcast, it’s a great blueprint for creating highly profitable businesses while implementing strategies to enjoy life and freedom from work.

48 Laws of Power, Robert Greene

This book takes three thousand years of the history of power and distills it into 48 “laws.” Basically, it details how to grab power but, more importantly, how to wield it effectively and how to defend against others trying to manipulate you. To put it another way, it’s life lessons to be both a Sith Lord and a Jedi!

The Innovators Solution, Clayton M Christensen

While this book came out 20 years ago (and is now considered a “business classic”), it is very relevant today. Basically, Clayton examines why many companies fail to remain competitive, and how companies can be successful through innovation and disruption (Apple, anyone?)

Zag, Marty Neumeier

Just keeping up with the competition is no longer a viable strategy in a cluttered marketplace. In this short book, Marty talks about how brands can “radically differentiate” themselves to be noticed and grow. It’s a great primer on better branding, basically how you can “zag” while everybody else zigs. It’s sort of a sequel and companion to his first book “The Brand Gap” (also an excellent read), and I found the exercises and 17-point checklist to designing a “difference” in your brand to be easy to put into practice.

The Magic of Thinking Big, David Schwartz

Another business classic, published in the 1950’s, the author proves that you don’t need “talent” to achieve success, but follow and practice the habits and behaviors of highly successful people. A very positive and motivating book, maybe the “mother of all motivational” books!

Limitless, Jim Kwik

Yes, a book that promises to “upgrade” your brain and memory, and it actually delivers! While maybe you don’t quite gain superpowers, it does teach you about how to learn super-like powers, such as speed reading, memory hacks, sleep, critical thinking and accelerated learning. The author himself suffered a childhood brain injury, leading him to a life-long quest on how the brain works and strategies to enhance mental performance.

No Rules Rules, Reed Hastings

Written by Netflix co-founder Reed Hastings, this book reveals the unorthodox business culture of Netflix, and how it became one of the most innovative and successful companies in the world. Netflix started as a DVD rental service in 1998, and you are swept along on the journey of how they reinvented themselves again and again to stay highly innovative and bleeding edge.

The Snowball: Warren Buffett & The Business Of Life, Alice Schroeder

Snowball Warrenn Buffett

At 90 years of age, Warren Buffett is a winner who just keeps on winning. Schooled in the Benjamin Graham approach to investing, Warren Buffett has become the most successful investor ever.

How did he do it?

Warren lives by a set of rules and principles, building upon what he learned from Ben Graham at a young age. He seems to have an amazing ability to by-pass all the noise and make his own educated decisions. Over time, his correct decisions have compounded on one another, and his place as one fo the wealthiest people (currently 6th) in the world is the result. This is a VERY long book, don’t let that put you off, I listened to the audio version of it and thoroughly enjoyed it.

Unshakeable, Tony Robbins

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The ‘lite’ version of Money: Master The Game. For an in-depth dive into investing, read Robbin’s other book, Money: Master The Game. For an overview of Robbin’s principles, this one is fine. There are dozens of good lessons and reminders throughout the book, any one of which would make the book a worthwhile read.

The Psychology of Money, Morgan Housel

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An easy read, packed with stories about why people do silly things with money, and the lessons we can learn. There’s no way you could read this book and not become a more effective person, a better spouse/partner, friend or parent. I really enjoyed it and I’ll probably read it again in a few years time.

Elon Musk, Ashlee Vance

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Like Steve Jobs, Elon Musk is simply wired differently. His goals are so far beyond what most people can imagine, yet he systematically finds ways of achieving them. I fully expect Elon’s SpaceX to put the next person on the moon, and to put a person on Mars in the next 10 years. Tesla will also continue to change the automobile industry and therefore the world in ways we can yet fully grasp.

This was a fascinating read, and it doesn’t even include the achievements Elon has made since 2015… Wow.

Man’s Search For Meaning, Viktor E. Frankl

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Powerful. Sad. Thought provoking. Viktor E. Frankl was a survivor of WW2 concentration camps. In 1946 he wrote this book to share what he learned from his suffering and from watching so many. other prisoners in the camps. I took a few lessons and a new perspective after reading this book, things that will stay with me for life, I’d definitely add this to any ‘must read’ list.

Steve Jobs, Walter Isaacson

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As an Apple user, and having always been fascinated with Steve Jobs, this book was on my reading list for a long time… when I finally read it, I was NOT disappointed.

Steve Jobs will be remembered as one of very few people who have pioneered new industries, in fact, his products transformed multiple industries and changed the way people communicate. Who else has done that recently? Elon Musk… maybe?

Walter Isaacson did an amazing job in capturing so many of the facets Steve Jobs life, I’d recommend this as a must-read to any entrepreneur, especially Apple users who remember the launch of many of Steve’s products.

Greenlights, Matthew McConaughey

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In ‘Greenlights’, McConaughey walks through the highs and lows, the mistakes and lessons from his life.

Not being much of a movie buff, but aware enough to have seen a few of his films, I started this book without many expectations. What I got was a lot of entertainment, and an inside peek into the life of a true professional who reached the pinnacle of acting. McConaughey is a man who transformed himself multiple times, has lived a rollercoaster of a life, and now has an entertaining book to add to his long list of accolades.

Red Notice, Bill Browder

2021-03-05_12-00-11

Red Notice is a chilling account into high-powered corruption in Russia, theft of billions of dollars of tax payers money (essentially by President Putin and his cronies), murder and so much more. If I didn’t know this was based on actual events, I would have sworn it was a thriller novel.

Against all odds, Bill Browder has survived and turned a series of tragic events into monumental policy changes. This is a fascinating read, often sad, but with enough hope and vindication baked in to leave me feeling good about what has been an appalling abuse of power.

The Infinite Game, Simon Sinek

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The latest book from Simon Sinek about the benefits of adopting an ‘infinite’ mindset as applied to business and other areas in life. I listened to this as an audio-book (audible) and enjoyed Sinek’s wisdom. The one caveat I can’t help but mention with anything developed by Sinek is that his work is (or seems to be) based on theory. Sinek has great ideas and is great at articulating his ideas, but he hasn’t built large businesses himself (other than as a consultant or circuit speaker)… in saying this, I still got a lot out of the book!

Scaling Up, Vern Harnish

scale

I listened to this as an Audible audio-book, but I think it would have been much better as a hardcopy to scribble in, or even an eBook where I could highlight different sections. Packed with practical advice, this book shares a tried-and-tested approach to building and scaling profitable businesses.

Too Much and Never Enough, Mary Trump PHD

too much

With a permanent spotlight on all things Trump, I thought it’d be interesting to hear about Trump and his upbringing from his niece, Mary Trump. In a nutshell, according to this book and for better or worse (regardless of which side of the political divide you’re on), what you see is what you get! 

Wheat Belly, William Davis MD

wheat

Wow… could wheat be THAT bad? Apparently so!

Several months after having read this I can’t say I’ve changed my diet at all, but I am at least more aware of some of the impacts an excess of wheat can have on the body. I would recommend this book to anyone interested in health and wellness, and particularly people suffering from obesity, diabetes, skin conditions (such as acne, psoriasis and others), and a host of digestive issues…

Hatching Twitter, Nick Bolton

twit

This is a fascinating read about how Jack Dorsey (apparently) fell into the position of being a co-founder of Twitter. Nick Bolten puts Twitters growth path under the microscope and challenges a lot of what most people believe about Jack Dorsey…

The Obstacle Is The Way, Ryan Holiday

obstacle

I breezed through this book using Audible. I don’t think it’d put this in my top tier of business/entrepreneurial books, but it’s not bad either.

Black Edge, Sheelah Kolhatkar

black

Almost too amazing to be true… that’s how I felt as I read this book. A real page-turner, Black Edge dives into the dirty underworld of Wall Street by looking at the story of Steven A. Cohen, his hedge fund SAC Capital, and the largest insider trading investigation in history.

Wealth Exposed, MJ DeMarco

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This is a very short read (less than an hour) that shares common sense but often forgotten entrepreneurial advice from MJ DeMarco, through the form of a story. I read ‘The Millionaire Fastlane’ many years ago, so reading Wealth Exposed felt a bit like a trip back in time.. entertaining and colourful to read.

The Richest Man in Babylon, George S. Clason

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This is a book I’d wanted to read for a long time, and finally got around to it. I didn’t know what to expect, which was probably a good thing for this book. This book shares biblical era stories that work through age-old wealth generation and investment strategies. While I didn’t take anything all that new out of the book, it was jam-packed with useful reminders.

The 5 Mistakes Every Investor Makes and How to Avoid Them: Getting Investing Right, Peter Mallouk

5_mistakes

One book leads to another… and this page turner came to me through Ton Robbins ‘Money: Master The Game’. In Robbins’ book, he talks about a Wealth Management firm called Creative Planning. Peter Mallouk is the founder of Creative Planning, and this book shares his investing philosophy.

Peter doesn’t hold back in exposing some of the biggest shams and myths of the investment world, and turns the often over-complicated topic of investment into an easy read, jam packed with tremendous value. This is a brilliant read for anyone interested in investing.

Money: Master the Game: 7 Simple Steps to Financial Freedom, Tony Robbins

money

This book caught my attention because of the hype it’d received, and 4,000+ reviews on Amazon with a 4.5 star average are hard to argue with! The first thing I’ll say is that this book is loooong, and the first half was a bit of a grind. The second half of the book was GOLDEN though, and I’ve taken a number of ideas from this which will have huge impacts on my personal finances.

I’ve also got a new found respect for Tony Robbins, my stereotype of Tony as a ‘self help guru’ has changed, he provides a lot of value in this book.

Made in America, Sam Walton

made_in_america

This was a book I’d wanted to read for some time, and it didn’t disappoint. Sam Walton is undoubtedly one of the most important people in the creation of offline modern-day retail. From humble beginnings and against all odds, Sam Walton built and empire and became one of the most successful business people in history… this is his story.

The Game Changer Formula, Rory Prendergast

The Game Changer Formula

I REALLY enjoyed this book and took a lot from it, I’ll be reading it again. The Game Changer Formula talks about the components of success and how they work together. I know the author personally, he is a friend and a business partner, and easily one of the smartest people I know.

The Game Changer Formula is an easy read, and unlike most books in this genre, this one is actually quite a page-turner. Lots of lessons to be learned, and a formula for putting it all together (something most other ‘success’ books lack). Highly recommended.

The Dip, Seth Godin

Screen Shot 2020-03-31 at 6.14.47 AM

Classic Seth Godin. This is a quick read that discusses when to push through on tough projects, and when to give up.

The Dip is a phenomenon that occurs in many projects, where right after things seem to be gaining some momentum, things get difficult. But should you give up when this happens? Maybe… this is what the book is all about. Seth also describes the ‘Cul-de-Sac’ (dead end) where you work and work and work on a project, but nothing much happens. Grab the book to find out more.

Why We Sleep, Matthew Walker

Why We Sleep

A GREAT read! If you ever doubted that humans actually DO need 8 hours sleep each night, you won’t after reading this book. And if you think you’re surviving “just fine” on 6 hours sleep per night, you might question that belief after going through this. This book has reinforced the importance of sleep (in every aspect of life).

The Everything Store: Jeff Bezos and the Age of Amazon, Brad Stone

The Everything Store

The story of Amazon. Similar to the Netflix story, only this one takes a look at the birth and growth of one of the most successful companies ever built, and gives an insight into one of the planets wealthiest (if not THE wealthiest) people, Jeff Bezos. Very interesting.

That Will Never Work: The Birth of Netflix and the Amazing Life of an Idea, Marc Randolph

That Will Never Work - Netflix

I LOVED this one… motivational, insightful, and inspiring. Marc Randolph, co-founder and first CEO of Netflix shares the company story, from it’s humble beginnings (an unlikely idea) to mainstream success. One of the best books I’ve read in some time!

The 10X Rule: The Only Difference Between Success and Failure, Grant Cardone

The 10x Rule

I’ve watched Grant Cardone for some time now, but had never read any of his books or listened to his podcast. I decided it was time to try… While I didn’t finish the book, the general theme of what I did read was that you can achieve your goals by sheer brute force. Clearly a lot of people love this book, my advice would be for you to check it out and make your own conclusions.

Finding Ultra: Rejecting Middle Age, Becoming One of the World’s Fittest Men, and Discovering Myself, Rich Roll

Finding Ultra

A sometimes motivational read about the personal journey of a couch-slob turned ultra-iron man Rich Roll. As someone with an interest in fitness, and in particular running and swimming, I found this a very interesting read, even if I thought some parts of it were a bit over-blown. Some interesting diet tips included.

Peak: Secrets from the New Science of Expertise, Anders Ericsson and Robert Pool

peak

A research based guide to achieving peak performance. This book debunks many myths surrounding ‘practice makes perfect’ and provides actionable advice for goal setting, self motivation and much more. Anders really goes to town over the ‘10,000 hour rule’ and how it’s been used out of context by pretty much everyone (myself included) who has ever mentioned it as a ‘rule’ or ‘hack’ to achieving expertise at anything!

The New One Minute Manager, Ken Blanchard

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I read this because Steve Clayton recommended it as one of the best business books he’s ever read. A management classic that shares some simple rules will help anyone who manages people.. in fact, it’ll help anyone who needs to communicate effectively with any number of people (example: parents with kids).

Things the Rich Don’t Want You To Know, Noah Kagan

dont_know

I love this book. Real useable advice from someone who has built an empire by practicing what he preaches (and he only started ‘preaching’ after he’d built the empire!) Like the title says, it’s written for people who already have a solid financial foundation and are looking to grow that (basically the opposite audience to who Ramit Sethi targets in ‘I will teach you to be rich’.

I Will Teach You to Be Rich, Ramit Sethi

teach_rich

Ramit is known for his wealth generation strategies that go against the ‘penny pinching’ wisdom dolled out by many financial self-help gurus. This is a good book, but what you get out of it will really depend on what you already know (as with all books!)… for me personally, I found myself skimming through probably half the book, whereas the other half was either a timely reminder, or new knowledge. A good read if you’re into this type of thing.

Millionaire Success Habits: The Gateway to Wealth & Prosperity, Dean Graziosi

mill_habits

I don’t often read books written by ‘self help gurus’, but for some reason this one jumped out at me. The book is okay… there were parts where I struggled to stay tuned in, and other parts that I thought were brilliant.

The Four: The Hidden DNA of Amazon, Apple, Facebook, and Google, Scott Galloway

the_four

A fascinating insight into the four most influential companies on the planet. Scott Galloway asks some hard questions of the big four, and analyses how each have fought to win our wallets. Which of the big four will emerge victorious over the long term, which will fade away? Which of these should you be most afraid of? How have they each succeeded on unprecedented scales? Read the book to find out 🙂

Why Nations Fail, Daron Acemoglu

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A deep dive into the root causes for the success and failure of nations. As the author explains, most problems (in failed states) come back to extractive institutions (including politics) and authoritarian regimes. The author does a great job of logically joining up key historic events and explaining how they shaped countries today. Very interesting.

Extreme Ownership, Jocko Willink

extremeI read this based on the amazing Amazon reviews it received. I didn’t get anything amazing out of it, but it did serve to remind me of key principles used by successful leaders. Lots of surreal war stories to keep you hooked throughout.

How to Win at the Sport of Business, Mark Cuban

businessA quick read (you’ll blast through it in an hour or two) that shares key business lessons from mega-successful entrepreneur, Mark Cuban. I didn’t find anything earth-shattering in this book, but it’s packed with lots of good reminders, and is an easy book to blast through quite quickly.

Never Split the Difference, Chris Voss

diffI love this book, so much so, that I listened (audible) to it TWICE! Chris Voss shares what works and what doesn’t work in the world of negotiation, based on decades of experience including being the FBI’s lead hostage negotiator. Each chapter starts with a story, and shares key lessons learned. This book has forced its way into my TOP 5!

Born A Crime, Trevor Noah

trevorTrevor Noah shares his story from humble beginnings in South Africa to stardom in the USA. The book is entertaining, sobering, and heart-warming all at the same time. Great book, and it lends itself nicely to Audible, very easy to listen to, you’ll find it hard to put down.

Pre-Suasion: A Revolutionary Way to Influence and Persuade, Robert Cialdini Ph.D.,

Presuasion

Classic Cialdini. Read this AFTER you’ve read Influence (which is Cialdini’s best book in my opinion). More social experiments, more interesting data, and lots of take-aways.

 12 Rules for Life: An Antidote to Chaos, Jordan B. Peterson

12_rulesJordan Peterson is a divisive character, some people hate him, others love him, so I was intrigued to check this out to form my own opinion. I thought it was a good read (a good listen in my case, via Audible) if a little long-winded in places. It’s an interesting look at one psychologists opinion as to why we do the things we do and why we behave the way we behave, much of which is based on animal instinct, and habits built up over millions of years (according to Peterson). I can’t say I agree with everything Peterson preaches, but the book had me deep in thought on more than a few occasions.

Billion Dollar Whale: The Man Who Fooled Wall Street, Hollywood, and the World; Tom Wright and Bradley Hope

billion_dollar_whale

I’m moving this into my top-5 books on this list, quite simply it is brilliantly written and an unbelievable story. In fact, if you didn’t know this was a true story, you’d think it was fiction. The events in this book are so far out there, with so much corruption, literally BILLIONS of dollars being stolen from governments and banks, shifted through shell companies, used for extravagant parties (with Britany Spear, DiCaprio, Alicia Keys and other Hollywood icons), for buying mansions and mega-yachts… the mind boggles. This is a must read!

Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup, John Carreyrou

bad_blood

This book had me hooked from start to finish… a look into a Silicon Valley startup that built a billion dollar business based on lies, and how it all came crumbling down. This, along with Billion Dollar Whale, is one of the best books I’ve read in a long time!

 

What Doesn’t Kill Us, Scott Carney

what doesn't kill us

This was recommended to me by a friend of mine, and is quite different to anything I’ve read in the past. Basically, it’s a light-hearted insight into ‘body hacking’, using many of the methods taught by Dutch ‘ice man’, Wim Hof.

The book was entertaining and somewhat educational, although I felt like the infomation presented needed to be taken with a grain of salt… good read overall!

Pour Your Heart Into It, Howard Schultz

Pour Your Heart Into It

An easy (quick) read about the history of Starbucks, one of the most successful companies on the planet. Howard Schultz explains the culture he built at Starbucks that helped later drive massive success. He also shares the key decisions and forks in the road that eventually saw him take control of and grow his business.

New York: The Novel, Edward Rutherford

New York: The Novel

I listened to this (Audible) in February 2019. It shares the story of the growth of the New York City empire from its earliest days right through until 2009, through an intriguing story based on actual events in New York’s colorful history. As an Investor in New York City, and someone who has always been inspired by New York City (one of my favorite cities in the world), I found this an educational eye-opener into how the empire that it is today came to be.

Below is the original blog post, with a categorized list of all the books I read between 2014 – 2019 (as published in February 2019).

Marketing, Planning & Business Books

Influence, Robert Cialdini

Influence

Influence, the classic book on persuasion, explains the psychology of why people say “yes”—and how to apply these understandings. Dr. Robert Cialdini is the seminal expert in the rapidly expanding field of influence and persuasion. His thirty-five years of rigorous, evidence-based research along with a three-year program of study on what moves people to change behavior has resulted in this highly acclaimed book.

Positioning, Al Ries and Jack Trout

Positioning

In spite of billions of advertising dollars spent every year, perceptions about leading brands as well as their market shares seldom changed. All that advertising was not doing very much communicating.

Permission Marketing, Seth Godin

Permission Marketing

The man Business Week calls “the ultimate entrepreneur for the Information Age” explains “Permission Marketing”—the groundbreaking concept that enables marketers to shape their message so that consumers will willingly accept it.

Getting Things Done, David Allen

Getting Things Done

Since it was first published almost fifteen years ago, David Allen’s Getting Things Done has become one of the most influential business books of its era, and the ultimate book on personal organization. “GTD” is now shorthand for an entire way of approaching professional and personal tasks, and has spawned an entire culture of websites, organizational tools, seminars, and offshoots.

No Man’s Land, Doug Tatum

No Man's Land

If starting a company is difficult, leading a company once the business has caught fire is infinitely more so. Thousands of startups each year approach the dangerous transition that Doug Tatum calls No Man’s Land—when they are too big too be considered small but still too small to be considered big.

Tribes, Seth Godin

Tribes

Since it was first published almost a decade ago, Seth Godin’s visionary book has helped tens of thousands of leaders turn a scattering of followers into a loyal tribe. If you need to rally fellow employees, customers, investors, believers, hobbyists, or readers around an idea, this book will demystify the process.

How To Deliver A TED Talk, Jeremey Donovan

How To Deliver A TED Talk

A nonprofit dedicated to ideas worth spreading, TED challenges the world’s most fascinating thinkers and doers to give “the speech of their lives” in 18 minutes or less. The more than 14,000 talks on TED.com have been viewed over 1 billion times and include those by such luminaries as Tony Robbins, Dan Pink, and Sheryl Sandberg.

Tribe of Mentors, Tim Ferriss

Tribe of Mentors

Tim Ferriss, the #1 New York Times best-selling author of The 4-Hour Workweek, shares the ultimate choose-your-own-adventure book—a compilation of tools, tactics, and habits from 130+ of the world’s top performers. From iconic entrepreneurs to elite athletes, from artists to billionaire investors, their short profiles can help you answer life’s most challenging questions, achieve extraordinary results, and transform your life.

Making Ads Pay, John Caples

Making Ads Pay

Why does one ad succeed, while another fails? This classic by a veteran copywriter analyzes hundreds of profitable ads, offering many side-by-side comparisons between similar but not equally effective ads. These analyses yield principles, procedures, tips, and practical suggestions — each tested with decades of experience — that can be immediately applied to every medium and style of advertising.

Making Money Is Killing Your Business, Chuck Blakeman

Making Money Is Killing Your Business

Making Money is Killing Your Business is built on profoundly simple ideas that have been around forever and ignored as being too simple to work. Chuck Blakeman has learned the hard way that profound things are always simple. These few things will revolutionize any business willing to give up complexity for effectiveness.

The One Thing, Gary Keller and Jay Papasan

The One Thing

The ONE Thing has made more than 350 appearances on national bestseller lists, including #1 Wall Street Journal, NewYork Times, and USA Today. It won 12 book awards, has been translated into 27 languages, chosen as one of the Top 5 Business Books of 2013 by Hudson’s Booksellers and one of Top 30 Business Books of 2013 by Executive Book Summaries.

The 12 Week Year, Brian P. Moran and Michael Lennington

The 12 Week Year

The guide to shortening your execution cycle down from one year to twelve weeks.

Most organizations and individuals work in the context of annual goals and plans; a twelve-month execution cycle. Instead, The 12 Week Year avoids the pitfalls and low productivity of annualized thinking. This book redefines your “year” to be 12 weeks long. In 12 weeks, there just isn’t enough time to get complacent, and urgency increases and intensifies. The 12 Week Year creates focus and clarity on what matters most and a sense of urgency to do it now. In the end more of the important stuff gets done and the impact on results is profound.

To Sell is Human, Daniel H. Pink

To Sell Is Human

From the bestselling author of Drive and A Whole New Mind comes a surprising–and surprisingly useful–new book that explores the power of selling in our lives.

Essentialism, Greg McKeown

Essentialism

The Way of the Essentialist isn’t about getting more done in less time. It’s about getting only the right things done.  It is not  a time management strategy, or a productivity technique. It is a systematic discipline for discerning what is absolutely essential, then eliminating everything that is not, so we can make the highest possible contribution towards the things that really matter.

All Marketers are Liars, Seth Godin

All Marketers Are Liers

As Seth Godin has taught hundreds of thousands of marketers and students around the world, great marketers don’t talk about features or even benefits. Instead, they tell a story—a story we want to believe, whether it’s factual or not. In a world where most people have an infinite number of choices and no time to make them, every organization is a marketer, and all marketing is about telling stories.

Repositioning, Jack Trout, Steve Rivkin

Repositioning

Thirty years ago, Jack Trout and Al Ries published their classic bestseller, Positioning: The Battle for Your Mind―a book that revolutionized the world of marketing. But times have changed. Competition is fiercer. Consumers are savvier. Communications are faster. And once-successful companies are in crisis mode.

Repositioning shows you how to adapt, compete―and succeed―in today’s overcrowded marketplace. Global marketing expert Jack Trout has retooled his most effective positioning strategies―providing a must-have arsenal of proven marketing techniques specifically redesigned for our current climate.

Triggers, Joseph Sugarman

Triggers

Dramatically increase your ability to sell by learning how to control the mind of your prospect using 30 powerful psychological triggers to motivate, influence and persuade. Discover the one secret very few sales professionals know, yet it doubled response to a simple offer. Discover how to make your prospects feel so guilty that they can’t help but buy from you. Discover how to take an impossible situation and turn it around to your advantage through a simple sales technique. Buy this book now to improve every aspect of your selling and marketing skills.

The Brand Gap, Marty Neumeier

The Brand Gap

THE BRAND GAP is the first book to present a unified theory of brand-building.  Whereas most books on branding are weighted toward either a strategic or creative approach, this book shows how both ways of thinking can unite to produce a “charismatic brand”—a brand that customers feel is essential to their lives.

The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding, Al Ries and Laura Ries

The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding

The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding is the definitive text on branding, pairing anecdotes about some of the best brands in the world, like Rolex, Volvo, and Heineken, with the signature savvy of marketing gurus Al and Laura Ries. Combining The 22 Immutable Laws of Branding and The 11 Immutable Laws of Internet Branding, this book proclaims that the only way to stand out in today’s marketplace is to build your product or service into a brand—and provides the step-by-step instructions you need to do so.

The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing, Al Ries and Jack Trout

The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing

As Al Ries and Jack Trout—the world-renowned marketing consultants and bestselling authors of Positioning—note, you can build an impressive airplane, but it will never leave the ground if you ignore the laws of physics, especially gravity. Why then, they ask, shouldn’t there also be laws of marketing that must be followed to launch and maintain winning brands? In The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing, Ries and Trout offer a compendium of twenty-two innovative rules for understanding and succeeding in the international marketplace. From the Law of Leadership, to The Law of the Category, to The Law of the Mind, these valuable insights stand the test of time and present a clear path to successful products. Violate them at your own risk.

The Ultimate Sales Letter, Dan S Kennedy

The Ultimate Sales Letter

In the age of e-mail and instant communication, great sales copy is indispensable to closing a deal. But too many sales letters end up in the junk file or the wastebasket. In this new edition of his top-selling book, author Dan Kennedy explains why some sales letters work and most don’t. And he shows how to write copy that any business can use.

Covert Persuasion, Kevin Hogan and James Speakman

Covert Persuasion

There’s more wisdom in this book than in 500 pages on the same subject. Whether you need to persuade your lover, your spouse, your boss, your clients, your friends, or yourself, this powerhouse collection of mind tricks and secrets will give you the upper hand. In today’s competitive world, this is the persuasion wizard’s manual you need to control circumstances and get what you want.

The Adweek Copywriting Handbook, Joseph Sugarman

The Adweek Copywriting Handbook

Great copy is the heart and soul of the advertising business. In this practical guide, legendary copywriter Joe Sugarman provides proven guidelines and expert advice on what it takes to write copy that will entice, motivate, and move customers to buy. For anyone who wants to break into the business, this is the ultimate companion resource for unlimited success.

Turning Pro, Steven Pressfield

Turning Pro

Turning Pro navigates the passage from the amateur life to a professional practice. “You don’t need to take a course or buy a product. All you have to do is change your mind.” –Steven Pressfield TURNING PRO IS FREE, BUT IT’S NOT EASY. When we turn pro, we give up a life that we may have become extremely comfortable with. We give up a self that we have come to identify with and to call our own.

The Lean Startup, Eric Ries

The Lean Startup

Eric Ries defines a startup as an organization dedicated to creating something new under conditions of extreme uncertainty. This is just as true for one person in a garage or a group of seasoned professionals in a Fortune 500 boardroom. What they have in common is a mission to penetrate that fog of uncertainty to discover a successful path to a sustainable business.

Differentiate or Die, Jack Trout and Steve Rivikin

Differentiate or Die

Differentiate or Die, Second Edition shows you how to differentiate your products, services, and business in order to dominate the competition. Veteran marketing guru Jack Trout uses real-world examples and his own unique insight to show you how to bind customers to your products for long-term success and loyalty. This edition includes new case studies, new research, and updated examples from around the world.

Words that Sell, Richard Bayan

Words That Sell

Looking for a better way to say “authentic?” Words That Sell gives you 57 alternatives. How about “appealing?” Take your pick from 76 synonyms. You’ll even find more than 100 variations on “exciting.” Fully updated and expanded, this edition of the copywriting classic is packed with inspiration-on-demand for busy professionals who need to win customers–by mail, online, or in person.

Yes!, Noah Goldstein and Steve Martin

Yes!

Every day we face the challenge of persuading others to do what we want. But what makes people say yes to our requests? Persuasion is not only an art, it is also a science, and researchers who study it have uncovered a series of hidden rules for moving people in your direction. Based on more than sixty years of research into the psychology of persuasion, Yes! reveals fifty simple but remarkably effective strategies that will make you much more persuasive at work and in your personal life, too.

Blue Ocean Strategy, W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne

Blue Ocean Strategy

In this perennial bestseller, embraced by organizations and industries worldwide, globally preeminent management thinkers W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne challenge everything you thought you knew about the requirements for strategic success. Recognized as one of the most iconic and impactful strategy books ever written, Blue Ocean Strategy, now updated with fresh content from the authors, argues that cutthroat competition results in nothing but a bloody red ocean of rivals fighting over a shrinking profit pool. Based on a study of 150 strategic moves (spanning more than 100 years across 30 industries), the authors argue that lasting success comes not from battling competitors but from creating “blue oceans”―untapped new market spaces ripe for growth.

Crush It!, Gary Vaynerchuk

Crush It

Do you have a hobby you wish you could indulge in all day? An obsession that keeps you up at night? Now is the perfect time to take that passion and make a living doing what you love. In Crush It! Why NOW Is the Time to Cash In on Your Passion, Gary Vaynerchuk shows you how to use the power of the Internet to turn your real interests into real businesses. Gary spent years building his family business from a local wine shop into a national industry leader. Then one day he turned on a video camera, and by using the secrets revealed here, transformed his entire life and earning potential by building his personal brand.

The Power of Full Engagement, Jim Loehr and Tony Schwartz

The Power of Full Engagement

This ground breaking New York Times bestseller has helped hundreds of thousands of people at work and at home balance stress and recovery and sustain high performance despite crushing workloads and 24/7 demands on their time. “Combines the gritty toughmindedness of the best coaches with the gentle-but-insistent inspiration of the most effective spiritual advisers” (Fast Company).

Pre-Suasion, Robert Cialdini

Pre-Suasion

The acclaimed New York Times and Wall Street Journal bestseller from Robert Cialdini—“the foremost expert on effective persuasion” (Harvard Business Review)—explains how it’s not necessarily the message itself that changes minds, but the key moment before you deliver that message.

The Emotion Thesaurus:, Becca Puglisi

The Emotion Thesaurus

The bestselling Emotion Thesaurus, often hailed as “the gold standard for writers” and credited with transforming how writers craft emotion, has now been expanded to include 55 new entries!

One of the biggest struggles for writers is how to convey emotion to readers in a unique and compelling way. When showing our characters’ feelings, we often use the first idea that comes to mind, and they end up smiling, nodding, and frowning too much.

Uncertainty, Jonathan Fields

Uncertainty

Jonathan Fields knows the risks-and potential power-of uncertainty. He gave up a six-figure income as a lawyer to make $12 an hour as a personal trainer. Then, married with a 3-month old baby, he signed a lease to launch a yoga center in the heart of New York City. . . the day before 9/11. But he survived, and along the way he developed a fresh approach to transforming uncertainty, risk of loss, and exposure to judgment into catalysts for innovation, creation, and achievement. In business, art, and life, creating on a world-class level demands bold action and leaps of faith in the face of great uncertainty.

Made to Stick, Dan Health and Chip Health

Made To Stick

In Made to Stick, Chip and Dan Heath reveal the anatomy of ideas that stick and explain ways to make ideas stickier, such as applying the human scale principle, using the Velcro Theory of Memory, and creating curiosity gaps. Along the way, we discover that sticky messages of all kinds—from the infamous “kidney theft ring” hoax to a coach’s lessons on sportsmanship to a vision for a new product at Sony—draw their power from the same six traits.

The Tipping Point, Malcolm Gladwell

The Tipping Point

The tipping point is that magic moment when an idea, trend, or social behavior crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire. Just as a single sick person can start an epidemic of the flu, so too can a small but precisely targeted push cause a fashion trend, the popularity of a new product, or a drop in the crime rate. This widely acclaimed bestseller, in which Malcolm Gladwell explores and brilliantly illuminates the tipping point phenomenon, is already changing the way people throughout the world think about selling products and disseminating ideas.

Mindset, Motivation & Lifestyle Hack Books

Think and Grow Rich, Napoleon Hill

Think and Grow Rich

The most famous of all teachers of success spent a fortune and the better part of a lifetime of effort to produce the Law of Success philosophy that forms the basis of his books and that is so powerfully summarized and explained for the general public in this book.

The Magic of Thinking Big, David J. Schwartz

The Magic of Thinking Big

Millions of people throughout the world have improved their lives using The Magic of Thinking Big. Dr. David J. Schwartz, long regarded as one of the foremost experts on motivation, will help you sell better, manage better, earn more money, and—most important of all—find greater happiness and peace of mind.

Tools of Titans, Tim Ferriss

Tools of Titans

This book contains the distilled tools, tactics, and ‘inside baseball’ you won’t find anywhere else. It also includes new tips from past guests, and life lessons from new ‘guests’ you haven’t met.

How to Get Rich, Felix Dennis

How To Get Rich

Felix Dennis is an expert at proving people wrong. Starting as a college dropout with no family money, he created a publishing empire, founded Maxim magazine, made himself one of the richest people in the UK, and had a blast in the process.

How to Get Rich is different from any other book on the subject because Dennis isn’t selling snake oil, investment tips, or motivational claptrap. He merely wants to help people embrace entrepreneurship, and to share lessons he learned the hard way. He reveals, for example, why a regular paycheck is like crack cocaine; why great ideas are vastly overrated; and why “ownership isn’t the important thing, it’s the only thing.”

The Slight Edge, Jeff Olson

The Slight Edge

The Slight Edge, shows how you can create power-house results from simple daily activities.

How Rich People Think, Steve Siebold

How Rich People Think

This book will teach you how rich people think. It compares the thoughts, habits and philosophies of the middle class to the world class when it comes to wealth. The differences are as extreme as they are numerous. The strategy is simple: learn how rich people think, copy them, take action and get rich. This book hits hard and never lets up. It’s based on a quarter century of interviews with millionaires. It’s written in unfiltered, politically incorrect language that makes the point crystal clear and easy to follow.

Think Bigger, Michael Hill

Think Bigger

A motivational guide by successful entrepreneur Sir Michael Hill – this bestselling step-by-step guide will help fulfil your dreams. Internationally successful businessman Michael Hill outlines the key lessons he has learned over the years. His wisdom covers these topics in great detail, with lots of helpful examples: Clearing the clutter of your mind; Positive day-dreaming; Letting go and thinking bigger; Change – Making a negative a positive; Working smarter not harder; How to keep motivated; The power of the spoken word; Smarten up; Great health; Having fun; Thinking outside the box and Helping others.

Principles, Ray Dalio

Principles Life and Work

Ray Dalio, one of the world’s most successful investors and entrepreneurs, shares the unconventional principles that he’s developed, refined, and used over the past forty years to create unique results in both life and business—and which any person or organization can adopt to help achieve their goals.

The Power of Habit, Charles Duhigg

The Power of Habit

In The Power of Habit, award-winning business reporter Charles Duhigg takes us to the thrilling edge of scientific discoveries that explain why habits exist and how they can be changed. Distilling vast amounts of information into engrossing narratives that take us from the boardrooms of Procter & Gamble to the sidelines of the NFL to the front lines of the civil rights movement, Duhigg presents a whole new understanding of human nature and its potential. At its core, The Power of Habit contains an exhilarating argument: The key to exercising regularly, losing weight, being more productive, and achieving success is understanding how habits work. As Duhigg shows, by harnessing this new science, we can transform our businesses, our communities, and our lives.

Atomic Habits, James Clear

Atomic Habits

No matter your goals, Atomic Habits offers a proven framework for improving–every day. James Clear, one of the world’s leading experts on habit formation, reveals practical strategies that will teach you exactly how to form good habits, break bad ones, and master the tiny behaviors that lead to remarkable results.

The Rise of Superman, Steven Kotler

The Rise of Superman

In this ground breaking book, New York Times–bestselling author Steven Kotler decodes the mystery of ultimate human performance. Drawing on over a decade of research and first-hand reporting with dozens of top action and adventure sports athletes like big wave legend Laird Hamilton, big mountain snowboarder Jeremy Jones, and skateboarding pioneer Danny Way, Kotler explores the frontier science of “flow,” an optimal state of consciousness in which we perform and feel our best.

The Miracle Morning, Hal Elrod

The Miracle Morning For Entrepreneurs

Hal Elrod is a genius and his book The Miracle Morning has been magical in my life. What Hal has done is taken the best practices, developed over centuries of human consciousness development, and condensed the ‘best of the best’ into a daily morning ritual. A ritual that is now part of my day.

How the World Sees You, Sally Hogshead

How The World Sees You

In How the World Sees You, author and personal branding expert Sally Hogshead applies the principles of fascination triggers to understanding “personality brands” – how individuals use different triggers to influence, persuade, and captivate others.

You already know how you see yourself and the world. But how does the world see you? If you want to be heard and remembered, if you want people to take action on your ideas and opinions, then you need to get the full picture. Effective messages build a cause-and-effect cycle that creates action. Each time you communicate, you will either be heard, or you will be ignored.

The Millionaire Fastlane, MJ DeMarco

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Demand more. Change lanes and find your explosive wealth accelerator. Hit the Fastlane, crack the code to wealth, and find out how to live rich for a lifetime.

How To Win Friends and Influence People, Dale Carnegie

How To Win Friends and Influence People

Dale Carnegie’s rock-solid, time-tested advice has carried countless people up the ladder of success in their business and personal lives. One of the most groundbreaking and timeless bestsellers of all time.

Fascinate, Sally Hogshead

Fascinate

This book explores one of the most powerful ways to attract attention and influence behavior—fascination—and how businesses, products, and ideas can become irresistible to consumers.

In an oversaturated culture defined by limited time and focus, how do we draw attention to our messages, our ideas, and our products when we only have seconds to compete?

Emotional Intelligence, Daniel Goleman

Emotional Intelligence

Everyone knows that high IQ is no guarantee of success, happiness, or virtue, but until Emotional Intelligence, we could only guess why. Daniel Goleman’s brilliant report from the frontiers of psychology and neuroscience offers startling new insight into our “two minds”—the rational and the emotional—and how they together shape our destiny.

Can’t Hurt Me, David Goggins

Can't Hurt Me

For David Goggins, childhood was a nightmare – poverty, prejudice, and physical abuse colored his days and haunted his nights. But through self-discipline, mental toughness, and hard work, Goggins transformed himself from a depressed, overweight young man with no future into a U.S. Armed Forces icon and one of the world’s top endurance athletes. The only man in history to complete elite training as a Navy SEAL, Army Ranger, and Air Force Tactical Air Controller, he went on to set records in numerous endurance events, inspiring Outside magazine to name him The Fittest (Real) Man in America.

Other Books

Sapiens, Noah Yuval Harari

Sapiens A Brief History of Humankind

From a renowned historian comes a ground breaking narrative of humanity’s creation and evolution—a #1 international bestseller—that explores the ways in which biology and history have defined us and enhanced our understanding of what it means to be “human.”

The Omnivore’s Dilemma, Michael Pollan

The Omnivore's Dilemma

What should we have for dinner? Ten years ago, Michael Pollan confronted us with this seemingly simple question and, with The Omnivore’s Dilemma, his brilliant and eye-opening exploration of our food choices, demonstrated that how we answer it today may determine not only our health but our survival as a species. In the years since, Pollan’s revolutionary examination has changed the way Americans think about food. Bringing wide attention to the little-known but vitally important dimensions of food and agriculture in America, Pollan launched a national conversation about what we eat and the profound consequences that even the simplest everyday food choices have on both ourselves and the natural world. Ten years later, The Omnivore’s Dilemma continues to transform the way Americans think about the politics, perils, and pleasures of eating.

Open, Andre Agassi

Open

Andre Agassi had his life mapped out for him before he left the crib. Groomed to be a tennis champion by his moody and demanding father, by the age of twenty-two Agassi had won the first of his eight grand slams and achieved wealth, celebrity, and the game’s highest honors. But as he reveals in this searching autobiography, off the court he was often unhappy and confused, unfulfilled by his great achievements in a sport he had come to resent. Agassi writes candidly about his early success and his uncomfortable relationship with fame, his marriage to Brooke Shields, his growing interest in philanthropy, and—described in haunting, point-by-point detail—the highs and lows of his celebrated career.

Shoe Dog, Phil Knight

Shoe Dog

In this instant and tenacious bestseller, Nike founder and board chairman Phil Knight “offers a rare and revealing look at the notoriously media-shy man behind the swoosh” (Booklist, starred review), illuminating his company’s early days as an intrepid start-up and its evolution into one of the world’s most iconic, game-changing, and profitable brands.

Atlas Shrugged, Ayn Rand

Atlas Shrugged

Peopled by larger-than-life heroes and villains, charged with towering questions of good and evil, Atlas Shrugged is Ayn Rand’s magnum opus: a philosophical revolution told in the form of an action thriller—nominated as one of America’s best-loved novels by PBS’s The Great American Read.

Marching Powder, Thomas McFadden and Rusty Young

Marching Powder

Marching Powder A True Story of Friendship, Cocaine, and South Americas Strangest Jail!

The 4 Hour Body, Tim Ferriss

The 4 Hour Body

The 4-Hour Body is the result of an obsessive quest, spanning more than a decade, to hack the human body. It contains the collective wisdom of hundreds of elite athletes, dozens of MDs, and thousands of hours of jaw-dropping personal experimentation. From Olympic training centers to black-market laboratories, from Silicon Valley to South Africa, Tim Ferriss, the #1 New York Times bestselling author of The 4-Hour Workweek, fixated on one life-changing question:

For all things physical, what are the tiniest changes that produce the biggest results?

Born to Run, Christopher McDougall

Born to Run

Isolated by Mexico’s deadly Copper Canyons, the blissful Tarahumara Indians have honed the ability to run hundreds of miles without rest or injury. In a riveting narrative, award-winning journalist and often-injured runner Christopher McDougall sets out to discover their secrets. In the process, he takes his readers from science labs at Harvard to the sun-baked valleys and freezing peaks across North America, where ever-growing numbers of ultra-runners are pushing their bodies to the limit, and, finally, to a climactic race in the Copper Canyons that pits America’s best ultra-runners against the tribe. McDougall’s incredible story will not only engage your mind but inspire your body when you realize that you, indeed all of us, were born to run.

Fiction

The Peacemaker’s Code

I don’t read many fiction books, but this was written by one of the professors at a Harvard course I was recently part of, so I thought I’d check it out. It was quite interesting, sort of a mix of Dan Brown and the science fiction writer Arthur C. Clarke.

Available at Amazon

The Girl Who Played With Fire, Steig Larsson

The Girl Who Played With Fire

Mikael Blomkvist, crusading journalist and publisher of the magazine Millennium, has decided to run a story that will expose an extensive sex trafficking operation between Eastern Europe and Sweden, implicating well-known and highly placed members of Swedish society, business, and government.

But he has no idea just how explosive the story will be until, on the eve of publication, the two investigating reporters are murdered. And even more shocking for Blomkvist: the fingerprints found on the murder weapon belong to Lisbeth Salander—the troubled, wise-beyond-her-years genius hacker who came to his aid in The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, and who now becomes the focus and fierce heart of The Girl Who Played with Fire.

The Girl with the Dragon Tattoo, Stieg Larsson

The Girl With The Dragon Tattoo

Forty years ago, Harriet Vanger disappeared from a family gathering on the island owned and inhabited by the powerful Vanger clan. Her body was never found, yet her uncle is convinced it was murder – and that the killer is a member of his own tightly knit but dysfunctional family.

He employs disgraced financial journalist Mikael Blomkvist and the tattooed, truculent computer hacker Lisbeth Salander to investigate. When the pair link Harriet’s disappearance to a number of grotesque murders from forty years ago, they begin to unravel a dark and appalling family history.

The Redbreast, Jo Nesbo

The Redbreast

The Redbreast is a fabulous introduction to Nesbø’s tough-as-nails series protagonist, Oslo police detective Harry Hole. A brilliant and epic novel, breathtaking in its scope and design—winner of The Glass Key for best Nordic crime novel and selected as the best Norwegian crime novel ever written by members of Norway’s book clubs—The Redbreast is a chilling tale of murder and betrayal that ranges from the battlefields of World War Two to the streets of modern-day Oslo. Follow Hole as he races to stop a killer and disarm a ticking time-bomb from his nation’s shadowy past.

The Redeemer, Jo Nesbo

The Redeemer

Shots ring out at a Salvation Army Christmas concert in Oslo, leaving one of the singers dead in the street. The trail will lead Harry Hole, Oslo’s best investigator and worst civil servant, deep into the darkest corners of the city and, eventually, to Croatia.

An assassin forged in the war-torn region has been brought to Oslo to settle an old debt. As the police circle in, the killer becomes increasingly desperate and the danger mounts for Harry and his colleagues.

The Devil’s Star, Jo Nesbo

The Devil's Star

In the heat of a sweltering Oslo summer, a young woman is found murdered in her flat—with one of her fingers cut off and a tiny red star-shaped diamond placed under her eyelid. An off-the-rails alcoholic barely holding on to his job, Detective Harry Hole is assigned to the case with Tom Waaler, a hated colleague whom Harry believes is responsible for the murder of his partner. When another woman is reported missing five days later, and her severed finger turns up adorned with a red star-shaped diamond ring, Harry fears a serial killer is at work.

Share A Book With Me?

There’s my complete list, updated as time goes on. I hope these help in your personal development and business, and always mix in some pleasure … I love fiction thrillers!

I’m always looking for interesting new books to read, so Thanks for reading, and please share a book with me in the comments box below! Thanks!

Like what you’ve read?

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108 Comments so far:

  1. Erica says:

    That’s a lot of books! One book I don’t see on your list is ‘Spin Selling’, I read it a few years ago, easy read, lots of good ideas in there.

    • Aidan says:

      Hey Erica, I have actually read that one! It was required reading at university many moons ago… I’d completely forgotten about it lol 🙂

  2. Mark says:

    GREAT list Aidan, I’ve read quite a few of these actually based on your past recommendations. One for you to check out: Contagious, by Jonah Berger

  3. Mariano says:

    Would be great if you can keep this list updated as you read more books

  4. Jeremy says:

    One to add to your list: Elon Musk, by Ashley Vance – good read, I think you’d appreciate it.

  5. Michel Chevalier says:

    Thank you for the list Aidan…I have read some but still have lots to go.
    A great, fairly recently published book, and very worthwhile, is ‘Outwitting the Devil’ by Napoleon Hill. It was published many years after his death.

    Michel

  6. Aric says:

    Hi Aidan,
    2 books for you…

    Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life and Maybe The World; William H. McRaven.
    There is a great video of his university speech on YouTube.

    No Hero: The Evolution of a Navy Seal; Mark Owen

  7. Kimara FOX says:

    Hey Aidan,
    I just finished a couple recently. Girl wash your face by Rachel Hollis and You are a Badass: How to stop doubting your greatness and start living an Awesome life byJen Sincero.

  8. Olev Maimets says:

    My favourite book is by FBI chief hostage negotiator Chris Voss “Never split the difference – Negotiate as if your life depended on it.” With a near perfect track record of successful life and death hostage negotiations he brings a whole new perspective on how to get what you want every time!

  9. Grant Lynn says:

    How I raised myself from failure to success in selling
    By Frank Bettger

    This should be read every year by anyone in sales.

  10. Grant Lynn says:

    I’ve read six of them. This is a great list.
    How to win friends and influence people is a great one!

  11. Wow, this is an impressive list! Thank YOU for adding to my reading list!

  12. Michael says:

    thanks Aidan, love book lists and have read a lot of your selection and agree that they are mostly great, one I might suggest: 80/20 Sales and Marketing: The Definitive Guide to Working Less and Making More by Perry Marshall.

    The title is kinda hum drum but the principals in it are really powerful, he essentially takes the Pareto Principal deeper than most, the 20% of the 20% of the 20$ and has practical pricing suggestions for consulting or for example web services, find the 20% of the 20$ of the 20$ that will pay ridiculously high fees for custom content that is well worth pursing but is almost always overlooked or just not tried in most businesses

  13. Monique says:

    Thanks for your list, Aiden. Have read a couple myself, so interested to find out more.
    I found Rob Moore’s Start Now, Get Perfect Later quite a good read.

  14. As a “hard-core” Ayn Rand fan, I was happy 2 C Atlas Shrugged on your list. Her book entitled Fountainhead also inspired me at that time in my life….

  15. Quan says:

    “The Strong Mind”
    by Master Ryuho Okawa

  16. Greg says:

    Not so much along the lines of your majority, but should possibly be in your mindset/motivation catagory.

    Mind to Matter – Dawson Church

    The Observer Effect – Kieron Dowling

    I’ve read both several times, I hope you enjoy them. Pretty incredible books.

  17. Cody says:

    Awesome list. Atlas Shrugged is also one of my all-time favorites.

    I recently read “Getting Naked” by Patrick Lencioni; would highly recommend it.

  18. Delkys says:

    Great book list !

    Thank you for sharing !

    Have you heard of the “power of now” ?

    It is one of those life changing books!

  19. Gary Carson says:

    Never Split the Difference, Chris Voss. He also recommends a book call “Start with No”

  20. Christopher says:

    Great choices, Aidan. Many on here I’m motivated to re-read or pick up for the first time.

    One to add for your upcoming reading list: AI Superpowers by Kai-Fu Lee. it provides incredible insight into some major shifts coming to the world economy. It has a focus on China, but also addresses how those in other countries are responding.

  21. Ken-Tore says:

    Great list! I’ve read four.

    Recommends:
    The New Psycho-Cybernetics – Maxwell Maltz

    and one I read right now
    12 Rules For Life – Jordan B. Peterson

    Great books and they really make you think.

    • Aidan says:

      Funny you should mention Jordan Petersen, he’s been touring New Zealand recently and getting a LOT of exposure.. seems to be a polarizing figure, can’t wait to read his book for myself!

  22. Hi Aidan,

    Lots of books here I don’t know, so I’ll try to get around to some of them.

    I would suggest ‘Your Money Or Your Life,’ by Vicki Robin et al. in this sort of vein.

    Best

    Richard

  23. Viviana Medel says:

    Love this list Aidan!! Have read several of the ones you mentioned and now I have some new ones to check out! From your list, I am currently reading “The Power of Full Engagement”. Have you read “The Science of Getting Rich” by Wallace D. Wattles? It’s a classic! How about “The Big Leap” by Gay Hendricks? 🙂

  24. Kit says:

    Great list of books and many of my favorites too, fiction & non fiction. I’m currently reading Financial Freedom by Grant Sabatier and think it has many great ideas, particularly for millennials and how to view financial freedom and reach it early. My 2 kids fall into this group and he encourages entrepreneurship as a side hustle to start accumulating money fast to invest.

  25. Hi Aidan,

    Great list! Thank you! Plenty for me to be getting through over the coming months.

    Super excited about Parallel Profits!! – a couple of teachings I have been applying recently that I am sure brought you and your work into my experience –

    The One Command – Asara Lovejoy

    Ultimate Abundance – Christie Marie Sheldon (audio course through Mind Valley).

    Quantum Jumping – Burt Goldman (also an audio course)

    All the best

    J

  26. jerzy Kunowski says:

    Hello everyone.
    Harari, author of ,,Sapiens,, is practicing meditation 2 hours everyday. And he said that meditation gave him focus and clarity to write ,, Sapiens,,
    In this manner I can recommend book by meditation master Gyalwang Drugpa ,, Everyday Enlightenment,, Thank you all. Jerzy

  27. Kerry Moses says:

    Hi Aidan,
    Any books you’d recommend for overcoming inertia?
    I need help getting unstuck. I was on your $97 monthly membership site for almost a year and couldn’t get anything going. I’m getting desperate for liftoff….

    • Aidan says:

      Sounds like you need a really solid plan Kerry… maybe check out 12 week year, or The One Thing.. these might help you get focused, couple these with a solid business plan and you should be good to go!

  28. RudyR says:

    I know you’ve read it but felt it necessary to add Tim Ferriss’ The 4 Hour Workweek as a comment. Thousands of entrepreneurs started their journey after reading this book.

    • Aidan says:

      YES! Good point Rudy… I’m not sure why I only covered the last 5 years… I think because they were the books I could easily track down. Tim’s 4 hour workweek is a great read for sure!

  29. Great list Aiden, thanks!
    What was your greatest take away from “Making Money is Killing Your Business”?

  30. Peter Lockwood says:

    I’m currently reading The 1 Minute Commute (2018), written by fellow Aussie Robert Gerrish and author of Flying Solo: How to Go It Alone in Business (2005). All about the ins and outs of a solo person business. Great read so far.

  31. Merrill M Hess says:

    I recommend The Spirit of Enterprise by George Gilder. He tells the stories of 7(?) different entrepreneurs. Each used their imaginations and creativity to meet challenges, which often resulted in created new opportunities. My favorite was J.R. Simplot, a potato farmer who invented a way to sort and market previously unprofitable potatoes over long distances, invented a way to freeze dry them and became McDonald’s largest supplier of fries, and later was instrumental in the development of the 8088 chip, one of the root designs of all personal computers.

  32. Dave says:

    You have a tremendous list! I started in Direct Marketing as a peer of Dan Kennedy and Bill Bonner so My first great business books were Being Direct by Lester Wunderman, Maxi-Marketing by Rapp and Collins. Confessions of an Advertising Man by David Ogilvy is the primer for all advertising. Guerilla Marketing by Jay Levinson Conrad was published in 1984 yet still remains the basis of modern direct and social marketing.
    A modern bonafide translation of The Bible for many reasons should be in any short list of greatest books.

  33. Yazaid says:

    Hi Aidan, we have most of the mindset section in common. I have read most of them. And I noted “it is human to sell” from you to read it.

    This is my favorite book

    https://www.amazon.com/Quran-Simple-English-Translation-Goodword-ebook/dp/B00HIHMYWK/

  34. Bob Day says:

    Great book list Aiden! I’ve read many and have many more on my “To Read” list.

    Here’s a few suggestions:
    My very first (and still a favorite) self help/inspirational book, “The Road Less Traveled”, Scott Peck

    My all time favorite book: “The Power of Now”, Eckhart Tolle

    Other Suggestions:
    “The Four Agreements” Don Miguel Ruiz
    “The Aladxin Factor”, Jack Canfield and Mark Victor Hansen
    “The Consistency Chain” George Campbell and Jim Packard
    “The Formula”, Albert-Laszio Barabasi
    “This is Marketing”, Seth Godin
    “Overcoming Underearning”, Barbara Satanny
    “You Can Fix Your Brain”, Tom O’Bryan
    “The Icarus Deception” Seth Godin
    “Mad Genius”, Randy Gage
    “Breaking the Habit of Being Yourself”, Dr Joe Dispenza
    “The Five Second Rule”, Mel Robbins
    “Stealing Fire”, James Wheat, Steven Kotler
    “The Boys in the Boat”, Daniel James Brown (fiction)
    “The 10X Rule”, Grant Cardone
    “The Introvert Entrepreneur

    • Aidan says:

      The Power of Now has been mentioned by several people… I’ll be reading that next. Great list, I appreciate you sharing it Bob!!

  35. Rick Jackson says:

    And now you will hear it again Aidan. The Power of Now and A New Earth, both by Eckart Tolle are the two books that I re read regularly. They’re not about marketing and money however they may be the two books that will allow you to change everything in your life, including your finances. Meanwhile I’ve now got a ton of books to read, so I thank you and everyone else for the recommendations.

  36. Weimin Tan says:

    Thanks for the Top 5, Aidan ?. I’m getting the 12 Week Year next.

    • Aidan says:

      Hi Weimin, as you know, many of the recent books I’m reading are your suggestions… thank you!

      About half way through ‘New York’ now, incredible story!

  37. Elsie says:

    Interesting list Aiden!
    I’ve read quite a few of them. Just skimmed the comments so don’t know if anyone added this: The Goal by Eliyahu Goldblatt. It’s a great read and explains a business theory by using storytelling – as we know, one of the best forms of teaching!
    Also – since you are a Kiwi and you guys love to mock us Aussie cousins – have you read Bill Bryson’s “Down Under”? It is truly Laugh Out Loud funny.
    Thanks heaps
    Elsie

    • Aidan says:

      Hi Elsie, I actually did a major project based on The Goal while at University… it was my 4th and final year project, so I know that book and Goldratt’s other books inside and out! I’m a big fan of the theory of constraints!

  38. Brian Munroe says:

    Napoleon Hill – 17 Principles of Success, Audio. This way you can have the master talk to you. He relates the story of the Hatfield and McCoy feud which he lived just down the road from. He talks about the pinkertons following him and lip reading on Gandhi’s request to see if he was for real. He talks of when the young guy started the pigly wigly grocery store because he saw the coming concept that women would want to walk around the store and pick items and put them in a basket, opposed to getting the traditional clerk to hand them an item from behind the counter.

    I used to get a lot of audio programs from Nightingale Conant, they were great while I painted houses. Must have listen to the above audio 100 times.

    I like your list a lot and now see why I am buying programs from you.

    Brian

    • Aidan says:

      Hey Brian, I’ll check that 17 Principles audio book out! I’m a big fan of Napoleon Hill, so I suspect I’ll enjoy this! THANKS!

  39. Debra Proctor says:

    Great list! Thank you! Who is the author of the “Think Bigger” book? There are several “Think Bigger” books on Amazon.

  40. Cathy says:

    Thanks for the list Aidan.

    I am just reading Human by Design by Gregg Braden – from evolution by chance to transformation by choice – very interesting.

  41. Gary says:

    Great list Aidan. I’ve read a few but you’ve given me a great list to work from. Thanks!

    I thoroughly enjoyed “The Four Agreements” and am currently busy with “The Four Agreements Companion Book” by Don Miguel Ruiz,

    Leisure reading – loved all 3 of the “Girl with the Dragon Tatoo” series and recently read the 2 sequels written by David Lagerkrantz – “The Girl in the Spider’s Web” and “The Girl Who Takes an Eye for an Eye”

    Thanks again!
    Gary

  42. Nancy says:

    Thanks for the great resource. As a 60-something, I especially like seeing the old wisdom represented. I just started reading a new book, Company of One (Paul Jarvis) and am smiling to myself because you and Steve have baked so many of these principles into Parallel Profits.

    • Aidan says:

      Awesome Nancy!! I’ve heard other people talking about Company of One, sounds interesting, I’ve added that to my read list!!

  43. Don says:

    Impressive list Aidan.
    As a fellow Kiwi now into my 80’s, the most impressive 2 books I’ve read were The China Study and
    Whole: Rethinking the Science of Nutrition, by Professor T. Colin Campbell ~ They will help anyone to reach my goal “To get to 100 and still remember my name” They are all about avoiding the degenerative diseases like heart disease, cancer & diabetes that plague the developed world.

  44. Anna, Sydney says:

    Pure fiction: Louise Penny’s Chief Inspector Gamache series. Brilliant and very hard to put down. Not very helpful when trying to build a business. 🙂

  45. Chris says:

    Aidan, that’s a great list (and good stuff in the comments too). I can’t wait to get into some of these.
    Two of my favorites are Purple Cow by Seth Godin and Expert Secrets by Russell Brunson.
    I’m currently reading Sell or Be Sold by Grant Cardone and it’s a worthy read.
    Excellent blog post!
    Chris

    • Aidan says:

      Hey Chris, I’ve read Purple Cow, but not the others.. I’m a big fan of Godin’s stuff, normally very common sense, but also very applicable stuff. Will check out the others you’ve mentioned!

  46. Jay Wilson jr says:

    Aidan, I am looking forward to reading these books, my copy of Think Bigger arrived in the mail today! I just started reading it, and so far it has resonated with me. Thanks for putting this list together!

  47. David Dempsey says:

    Thanks for your list Aidan, many inspiring thought-leaders there.

    One which represents a very sharp pivot in mental health is “Lost Connections”, Johann Hari uncovering the real causes of depression and the unexpected solutions. Essential if we are to avert mass mental health issues as we disconnect from real people. I listened to the audiobook on the drives to work.

    “Six Thinking Hats”, Edward de Bono (or any of his works) along with “Children Solve Problems” are great reads to encourage variety of thinking processes to solve problems. Gets kids and adults out of a habit of believing their way of thinking is the best way, and that we all think alike.

  48. Reza says:

    Hi Aidan

    My name is Reza and I live in the UK. I am a completely new beginner to Online Business and Internet Marketing. I’m really interested to start a Great Lucrative Online Business. I have heard alot of good things about what you and Steve have been doing in the Online Business Industry and I am very impressed. I think you guys are one or if not the best internet marketers or shall I say business coaches in the entire Industry of Online Business & Internet Marketing.

    During my time on the web I have been doing alot of research about: starting Online Businesses, Internet Marketing, Online Business models, passive income etc and to be honest with you I have come across so much garbage throughout the internet in terms of scams, all these so called gurus making their big claims, overload of information and shiny objects etc, but by finding you guys I think it has been a big relief for me because based on peoples reviews, your track record with past programs and achievements, I personally think your the most trusted and legit entrepreneur/marketer in the Internet. Also generally speaking we all know that you can’t really trust anyone out there, especially online.

    I have noticed you guys have done several training programs/courses in the past and also quiet recently I think you released a new training program called Parallel Profits. Unfortunately, luck was not on my side and I couldn’t join because I wasn’t fully aware that you released a brand new training program in late January. Since I am not able to join this training program and opportunity anymore, I was wondering if you would kindly provide me with good useful information as to when you have plans to create a new training program this year or next year 2020. Also it would be really helpful if you can let me know of anyway I can receive updates from yourself in regards to any plans you have to teach new business models and offer any new business opportunities. Finally just to add to this, if you release a new training program will you be offering another opportunity again for people to become genuine legitimate business partners with you and/or part of a Franchise, just like for example with what you guys did with Parallel Profits.

    I look forward to hearing back from you.

    Kind Regards

    • Aidan says:

      Hi Reza, thanks for your message and kind words!

      To stay updated, you can simply subscribe on this page, or follow my Internet Marketing Facebook page (http://www.facebook.com/aidanboothonline). As for training programs, we won’t have anything new in 2019, but we DO have our evergreen Online Marketing Classroom, which I would recommend you check out, you can see that here: https://onlinemarketingclassroom.com/

      Best of luck to you!

      • Reza says:

        Hi Aidan, thank you very much for your reply I really appreciate it :).

        I will definitely subscribe to both your website and your Facebook page. Also thanks for recommending the Online Marketing Classroom and I am going to check it out for sure. Furthermore, so by me being subscribed is that how I will be able to find out if you have any plans for new training programs or Business Opportunities in 2020 and in the incoming Future.

        Once again thank you very much. 🙂

        Kind Regards

  49. Hey Aidan

    Thank you for this list. I see that you love reading. Despite your busy life you still manage to find the time to read so many amazing books. Reading is a dear thing to me. The thing is I didn’t read much of the type of books that you’ve read. I read more spiritual books and that has shaped my whole being and lead me to a more subtle lifestyle. However, I am always eager to read more variety of books.

    Aidan, I have become so busy with work and family responsibility I virtually don’t find the time to read as I did before and that really depresses me. I walked with my books all over I go but still not able to read it because of constant business.

    From all that I said, how and what can I do to be able to read more books and enrich my whole life.

    Didn’t want to say it here but to let you understand how busy I am, I will say it with the fewest of words “Single Parent dad of three”

    I feel that you are a great figure to look up to for many reasons. One thing that stuck the most is that you delivered pizza and today you are a multi-millionaire. I may have said too much here but its the best condensation of all that I want to say and ask.

  50. Robert Stone says:

    Thank you for sharing Aiden. I have read many of these books myself. About to order a couple of those I have not.

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