10 Timeless Books Every Entrepreneur Should Read

Do you want to start a new business or grow your existing business? Being an entrepreneur is a lonely job.

But fortunately, you can always rely on books. Forget about going to networking events, meetups, or browsing the internet for useful advice.

To me, reading business books is the best use of my time. I’ve spent a long time thinking about which books to mention here.

And I decided to focus on books I think will be relevant for decades to come. The last thing you want is to read a book that’s useless next year. Let’s get started.

1. The Magic of Thinking Big Paperback by David J. Schwartz

This timeless book, published in 1959, inspires you to think positively about your life and career. Schwartz has a very practical approach and shares ideas that work. Thinking big has nothing to do with having big dreams. It’s about acting big.

2. The 10X Rule by Grant Cardone

Cardone is one of the biggest names in sales training. And rightfully so. His mindset and results are exceptional. He’s not one those many fake idiots you often see bragging about their cars. Sure, Grant brags a lot. But he’s also genuine. The book comes down to this: Want to reach 100K people with your products? Focus on 1.000.000 instead. Btw, get the audiobook, which is read by Grant himself. You’ll laugh and learn.

3. Mindset: The New Psychology of Success by Carol Dweck

As an entrepreneur, you need a growth mindset to survive. Life is about solving problems and finding solutions. If you always look at the risks and consequences of everything, you might play it safe, but you’ll also never grow. Carol Dweck’s book is one of my favorite books about developing the mindset you need to succeed in life.

4. Essentialism by Greg McKeown

Productivity is about doing the right things. And this book helps you to focus better on what matters to you, personally. Once you know what you’re after, it’s easier to get there.

5. The Boron Letters by Gary Halbert

Gary Halbert was a successful copywriter. And today, he’s still a legend in the marketing world. But this collection of letters goes beyond marketing. Halbert uses his copywriting skills to teach his son about direct response marketing, life, health, and being successful. He wrote these letters while he was serving time in a federal prison.

6. Made to Stick by Chip Heath and Dan Heath

The all-time classic book on persuasion is Influence by Robert Cialdini. I highly recommend reading that book. However, that book is very theoretic and broad. If you specifically want to read more about how you can persuade others of your ideas, Made to Stick is great. Telling persuasive stories is one of your key responsibilities as an entrepreneur.

7. The Quick and Easy Way to Effective Speaking by Dale Carnegie

A book list without Dale Carnegie is never complete. I’ve read a bunch of books about public speaking. New and old. But this book is still the best book I’ve read on the topic. It really is a quick and easy way to effective speaking so that you can start spreading your ideas better than ever.

8. Perennial Seller by Ryan Holiday

I recently interviewed Ryan about this book on my podcast. In the book, he gives you a framework for creating a product/service that sells for decades. To me, that’s the essence of marketing. In Perennial Seller, Ryan describes key marketing lessons he learned from successful authors and entrepreneurs. Also, he talks from experience. Ryan has written five best-selling books and helped market a bunch of other best sellers for other writers.

9. Blue Ocean Strategy by W. Chan Kim and Renée Mauborgne

I have to confess that I’ve been familiar with the concept of ‘blue oceans’ and ‘red oceans’ in the marketing world for a few years. However, I haven’t been applying it as much as I should. Too often, we try to compete with other businesses in red oceans. Why do we do it? Why do we always try to be better and not different? Blue Ocean Strategy provides valuable answers that help you create unique products that serve new markets.

10. Anything You Want by Derek Sivers

Almost all entrepreneurs I know are lazy. I’m the biggest example of that. Why do you think I’m so big on productivity? I don’t want to waste my time on unnecessary things. Even though reading is one of the most necessary things to me as an entrepreneur, I understand that you might not have time to read all these books. Maybe you have a 9–5 job, run multiple businesses, or have a house full of kids. These are all legitimate reasons for lack of time.

In that case, I recommend reading Anything You Want, which is one of my favorite books from one of my favorite people. Derek Sivers built CD Baby and sold it later for $22 million. And in this book, Derek shares “the biggest mistakes, keys to its success, and the philosophies behind the big decisions.” You can read it in an hour (and if you don’t even have an hour of free time, you want to rethink your life).

There you go. These books have taught me more about business than my master’s degree. And the best thing? The books will cost you less than 150 bucks. What’s the cost of a master’s degree? Actually, don’t get me started.

Just start reading. That’s more than enough. In fact, if you read these books, you’ll know more than 99% of all other entrepreneurs.

Now, you and I only need to act on the ideas we’ve learned.