I love to read. When I was younger, I was mostly reading fantasy and sci-fi books. It all changed when I read my first nonfiction book. I don’t remember why, but I read “The Power of Habit” by Charles Duhigg, and I loved it. It was easy to read, had great true-life stories, and I saw that it could change my own life. I couldn’t stop talking about it; I talked about it with my family, friends, and coworkers. I have to admit - it didn’t change my life but definitely affected it and got me thinking about good and bad habits in my life and how to control them. Later I read several of Malcolm Gladwell’s books and liked them. Nowadays, I mostly read nonfiction books and mostly around Product Management, leadership, management, and psychology.
I have divided this list into three categories:
Leadership/Management are books on the art of leading people & teams and managing projects.
Inspirational/Self-help are books that you read and get inspired to do more, to do something bigger. In this category, you would find biographies, memoirs, self-development books, and some inspirational novels.
Know the past - These are history books. As Carl Sagan famously said,
You have to know the past to understand the present.” I would add to it, “You have to know the past to understand the present and build a better future.”
Leadership/Management
High Output Management by Andy Grove
Andy Grove was one of the greatest CEOs of our time, and his management approach is a foundation of famous OKRs (Objective Key Results). A must-read book for any manager.
The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz
Ben Horowitz has co-founded Andreessen Horowitz - one of the most prominent Silicon Valley investment firms. His book contains lessons learned from founding, running, and selling a company for $1.6B. It covers all the hard things about running the company, including leading and firing people, building the right culture, and the difference between Peacetime and Wartime CEOs.
Trillion Dollar Coach by Eric Schmidt, Jonathan Rosenberg, Alan Eagle
Coaching is a must-have skill for any manager, and Bill Campbell was probably one of the best business coaches. He coached leaders from Google, Apple, Intuit, and many other companies. He was a great coach, community builder, and just a great human being; we can all learn from his legacy. If you aspire to become a great leader, you should read this book.
Never Split the Difference by Chris Voss and Tahl Raz
We have to negotiate something in the office or at home constantly. In his book, Chris Voss, a former FBI hostage negotiator, provides insights and clear guidance everyone can apply to improve their negotiation skills. I am not going to say that after reading this book, I can win every argument, but I am working on it 😆
Measure What Matters by John Doerr
Objectives and Key Results is a different approach to goal-setting used by hundreds of successful companies worldwide. John Doerr introduced OKRs to Google founders in 1999, and OKRs are an integral part of Google’s success. If you want your organization to excel, aim high, and move fast, you must read John Doerr’s book.
Rework by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson
“Rework” is not your typical business book. It’s a quick read - a collection of small ideas/tips on Entrepreneurship, Productivity, Management, Marketing, Hiring, Business Culture, and more. The beauty of “Rework” is that it forces you to ‘Think Again’ about what you thought you knew about productivity, management, and marketing. You can read more about it in this post
Inspirational/Self motivation
Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson
Steve Jobs was one of the most outstanding CEOs of our time. His managerial style was not great, but he led the creation of multiple life-changing products that forever changed our lives. A must-read.
Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future by Ashlee Vance
Sometimes it seems whatever Elon Musk is touching turns into gold. Every company he is involved with succeed. But it doesn’t come as easy as it looks. He is probably one of the smartest and hard-working CEOs I read about. Another must-read.
The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg and Atomic Habits by James Clear
Both books cover a fascinating topic of human habits. Most of what we do in our day-to-day lives are habits. Habits do not require deep thinking and are being stored in a different part of our brain. If you want to understand and be able to control your habits, check out these two books. I would recommend reading at least one of them.
Can't Hurt Me by David Goggins
David Goggins is a crazy MF. In his book, he shares his incredible life story. He claims we are using only 40% of our capabilities, and we can achieve much more by changing our mindset. I would recommend checking the audiobook. It has additional info and interviews with the author.
Mindset by Carol C Dweck
In her book, Carol C Dweck divides people into two categories. People with a fixed mindset believe that our abilities are fixed and can’t change them, and people with a growth mindset believe that we can develop any abilities if we spend enough time. The fixed mindset limits and prevents us from creating and achieving better things in life. With the Growth Mindset, we can grow ourselves and motivate and inspire people around us.
Quiet by Susan Cain
I never knew about the concept of introverts and extroverts. So who are these two types of people? What is the difference between their personalities? What are their strength and weaknesses? How can introverts succeed in a world that value extroverted behaviours? You are going to find answer’s in Susan Cain’s book.
The Almanack of Naval Ravikant by Eric Jorgenson
Naval Ravikant is an entrepreneur, philosopher, and investor. He is well known for his principles of building wealth and creating happiness in our lives. This book is a collection of Naval posts, tweets, interviews, and podcasts. Check it out to learn more about building a happier, wealthier life.
Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell
Outliers are the best and brightest, and most successful. Malcolm Gladwell shares the secrets of the best and brightest and what it takes to become One. The famous quote 10,000 hours of practice to master a skill is from this book.
Know the past
Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari
How Homo Sapiens became the most dominant species on the planet Earth? What happened to other human species that lived on planet Earth alongside Home Sapiens? Why do we live in the most peaceful time of human history? Yuval Noah Harari masterfully covers these and other questions about the history of humankind in his book. If you like Sapiens, I would suggest checking his other book, “Home Deus”, where he is trying to predict how humans would evolve and what the future holds for us.
The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell
The tipping point is that magic moment when an idea or social behaviour crosses a threshold, tips, and spreads like wildfire. Why do ideas spread like epidemics, and what part does the Tipping Point play? What sort of people and factors have the most influence on the spread of ideas? Read Malcolm Gladwell’s book to get the answers.
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