WHAT IS

THE ONE
BOOK
THAT MOST IMPACTED

YOUR
CAREER?
The answers of 70 brilliant entrepreneurs
and business professionals
1. Andrew Gazdecki
CEO, Microacquire.com
 To Sell Is Human
by Daniel Pink

This book had a significant influence on my

entrepreneurial career.

The most essential skill for startup founders is sales

because it's 90% of the job.
2. Austin Belcak
Founder, Cultivated Culture
The 4-Hour Workweek
by Tim
Ferriss

This book gave me permission to stop using traditional

processes just because everyone else did them.

It pushed me to experiment and think outside the box,

which led to the job search system that got me in at
Microsoft and that my whole business is built on.
3. Guy Kawasaki
Chief Evangelist, Canva
If You Want to Write
by Brenda Ueland
4. Josh Braun
Founder, Braun Training
Never Split The
Difference

by Christopher Voss
and Tahl Raz
5. Rand Fishkin
CEO, SparkToro
 Small Giants
by Bo Burlingham

In my early career, Good to Great and Built to Last

were very influential, though I later came to believe
that neither was accurate nor presented the kind of
company I wanted to build.

In my later years, perhaps Small Giants by Bo

Burlingham is much more aligned with how I hope to
engage as an entrepreneur.

3. Guy Kawasaki
 6. Dan Ariely
Professor of behavioral
Economics, Duke University
 Being Mortal
by Atul Gawande

This book made me think about the end of life and

what we do at the end of life, which will influence my
research in the next ten years or so.
7. Matt Gray
CEO, Herb.co
Expert Secrets
by Russell Brunson
8. Devin Reed
Head of Content, Clari
Influence: The Psychology
of Persuasion
by Robert B. Cialdini

This book has had the most significant impact on my

career. Success in sales, marketing, and all
relationships comes down to understanding
psychology, and Cialdini's book breaks down why
people say "yes."

Understand that, and everything becomes a little

easier.
 9. Matt Heinz
Founder, Heinz Marketing
Getting Things Done
by David Allen

Allen's methodology has been instrumental in helping

me focus on what’s important and minimize the noise
from work that is less important. It’s been helpful in
both my professional and personal life.
10. Kevin Dorsey
Practice Lead, Winning by
Design
Train Your Brain
for Success
by Roger Seip
11. Robert I. Sutton
Professor of Management
Science & Engineering,
Stanford University
Working
by Studs Terkel
12. Carrie Rose
CEO, Rise at Seven
 Atomic Habits
by James Clear

This is a top-rated book that many may already know. It

was an instant worldwide bestseller, and for a good
reason. It taught me that small changes can lead to
entirely different destinations.

Whether that's minor changes in myself, my business, the

way I lead, and the way I work.

Those small changes don't feel drastic but have led me to

build a £7m business pretty much overnight.
13. Jeremy Moser
CEO, uSERP
The Millionaire Fastlane
by MJ Demarco

A mindset-shifting book to think differently about my

career in ways I never thought possible.
14. Jesse Pujji
CEO, Kahani
 15 Commitments of
Conscious Leadership
by Jim Dethmer, Kaley Klemp,
Diana Chapman

15. John Barrows

CEO, JBarrows Sales Training
 Greenlights
by Matthew McConaughey.

I recently listened to this book when I was at an inflection

point in my career and life. Matthew's stories and
perspective on life resonated with me more than I
expected.

Life is about perspective, and Matthew has a great one

that I admire.
16. Richard Harris
Founder, The Harris
Consulting Group
 The Laws of
Human Nature
by Robert Greene

17. Hala Taha

CEO, YAP Media
The Like Switch
by Dr. Jack Schafer

18. Justin Rowe

Founder & CMO, Impactable
Letters from a Stoic
by Seneca

I know it's not a "business" book, but the books from stoic
philosophers have influenced my success in the startup
world.
19. Marcus Chan
Sales Coach
 The Code of the
Extraordinary Mind
by Vishen
Lakhiani

This book made me realize the only rules in life are the
ones we create in our minds. We can live by the rules
others make or create the ones we choose to live by.
20. Jonathan Javier
Founder, Wonsulting
Rich Dad, Poor Dad
by Robert Kiyosaki
21. David M. Brear
CEO, 11:FS
 The Little Red Hen
by Paul Galdone

This book is 20 pages long and primarily illustrations, but

the story encapsulates the idea that if you want
something, you must actively pursue it with your attitude
and effort.

You cannot wait or rely on someone else to give it to you.

I remember my mum reading it to me when I was little,

and it shaped my mentality up until today, when I
frequently referenced it while running 11:FS.
22. Ash Jones
Founder, Great Influence
 Rocket Fuel
by Mark C. Winters and Gino
Wickman
 23. Brett
Puffenbarger
VP of Marketing, Green
Check Verified
 Venture Deals
by Brad Feld

It's a point-by-point breakdown and translation of how

raising money and starting a company works.
24. Joe Glover
Co-Founder, The Marketing
Meetup
Man's Search for
Meaning
by Viktor Frankl
25. Sophie Miller
Founder, Pretty Little
Marketer
The Life-Changing Magic
of Not Giving a F**k
by Sarah Knight.

If I'm honest, I'm not much of a reader. However, I read

one book during a spell of pandemic boredom last year:
The Life-Changing Magic of Not Giving a F**k by Sarah
Knight.

As a classic people pleaser, personally and professionally,

being permitted to own my time and find confidence in
saying no without a 30-page list of excuses was incredibly
empowering. The lessons of the read are things I still carry
with me a year on.
26. Elizabeth Yin
General Partner, Hustle Fund
 The Lean Startup
by Eric Ries

I had been building and building out products no one

wanted until I read Lean Startup.

I realized you need to validate demand as quickly as

possible by building as little as possible to avoid too many
wrong detours.
27. Jess Cook
VP of Brand & Content,
Marpipe
Hey Whipple, Squeeze This
by Luke Sullivan

IThis book has long been considered one of the go-to

manuals for creating ads that actually sell.

I read it as a junior copywriter (so long ago, in a galaxy

far, far away), but its principles have stuck with me ever
since.
28. Morgan Snyder
Owner, booth
 The Soul of an
Entrepreneur

Sax
by David

This book is my most recent read with the most

significant impact on how I approach my business and
life.
29. Ethan Golding
Co-Founder, Team Hustle
The 1-Page Marketing Plan
by Allan Dib

I learned what the word marketing ACTUALLY after

reading this book. It gave me the knowledge to start
building effective marketing systems.

I've implemented and referred back to this multiple times;

it's really a bible for me.
30. Dan Sanchez
Executive Producer,
Sweet Fish
 The Marketer as
Philosopher

by Flint McGlaughlin

This book taught me the "why" behind marketing and

gave me a framework to approach marketing projects
strategically.
31. Erin Balsa
Founder, Haus of Bold
The Business of Expertise
by David Baker

Disclaimer: I don't have ONE favorite business book, but

The Business of Expertise by David Baker helped me spot
and correct things I was doing that were damaging my
perceived value.

For example, having a Calendly link on my website.

Now I vet everyone before I get on a discovery call

because my time is valuable.
32. Amy Miller
Client Lead Recruiter,
Amazon
The Robot-Proof Recruiter
by Katrina Collier

No matter how advanced we think technology has made

us, Recruiting will forever be a HUMAN interaction.

Katrina’s book is full of wisdom and insights from many

industry professionals. A must-read for ALL recruiters and
a gift I give everyone I mentor!
33. Lola Bakare
CMO Advisor & Inclusive
Marketing Strategist
 Marketing Myopia
by Theodore Levitt

Marketers and their cross-functional peers should read

this book to understand the difference between brands,
the benefits they promise, and the products delivering
those benefits.

This book is a banger, and you can read it in a single

evening.

That said, I couldn’t vouch for the kind of guy he was (I’ve
heard some things). I just love his work.
34. Raja Rajamannar
Chief Marketing & Communications
Officer and President, Healthcare
Business, Mastercard
Happiness Advantage
by Shawn Accor
35. Ross Simmonds
Founder & CEO,
Foundation Marketing
 On Writing: A
Memoir of the Craft
by Stephen King

This book is one of the most influential in copywriting

history, but often one of the most underrated as more
books are written on the subject.

It's essential to revisit the classics, especially those written

by some of the most influential writers of our generation.

While Stephen King may not be one of the most

articulate writers or may not win a Pulitzer prize, his work
will go down in history as some of the most engaging and
entertaining.

This book does a great job of taking stories from his past
and injecting them with great writing tips that everyone
can learn, whether how to narrate and structure a story
or how important it is to write, write, write!

I love this book because it goes into the details of what

truly goes into writing good copy.
36. Madeline Mann
CEO, Self Made Millenial
 Multipliers
by Liz Wiseman

This book helped me to uncover my strengths and

weaknesses as a leader.

Many of us are what Liz Wiseman calls "Diminishers" —

leaders that accidentally suppress the potential of their
teams, despite best intentions.

I loved that the book made me more self-aware.

37. Henry Stewart
Chief Happiness Officer,
Happy
 Maverick
by Ricardo Semler

The Brazilian businessman explains how he took over his

father’s factory and changed it from one where workers
were searched at the gate to one with complete trust and
freedom.

Everything that we have done at Happy stems from that

book.
38. Amelia Sordell
Founder, Klowt
How to Argue with a Cat
by Jim Heinrichs

The book explains how to hold an intelligent conversation

- and persuade people to think the way you do or do what
you want them to do.

It's all about convincing vs. arguing — something that

cats are very good at doing. And something I've learned
very well to do as a result of reading this book and
implementing the learnings!
39. Robyn Clarke
Account Manager, Great Influence
 The Midnight Library
by Matt Haig

While this book didn't give me any direct business advice,

it helped me out of a lousy headspace by changing my
perspective on life.

I decided to stop living life paralyzed by the 'what ifs" and

just put my heart into everything I do.

I've applied this to my career, and it's been upward since

then.
40. Drew Neisser
Founder & CEO, Renegade
 Guerrilla Marketing
by Jay Conrad Levison

This book profoundly impacted my career, opening my

eyes to non-traditional approaches and how ingenuity
can transform the tiniest of budgets into a deluge of
effectiveness.
41. Margaret Molloy
Global CMO, Siegel + Gale
 Essentialism: The
Disciplined Pursuit of Less

by Greg McKeown

I learned to focus on what matters and do it well.

42. Steph Egger
Head of Brand, SHFT Agency
 Ego Is the Enemy
by Ryan Holiday

This is not a business book by any means, but it teaches a

lot about life and how to approach it.
43. Harris Fanaroff
Founder, Activate Onboarding
 Never Eat Alone
by Keith Ferrazzi

Everything in life is about relationships.

44. Andrew Yeung
Strategy & Ops Lead, Meta
Barking Up The
Wrong Tree
by Eric Barker
45. Maya Grossman
Founder, Maya Grossman Consulting
 Mindset
by Carol Dweck

This book completely changed how I viewed the world

and taught me how to ditch my limiting beliefs and use
my mindset as an empowering tool.
46. Tom Goodwin
Innovation Leader & Business
Transformation Consultant

 Re-Imagine!
Business Excellence
in a Disruptive Age
by Tom
Peters

I read this book in 2003. It was as relevant and as timely

then as it is reading it now.
47. Steve Toth
Creator, SEO Notebook
 The Go-Giver
by Bob Burg and John
David Mann

This book taught me how to give away my knowledge

effectively and reap the most benefit from sharing my
passion.
 48. Louis Grenier
Founder, Everyone Hates Marketers
 Petit traité de
manipulation à l'usage
des honnêtes gens

by Jean-Léon
Beauvois

I fell in love with marketing when I was 18-19 after reading

this book, which is the French version of Influence: The
Psychology of Persuasion.
49. Phillip Rivers
Partner, Commerce12
 The One Thing
by Gary W.
Keller and
Jay Papasan

This book taught me how important it is to focus.

As an entrepreneur, our biggest weakness is often shiny

object syndrome, which keeps us on a hamster wheel,
always looking at the next thing without giving the
current thing time to mature.

The book shifted my perspective and helped me stay

focused and cast 'shiny object' distractions aside.
50. Liz Willits
Founder, Content Phenom
Scientific Advertising
by Claude Hopkins

This is one of the first great copywriting books I read, and

it changed my entire perspective on copy.
51. Sangram Vajre
Co-Founder & CEO, GTM Partners
 Behind the Cloud
by Marc Benioff

This book helped me think bigger and every act as a play

instead of random acts.
52. Ashley Levesque
VP of Marketing, Banzai
Dare To Lead
by Brene
Brown
53. Whitney Johnson
World Authority on Smart Growth
Leadership and Personal Disruption,
Disruption Advisors
The Innovator’s Dilemma
by Clayton Christensen

This book disrupted my thinking, and set me on a new

career.
54. Greg Isenberg
CEO, Late Checkout
 The Road Ahead
by Bill
Gates

I read it as a 12 or 13-year-old. Bill Gates outlines the future

20 years ahead. It made me realize how powerful
technology is.
 55. Scott Leese
Founder, Scott Leese Consulting
 Ender's Game

by Orson Scott Card

56. Biron Clark
Founder, Career Sidekick
The 4-Hour Workweek
by Tim
Ferriss

I quit my job and started my own side projects to obtain

more freedom (and eventually more income, too). The
ideas in this book ignited that shift.
 57. Dorie Clark
Top 50 Business Thinker in the World
 Influence: The
Psychology of Persuasion
by Robert
Cialdini
58. Corey Haines
Founder, Swipe Files
 Obviously Awesome

by April Dunford

This book made positioning, copywriting, and marketing

strategy crystal clear for me to be a more holistic growth
marketer.
 59. Marshall
Goldsmith
Thinkers50 Hall of Fame, #1 Leadership
Thinker, #1 Exec Coach, #1 NYT
Bestselling Author
Old Path White Clouds

by Thich Nhat Hanh

This book contains the most simple and beautiful

description of Buddhism I have ever read.
60. Tiffany Yu
CEO, Diversability
 Daring Greatly
by Brene
Brown

This book inspired me to lead courageously and with

vulnerability.
61. Prof. Amanda
Kirby
CEO, Do-IT Solutions
 The End of Average

Rose
by Todd

This book questions what stats really mean and why

there is no point in designing for an average person.
Everyone ends up missing out.

Rose's new book "Collective Illusions" is brilliant too

 62. Jerry Lee
COO, ResumeAI by Wonsulting
How to Win Friends &
Influence People

by Dale Carnegie
63. John Amaechi
Founder, APS Intelligence
 The Robots of Dawn
by Isaac
Asimov

A robot called R. Daneel Olivaw had telepathic powers

and used them to influence human development and
spread out into the stars to save them from the decay of
Earth.

The robot did it and sacrificed its life before passing its
abilities onto another robot to help shape the trajectory of
the human race for the better.

The passage of the transfer of abilities parallels good

psychology, therapy, and practice. Our job is to become
redundant, transfer the skills that shape our trajectories
and those in our care, and then move on to another.
64. Troy Munson
Enterprise Account Executive,
metadata.io
 Atomic Habits
by James Clear

This book made my life better.

There are so many little things you can change

throughout your life that make you feel so much more
successful and routine.
 65. Julie Raeder
Customer Success Coach, Dooly
 Can't Hurt Me
by David Goggins

Can't Hurt Me by David Goggins and Winning by Tim

Grover

Both books help you reflect and consider whether you're

living up to your full potential. The consistent pursuit of
being your best self is never-ending, but it's wild what
limiting beliefs we will put on ourselves when we can
achieve levels above that.

Tim Grover breaks it into mini-lessons, and David Goggin's

story is insane. David came from a terrible situation and
had every reason and excuse to be below average. It
shows that if you are consistent and consistently push the
boundaries, you can ACHIEVE a lot.
66. Richard van der Blom
Nr. 1 European LinkedIn Trainer / Social
Selling Trainer & Expert
The Greatness Guide
by Robin
Sharma

This book provided easy-to-implement answers to

recognizable challenges as an entrepreneur and leader.

The book completely resonated with what I already knew

but couldn’t convert into actions to improve my business
and private life.
67. Nemanja Zivkovic
Founder, Funky Marketing
 Meditations

Aurelius
by Marcus
68. Julie Zhuo
Co-Founder, Sundial
 Mindset

by Carol Dweck

This book helped me realize that getting better at any

skill was within reach.

Later, growing as a manager and leader, it's "Conscious

Business" by Fred Kofman," which I still consider the
foundational tome of thinking about success beyond
traditional 'business' success.
69. Katelyn Bourgoin
CEO & Founder, Customer Camp
 Contagious: Why
Things Catch On

Berger
by Jonah

I read this book back in 2013.

I was operating a small branding agency at the time, and

that book was a turning point for me. It sparked my
ongoing obsession with understanding buyer behavior.

Humans are complex creatures, yet when you invest time

to understand better why we do what we do, you'll find
clues that can help you to market smarter.
70. George Bell
Senior Brand & Marketing
Manager, Sanctus
 Sell Like Crazy

Suby
by Sabri

The book teaches how the best way to win loyal

customers is to give ultimate value at all times. It seems
obvious, and I know Sabri isn't the first to argue this, but
I've never seen anyone else write about it in such an
engaging way.

Given that he argues for value above all else, it goes with
saying that the book is packed with value and actionable
tips for growing and scaling a business.

Although it's a little heavy-handed in some places and a

little too on the sales-y side for me sometimes, the
principles and psychology behind what Sabri writes
changed the way I approach sales and marketing, and
they're principles that I'll carry through the rest of my
career.