Are you an aspiring entrepreneur? The journey of starting your own business has its ups and downs, but it is definitely rewarding and full of life-changing experiences. There is so much to learn and understand to achieve success.
As you prepare to start your own business, it is very helpful to have the necessary tools and insights to guide you. Here is a list of business books to help you get started.
Startup CEO: A Field Guide to Scaling Up Your Business by Matt Blumberg
In this book, Blumberg shares his experience as a startup CEO. This is filled with valuable insights on aspects such as problem-solving, identifying priorities, scaling a business, and attracting investors. Blumberg also talks about planning, productivity, and managing costs and people.
Startup CEO allows readers to truly understand what it means to become a CEO and a founder. It includes straightforward learning that is very practical for those who want to start or scale their business. Even experienced entrepreneurs and managers can still learn from this book.
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Will It Fly?: How to Test Your Next Business Idea So You Don’t Waste Your Time and Money by Pat Flynn
When starting a business, time and money are considered essential resources. Will It Fly will help you challenge your business idea with actionable tips and details to validate it. It can help you identify and minimize potential risks.
If you are not sure where and how to start, Will It Fly has very practical insights to help you launch your startup. It is a great guide and workbook for entrepreneurs, especially aspiring ones. This book can also help you improve your existing startup.
The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It by Michael Gerber
How will you be able to grow your company? The E-Myth Revisited teaches us that starting a business is more than just having a great idea. The book takes you through important aspects of preparation. It also discusses the different life cycles of business.
Author Michael Gerber shares practical advice in growing your business. Interestingly, he debunks entrepreneurial myths and then shares valuable lessons on the franchise business model.
Work Smarter: 500+ Online Resources Today’s Top Entrepreneurs Use to Increase Productivity and Achieve Their Goals by Nick Loper
What is the secret of successful entrepreneurs? In Work Smarter, Loper shares helpful tools for productivity, project management, and communication. This book comes with a lot of resources shared by fellow entrepreneurs that aspiring startups can use.
Each tool is described in detail to help you find what best fits your needs. Work Smarter will definitely help you save time and money from looking at, and comparing tools for your startup. Aside from resources, this book also contains top tips from different business owners.
The Entrepreneur Roller Coaster: Why Now Is the Time to #JoinTheRide by Darren Hardy
Will your business fail? Author Darren Hardy shares the best strategies he has collected from various successful entrepreneurs. From the title itself, the book is about the roller coaster journey of being a successful entrepreneur.
The Entrepreneur Roller Coaster can serve as a valuable resource for beginners and experienced business leaders alike. It includes themes such as productivity, leadership, sales, and recruiting.
Hardy also gives very relatable insights from his own experience. He shares engaging success stories, thorough practical business advice, and action steps. The book is an excellent guide to help you get started.
Crushing It! How Great Entrepreneurs Build Their Business and Influence-and How You Can, Too by Gary Vaynerchuk
Best-selling author Gary Vaynerchuck shares his passion for doing what you love, putting in hard work, and turning it into a real business. Vaynerchuck backs this by sharing lessons and success stories from various entrepreneurs and influencers.
This book is great for those who want to start up because it also motivates you to take action. The author also shares information about major social media platforms you can use for your business. It is filled with practical content to help you build your dream business and lead you towards success.
The Lean Startup: How Today’s Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses by Eric Ries
Is your business sustainable? The Lean Startup takes you through the journey of starting up a business. It can serve as a guide for entrepreneurs, no matter what industry and company size.
This book is not about how you can create your business plan. Author Eric Ries shares a lot of insights from startups and his own experiences. He takes you through “lean” techniques to help solve problems in processes and organizations.
The Lean Startup also tells entrepreneurs that failures can be prevented. The book can help aspiring business owners learn about challenging their ideas, validation, and continuous innovation.
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Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX, and the Quest for a Fantastic Future by Ashlee Vance
This New York Times bestseller shares about the life of a renowned entrepreneur, Elon Musk. Unlike the previous books in this list, this one is not a guide. Instead, it talks about how it is to be an entrepreneur with an unwavering commitment to his vision.
For a lot of aspiring entrepreneurs, a huge driving force of starting up is vision and purpose. It is about providing solutions for the benefit of many.
Elon Musk is a powerful book that talks about the entrepreneurial purpose that goes beyond money and fame. Author Ashlee Vance shares the success stories of Elon Musk and the valuable entrepreneurial lessons that anyone can learn from.
The $100 Startup: Reinvent the Way You Make a Living, Do What You Love, and Create a New Future by Chris Guillebeau
For author Chris Guillebeau, turning ideas into income is possible. In this book, he shares a collection of case studies of different business owners who interestingly started with an investment of $100 or less.
The $100 Startup shares a roadmap of how you can create a product or service that customers will value. It includes how to create business plans, market, and launch.
It also tackles how businesses overcome major challenges. This is extremely useful for both new and experienced business owners.
YOU are a BADASS: HOW TO STOP DOUBTING YOUR GREATNESS AND START LIVING AN AWESOME LIFE by Jen Sincero
This New York Times bestselling author brings you a way to improve your life with the help of You Are a Badass. This book shares ways to identify and reverse damaging behaviors that keep you from living your best life. It is full of inspiring stories that empower you and help you take the necessary steps to self-improvement.
Although this book may not seem like it’s within the theme of the other books mentioned here, we would say that many of the setbacks that keep entrepreneurs from becoming successful are self-inflicted. This book may help you identify and get through the milestones in your journey that cause you to doubt yourself and your capabilities.
Are You Ready to Become an Entrepreneur?
One of the best ways to get started is to learn from experienced and successful entrepreneurs. Through books, they share their techniques, best practices, experiences, and inspiring success stories.