October 21, 2016 at 11:0630 sensible books on business, self-development and creativity that have changed my life
A year and a half ago, I accepted the challenge of reading 100 books in a year. The adventure did not fully justify itself, as I reread some books, but it was definitely useful. Following the results of the last two years, I have compiled a list of books that somehow influenced my life. I composed it for myself, but later decided that it would be useful to you too.
A public promise and a group of like-minded people, with whom we shared the results, helped me achieve an ambitious goal. Then we did it on the walls of social. networks, which was not very convenient. Now all these functions are taken over by the SmartProgress goal achievement service .
Communication
The ability to like is not about appearance. The ability to convince is not about the truth. By cleverly building a dialogue, you can get a promotion, a place in the first class of an airplane, and even save your life.
» Turn on the charm of the special services - Jack Schafer, Marvin Carlins ( link )
A fascinating story from a former FBI agent who reveals the secrets of effective communications using professional experience.
» Argument it! How to convince anyone of anything - Nikita Nepryakhin ( link )
Practical advice on argumentation and persuasion. You need to read carefully, stopping.
The secrets of great speakers. Speak like Churchill, hold on like Lincoln - James Humes (link )
Examples of famous speeches, as well as practical tips for compiling them.
Creation
Creativity is one of the few skills that sets us apart from machines. In the 21st century, you need to create something valuable, otherwise your work will be automated.
» How to come up with an idea if you are not Ogilvy - Alexey Ivanov ( link )
A very interesting immersion in the world of advertising. Alexey gives hundreds of examples of well-known advertising campaigns, as well as gives practical tips that are used by advertising agencies around the world.
» How to write well. Classic Non-Fiction Writing Guide - William Zinser ( link )
A great book that is useful not only to writers. We constantly write messages, comments, letters and the one who does it correctly is different from others and achieves great results.
» Steal as an artist - Cleon Austin ( link )
A small but capacious book. In it, in very simple words, Austin Cleon teaches the reader to create.
» Great the Work. How to find inspiration, love your work and start earning A
great book. The name speaks for itself. ( link )
Success stories
It is difficult to apply someone else's experience. From biographical books, one should take another: the principle of thinking, motivation and the belief that everything is possible.
" Losing innocence." How I built a business, doing it my own way and enjoying life - Richard Branson ( link )
The most fascinating biography I read. In the life of Richard Branson, you can make an adventure film that is not inferior in fees to Pirates of the Caribbean.
» The geniuses corporation. How to manage a team of creative people - Ed Catmell, Amy Wallace ( link )
Pixar CEOs talk about creating a corporate culture that promotes creativity and great products. ( link )
A few more books:
" Steve Jobs - Walter Isaacson ( link )
" Elon Musk: Tesla, SpaceX and the road to the future - Ashley Vance ( link )
» The Everything Store. Jeff Bezos and the Amazon Era - Brad Stone ( link )
Motivation and Development
These books do not contain many practical tips, but it was they that greatly influenced my career and life in different periods.
» Number 1. How to become the best at what you do - Igor Mann ( link )
An excellent map for the development of personal and professional skills. Igor does not delve into topics, but provides directions for further development.
» Be the best version of yourself. How ordinary people become outstanding - Dan Waldschmidt ( link )
I reread it twice. The motivational charge and the strong history of the author make you rise and start to do something.
" To the limit. A week without self-pity - Eric Bertrand Larssen ( link )
An exhaustive plan of ruthless verification of one's strengths.
Control
Even if you are not a leader, the ability to manage people will help you to establish yourself as a leader and achieve great results in your career.
» 45 Manager Tattoos - Maxim Batyrev ( link )
Practical advice from the personal experience of managing one of the best managers in Russia. The book attracts not only with quality content, but also with applicability in our country.
» Remote. Office is optional - Jason Fraid, David Heinmeyer Hansson ( link )
Explanatory practical guide for working with remote employees. Book from the authors of ReWork.
» Deadline. Project Management Roman - Tom DeMarco ( link )
A very interesting format: the artistic story of an IT manager who will have the chance to test several working methods and determine the most effective.
Business
Not only entrepreneurs should read these books. The principles of business are important for everyone to know, since we are all parts of it. And the better we understand this mechanism, the more useful we become for it.
» Rework. Business without prejudice - Jason Fraid, David Heinmeyer Hansson ( link )
Gap business template. The authors question popular opinions about doing business and show with the example of their company how to achieve results at lower cost.
» Development of value propositions - Alexander Osterwalder ( link )
Deep insight into the essence of business. The basis of the book is the well-known business management scheme of Alexander Osterwalder.
"Your own MBA - Josh Kaufman ( link )
A strong abstract on everything related to business. Do not read in full, get tired. Better keep it on the table and periodically re-read different chapters.
Productivity
How to work, earn and enjoy work.
» How to put things in order. The Art of Productivity without Stress - David Allen ( link )
The most popular book on organizing personal work. The emphasis is on task management and freeing the head from unnecessary things. It helped me a lot at the start.
» How to work four hours a week - Timothy Ferris ( link )
The author makes you take a fresh look at the work. You will understand how to work less and get more. The founder of Lifehacker quit Yandex and started a new project after reading this book.
» Get out of your comfort zone. Change your life - Brian Tracy ( link)
A quick reference to popular productivity techniques.
Marketing
The ability to sell your product is very important for the business. The ability to sell oneself is important for everyone.
» More money from your business - Alex Levitas ( link ) A
great book. Hundreds of practical marketing and sales tips.
» Marketing without a budget - Igor Mann ( link )
50 working tools to promote the brand with virtually no financial costs.
» Blue Ocean Strategy - Rene Moborn, Kim Wichang ( link )
How to avoid competition and create a new market.
» Delivering happiness. From zero to a billion. The history of the creation of an outstanding company - Tony Shay ( link)
This book could be attributed to biographies. Tony Shay (founder of Zappos) shows that customer focus is profitable.
A few more books:
" Customers for Life - Carl Sewell, Paul Brown ( link )
" Advertising. Emotion Game - Alexey Ivanov ( link )
Thanks for reading! It is interesting to know which books have influenced your life.
