Every year I set a goal to read 50 books. I am a firm believer that reading is one of the very best things that you can do with your time.
There is so much knowledge that we can learn from others, and from their experiences. I find that books are one of the best ways to do so.
Growing up I hated reading. In fact, when I was in high school and was assigned a book to read the first thing I would do was see if there was a summary or CliffNotes available so that I wouldn’t have to actually read the book.
My goal was to only get what I needed out of the book. Looking back that mindset seems so weird to me because now I read as much as I can and try to take everything I can out of the books I read. In fact, I create an outline on every book I read, and I have been reviewing many of them here on my blog. You can see my reviews here.
I’m not sure what changed for me but after college I started reading more. Slowly at first, maybe a handful of books per year. However, the last couple of years I have been reading as much as I can. I have seen the benefits that reading has created in my life and it has become a daily habit for me at this point.
After college I realized that I couldn’t let my learning be finished, and the best way to continue learning was for me to learn from those that I want to become more like. As a result I read mainly business and personal development book (shocking right).
Not every book I read is great, but I believe that there is usually at least one thing you can take out of a book and apply to your life.
25 of the Best Books I Have Read
Over the past few years I have read a couple hundred books, and the following 25 are some of my favorites:
- Essentialism by Greg McKeown
- The ONE Thing by Gary Keller and Jay Papasan
- Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill
- How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
- Platform by Michael Hyatt
- Start by Jon Acuff
- Financial Peace by Dave Ramsey
- The Power of Habit by Charles Duhigg
- The E-Myth Revisited by Michael E. Gerber
- The Legend of the Monk and the Merchant by Terry Felber
- The 4-Hour Workweek by Tim Ferris
- Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh
- Insanely Simple by Ken Segall
- How to Win at the Sport of Business by Mark Cuban
- Awakening the Entrepreneur Within by Michael E. Gerber
- Crush It! by Gary Vaynerchuck
- Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook by Gary Vaynerchuck
- More Than Enough by Dave Ramsey
- The Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason
- The Go-Giver by Bob Berg and John David Mann
- The Go-Getter by Peter B. Kyne
- Rhinoceros Success by Scott Alexander
- Tribes by Seth Godin
- The Magic of Thinking Big by David J. Schwartz
- The 10X Rule by Grant Cardone
I have learned something from each book on that list. Some more than others, but each has has an impact on my life in some way.
If you don’t currently spend much time reading I would encourage you to give it a shot. Pick any book on that list and give it a read. Many of them are not that long, some can even be read in one sitting.
You can also give Audible.com a try. I have been using Audible for the past few years and absolutely love it. It has been a huge help for me to be able to achieve my goal of reading nearly a book week.
Last but not least, visit my resource page for additional books I recommend, and visit my book reviews archive to read reviews of any books that I have read recently.
Question: What is your favorite business or personal development book? Comment below or join the conversation on Facebook or Twitter
