Recommend me some books for business

[IATM]

Hi All,

I have always found books to provide a useful insight into making you think about things outside of your comfort zone and brining new direction to your plans.

I am currently pondering over how to take a product to market, with branding, trying to maybe get it into retail stores or online outlets or even just being able to build it up in house and sell through a single website etc

Would love to hear about books you have read that have inspired you or provided much needed guidance on how to improve your business.

Thank you

[Undirection]

Honestly, none! They all use 100 words where 10 will do, cover things like motivation and blah blah... The only ones I read/like are stories of how businesses started and succeeded.

For what you want a good Google will give you what you need.

[Jockman]

Some of the best ideas can be generated by staring out of a window, with a large Bordeaux and a marlboro.

Reading is one thing. Absorbing and interpreting is a whole new dimension

[anonymous-user]

some of the stuff by Seth Godin is good enough to earn a recommendation from me

[StevieBee]

Undirection said:

Honestly, none! They all use 100 words where 10 will do, cover things like motivation and blah blah... The only ones I read/like are stories of how businesses started and succeeded.

For what you want a good Google will give you what you need.

I have to say, I agree with this.

My loft is full of business success books and whilst some are interesting, not one has given me any epiphany moment that has transformed how I run things.

I've found more useful nuggets in books that are not about business.

I've no doubt there are a few out there but I've yet to find them.

[ModernAndy]

I'll second Seth Godin. I have had some eureka moments while reading his stuff (and I mean the older stuff when he wrote about marketing rather than 'shipping the business'). He tends to write smaller and more concise books too.

[Wilmslowboy]

This, one of the few books I go back and reread every 6 to 12 months


https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/ReWork.html...

[jammy_basturd]

anonymous said:

[redacted]

Great book, but I'd advise reading Eric Reis' The Lean Startup first - it's a fantastic introduction and builds on Steve Blank's work. If you enjoy TLS then go back and read The Four Steps to the Epiphany.

Wilmslowboy said:

This, one of the few books I go back and reread every 6 to 12 months
https://books.google.co.uk/books/about/ReWork.html...

Another good book - in a similar vein I'd recommend reading Joel Spolsky's blog - Joel On Software.

StevieBee said:

Undirection said:

Honestly, none! They all use 100 words where 10 will do, cover things like motivation and blah blah... The only ones I read/like are stories of how businesses started and succeeded.

For what you want a good Google will give you what you need.

I have to say, I agree with this.

My loft is full of business success books and whilst some are interesting, not one has given me any epiphany moment that has transformed how I run things.

I've found more useful nuggets in books that are not about business.

I've no doubt there are a few out there but I've yet to find them.

Agree with this also. Nothing like quitting reading and putting things into action and gaining the experiences instead.

[Hellers]

Learning and applying how to hold your prices, hence protecting your margin, and how to negotiate on margin with customers is always forgotten, yet usually the single fastest way to a profit with one single caveat - don't operate in a commodity market. Always try to differentiate. Pricing is a dark art with lots of very interesting psychology behind it. I'd recommend Chris Merrington's book about pricing strategy - 'Why do such smart people make such simple mistakes?'. Been there and got the t-shirt. I have no affiliation - just a very happy reader who has made it work (for me).

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Smart-People-Make-Stupid-M...

And not just for consultancy/agency businesses.

I also really have to echo the Seth Godin recommendations, again about marketing and being different. His book 'Purple Cow' sums all of that up, and his blog archives are a mine of inspiration:

http://www.sethgodin.com/purple/

If you buy Re-Work which I also recommend if you're starting out on something new, here's a chapter by chapter PDF cheat-sheet but preferably, you do need the book too:

On mobile iOS via Slideshare: https://www.slideshare.net/kennethsvenningsen/rewo...

Elsewhere: http://www.scribd.com/mobile/doc/60250984/Rework-C...


Good luck.

Hellers.

[kitz]

How to get rich. Felix Dennis
It's a book that can be read on several levels by a man who actually got stupidly rich .

[kitz]

How to get rich. Felix Dennis
It's a book that can be read on several levels by a man who actually got stupidly rich .

[insurance_jon]

kitz said:

How to get rich. Felix Dennis
It's a book that can be read on several levels by a man who actually got stupidly rich .

this! definitely not what it sounds. couldn't put it down

[ringram]

E-Myth (revisited)

[22s]

insurance_jon said:

kitz said:

How to get rich. Felix Dennis
It's a book that can be read on several levels by a man who actually got stupidly rich .

this! definitely not what it sounds. couldn't put it down

Also echo the above - great book.

[technodup]

Hellers said:

I also really have to echo the Seth Godin recommendations, again about marketing and being different. His book 'Purple Cow' sums all of that up

The irony being that so many people followed his advice on being different we got thousands of businesses with names like Orange Moon and Active Blue where nobody has a clue what they actually do.

I'd completely disagree with him on that one. Most business aren't going to be Apple or Adidas and should be clear about their purpose and offer from the outset, and that starts with the name imo. But green horses for courses and all that.

Not so much a business one but the Richest Man in Babylon is worth reading even if's a bit of a struggle.

[jammy_basturd]

technodup said:

I'd completely disagree with him on that one. Most business aren't going to be Apple or Adidas and should be clear about their purpose and offer from the outset, and that starts with the name imo. But green horses for courses and all that.

Without wanting to derail the thread, it's incredibly hard, if not nigh on impossible now to start a business and find a name that describes what you do, is available through Companies House and has the domains available for a website too.

[VX Foxy]

ringram said:

E-Myth (revisited)

Another vote for Michael Gerber. An enlightening read. Makes you think about business (and problems) in a different way.
Well worth reading.

[Ginge R]

I can't be bothered with business books - let's face it, you're the product! One that has captured me though, is People over Profit. Nowhere near as fluffy as it sounds, and thought provoking.

http://www.amazon.com/People-Over-Profit-Purpose-S...

Interesting narrative on the Pinto scandal, Ford decided to risk $50,000,000 of potential insurance claims versus $121,000,000 redesign costs.

[VX Foxy]

Ginge R said:

I can't be bothered with business books - let's face it, you're the product!.

Noooo! Unless you're an artist or something...but that's not a business, it's a lifestyle.

[JiggyJaggy]

Can anyone recommend a book on business motivation? Would be nice to have a nice read over Christmas. Thanks all...