10 Best Books for Entrepreneurs

“Formal education will make you a living; self-education will make you a fortune.” – Jim Rohn.

The decrease in the barriers of entry across various industries has got us thinking that anybody can get in on the entrepreneurship game. In fact, most people believe that raising a substantial investment can make you a successful entrepreneur. Read here the important books for entrepreneurs.

But the truth is that successful entrepreneurs need a lot more than just money to make their startups survive fierce market competition. According to Bloomberg, 8 out of 10 entrepreneurs fail within their first 18 months. This makes us wonder if all these failed entrepreneurs were even entrepreneurs, to begin with.

The research and opinions might remain divided about if entrepreneurs are born or made. But most successful entrepreneurs and marketers believe that there’s not much you can master in business without learning. And while you might have an inherent aptitude for a subject, any skill can be honed if you have the eagerness to learn.

Here are the ten best books for entrepreneurs that will help you pursue your entrepreneurial dreams and boost your bottom line!

The 4-Hour Workweek

Escape the 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich Author: Timothy Ferriss

The book “The 4-Hour Workweek” by #1 New York Times best-selling author, Tim Ferriss, is an answer to a very old problem. This book helps you understand how to prevent your life from getting consumed by work. Especially if you are a solo entrepreneur, there is a lot to learn from this book about how to design your work style.

Before Ferriss came up with the 4-hour workweek conclusion, he was working 80 hours a week. His idea behind this book finds its foundation in the Pareto Principle. The famous principle states that 20% of our time is responsible for 80% of our productivity, while 80% of our time is responsible for 20% of our productivity.

When Ferriss came across this principle, he decided to put it to use for his work life. As a result, he automated systems, removed distractions, and streamlined operations business until they took less time to run. For entrepreneurs who are looking for ways to create a work-life balance, this is just the resource you need.

The 10% Entrepreneur

Live Your Startup Dream Without Quitting Your Day Job Author: Patrick J McGinnis

For anyone who dreams of running their own startup but isn’t sure where to start, McGinnis can help them figure out how to get started.

The 10% Entrepreneur isn’t a book that offers ways that are just superficially appealing to help you become a successful entrepreneur. In fact, it offers practical ways to make your business idea a success without encouraging you to quit your job and throw caution to the wind.

The 10% Entrepreneur gives the reader a clear picture of the challenges one has to face when it comes to starting your own business. It inspires the readers to take baby steps instead of making drastic changes when just starting out. The main idea of the book is to provide a formula that shows how using just 10 percent of your time and resources can help you run a side-hustle successfully while mitigating potential risks.

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Think and Grow Rich

Author: Napoleon Hill

Is it really possible to just think and grow rich? Whatever opinion you have, Napoleon Hill can make you believe that it is possible with one of the best books for entrepreneurs. The book “Think and Grow Rich” investigates the psychological power of thought and how it can play a significant role in helping you become successful. The book demonstrates how the power of the brain can invent, create, and even destroy things with thoughts alone.

In this book, Hill gives 13 principles for boosting your success in both life and career. The author has summarized these findings from interviews with wealthy and successful books for entrepreneurs. He points out the important skills that make people great entrepreneurs. Another great thing about this book is that it touches philosophy and spirituality ever so subtly while laying a clear path for entrepreneurs to follow.

The Entrepreneur Mind

100 Essential Beliefs, Characteristics, and Habits of Elite Entrepreneurs Author: Kevin D. Johnson

The key to an entrepreneur’s success is their mindset. The right mindset is the most powerful force you can use to make things work in your favor. If you’re starting a new venture with the wrong mindset, it is likely that you will meet obstacles and challenges.

Kevin D. Johnson, in his book “The Entrepreneur Mindset,” discusses the importance of harnessing this power in order to be successful. He talks about the ways you can change your mindset and then you can witness everything on the outside change along with it.

The author does not ask the readers to place all their bets on positive thinking. In fact, he also makes it clear that a successful entrepreneur knows when to keep trying and when to let go and start over. In order to run a successful business, you have to learn to recover from your failures. This book helps in understanding how to get back up with determination.

The $100 Startup

Reinvent the Way You Make a Living, Do What You Love, and Create a New Future Author: Chris Guillebeau

If you dream of starting your own business but a lack of investment is keeping you on the fence, it’s probably time to do something about it. Believe it or not, you don’t need a lot of money to get your startup off the ground. The $100 Startup by Chris Guillebeau can help you do so.

This book is an incredible resource for an entrepreneur who feels stuck due to financial constraints. With this book, the author has offered an entirely new approach for making your business idea work by giving you control over your circumstances.

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Chris Guillebeau offers over 50 case studies of individuals who successfully built their businesses with capital as low as $100 or even lesser. He critically analyzes how each business was able to not only operate but generate profit on a small investment.

Outliers

The Story of Success Author: Malcolm Gladwell

Malcolm Gladwell takes his readers on a journey through the world of outliers; the brightest and the most successful entrepreneurs in the world. He allows us to take a deeper look into the success stories of individuals who made extraordinary accomplishments that had never been experienced by anyone before. He differentiates the successful from the unsuccessful and explains how some common misconceptions might be keeping us from reaching our full potential.

The debate whether entrepreneurs are born or made can find a better conclusion through this book as the author shows what truly lies behind the most successful people. He explains that success is not all about a high IQ. Rather, it is a precise combination of hard work, rare opportunities, and other external factors that are often not in our control. He goes on to emphasize that success in any sphere of life demands the input of time.

How to Win Friends and Influence People

Author: Dale Carnegie

One of the most critical aspects of running a business is negotiations and dealing with people. And if you want things in your business to work out in your favor, you have to people to value your opinion.

How To Win Friends and Influence People is a classic one for many reasons. The author, Dale Carnegie, one of the famous business writers, shows you how to hone the skill of persuasion. He explains that in order to make your business succeed, you have to make your team, partners, and customers feel valued. Thus, your success lies in getting people on your side with effective interpersonal skills.

Dale Carnegie shows how effective communication can help you overcome competition and sell to people who are indifferent to your pitch otherwise.

The Lean Startup

How Today’s Entrepreneurs Use Continuous Innovation to Create Radically Successful Businesses Author: Eric Ries

Research shows that about 20% of startups fail within their first year and 30% within the second year. If you have to prevent your business from becomes a statistic, you have to find a way to keep it running.

The book “The Lean Startup” promises to teach you just that. Eric Ries analyzes the reasons why some businesses fail and how this failure can be avoided. Perhaps, the most pivotal point this book makes is knowing when to keep going and when to forfeit. While the subject matter of the book is aimed more toward large-scale business ideas, it can help anyone with a business in the startup phase.

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Ries offers different strategies that an entrepreneur can put to use in order to establish a business that operates and succeeds against all odds. The book uses a scientific approach to show how to become a successful entrepreneur.

Lost and Founder

A Painfully Honest Field Guide to the Startup World Author: Rand Fishkin

You might be working 9-5 for a successful business for a long time, but you still need to learn a lot in order to kick-start your new venture. This is where this book could be of great help.

Lost and Founder points out the biggest challenges of venture capital financing and how some growth strategies can backfire. The best and the most important advice that Fishkin offers through this book is to value your existing customer base in order to generate profits before you focus on attracting new customers.

The Leadership Challenge

How to Make Extraordinary Things Happen in Organizations Authors: James M. Kouzes and Barry Z. Posner

Anyone who aspires to be an entrepreneur dreams of becoming their own boss. You need leadership skills to make this entrepreneurial dream a reality.

The book “The Leadership Challenge” offers some great ways entrepreneurs can turn their challenges into opportunities. After interviewing hundreds of business owners, the co-authors found that the most successful entrepreneurs shared five common practices. The book explores these five incredible ways to move forward and meet challenges head-on.

The Leadership Challenge shows readers that in order to be a successful entrepreneur, you don’t have to do everything yourself. Instead, you have to learn the skill to lead by delegating and inspiring others to work collaboratively.

Final Word

A well-established and successful startup is not necessarily guaranteed by money or a degree. Rather, it is made possible by a yearning and discipline to improve and innovate. Research shows that successful entrepreneurs and business big shots read over 60 books every year. And that accounts for more than one book a week.

The truth is that entrepreneurs, regardless of their skill levels, can succeed in their business ventures by learning and exploring new ideas. Therefore, reading the best books for entrepreneurs is just one way to do that.

The best books for entrepreneurs on this list can not only open your mind to new ideas but can also help turn around a failing venture.

If you are struggling with managing your business finances, a smart tool can make your job even easier. Once you have the knowledge and skills to set out on the journey to entrepreneurial success, the next big step is to take control of your finances. Download the Doctor Money app today and keep an accurate track of your business expenditure. Know that with the right tools and knowledge, you will succeed. Maybe not immediately, but absolutely and definitely.