Reading List

The books for what you are building.

Tell us your business model, industry and stage, or how you invest, and get the books worth your time, picked from 30,000 on building and backing companies. Chosen by ratings and what they are about.

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Atomic HabitsJames Clear · 4.31★FreakonomicsSteven D. Levitt · 4.01★The Tipping PointMalcolm Gladwell · 4.01★Rich Dad Poor DadRobert T. Kiyosaki · 4.08★BlinkMalcolm Gladwell · 3.96★Thinking, Fast and SlowDaniel Kahneman · 4.16★The Art of WarSun Tzu · 3.94★
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The best matches for everything you told us, ranked.

  • 1

    Hey, Hun

    Sales, Sisterhood, Supremacy, and the Other Lies Behind Multilevel Marketing

    Emily Lynn Paulson · 2023

    3.5814,654 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growthFirst salesCompany building

    About the book

    She signed up for the sisterhood, free cars, and the promise of a successful business of her own. Instead, she ended up with an addiction, broken friendships, and the rubble of a toppled pyramid . . . scheme. Hey, Hun: Sales, Sisterhood, Supremacy, and the…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 2

    Go Pro - 7 Steps to Becoming a Network Marketing Professional

    Eric Worre · 2013

    4.258,886 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growthCompany building

    About the book

    Over twenty years ago at a company convention, Eric Worre had an aha moment that changed his life forever. At that event he made the decision to Go Pro and become a Network Marketing expert. Since that time, he has focused on developing the skills to do just…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 3

    Strategic marketing for educational institutions

    Philip Kotler · 1985

    81 Open Library reading lists

    Marketing and growth

    About the book

    Here is the handbook for academics and practitioners who want to understand what marketing is, how it can contribute to their institutions' greater effectiveness, and how to do it. This revised edition, like its predecessor, provides a solid background in…

    On AmazonAudibleOpen Library

  • 4

    80/20 Sales and Marketing

    The Definitive Guide to Working Less and Making More

    Perry Marshall · 2013

    4.191,904 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growthFirst salesCompany building

    About the book

    Stop "Just Getting By" ... Master The 80/20 Principle And Make More Money Without More Work. When you know how to walk into any situation and see the 80/20's, you can solve almost ANY marketing problem. 80/20 can demolish any sales and advertising problem.…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 5

    Crossing the Chasm

    Marketing and Selling High-Tech Products to Mainstream Customers

    Geoffrey A. Moore · 2002

    4.0332,109 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growthCompany buildingFirst sales

    About the book

    Here is the bestselling guide that created a new game plan for marketing in high-tech industries. Crossing the Chasm has become the bible for bringing cutting-edge products to progressively larger markets. This edition provides new insights into the realities…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 6

    Copywriting Secrets

    Jim Edwards · 2019

    4.311,193 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growthCompany buildingFirst sales

    About the book

    What if you could sell anything to anyone? Nobody is born knowing how to sell. But the truth is, you can learn how to sell more . . . a LOT more . . . when you discover the right words that make people buy. Copywriting is selling. Whether online,…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 7

    The 1-Page Marketing Plan

    Get New Customers, Make More Money, And Stand out From The Crowd

    Allan Dib · 2016

    4.3211,134 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growthCompany building

    About the book

    Do Not Read This Book If You Hate Money To build a successful business, you need to stop doing random acts of marketing and start following a reliable plan for rapid business growth. Traditionally, creating a marketing plan has been a difficult and…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 8

    Brandwashed

    Tricks Companies Use to Manipulate Our Minds and Persuade Us to Buy

    Martin Lindstrom · 2011

    3.814,394 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growthCompany building

    About the book

    Foreword by Morgan SpurlockFrom the bestselling author of Buyology comes a shocking insider’s look at how today’s global giants conspire to obscure the truth and manipulate our minds, all in service of  persuading us to buy.  Marketing visionary Martin…

    On AmazonAudible

The books most about marketing and growth.

  • 1

    The personal branding phenomenon

    Peter Montoya · 2002

    60 Open Library reading lists

    Marketing and growth

    On AmazonAudibleOpen Library

  • 2

    Permission Marketing

    Turning Strangers into Friends and Friends into Customers

    Seth Godin · 2014

    3.9114,851 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growth

    About the book

    The man Business Week calls "the ultimate entrepreneur for the Information Age" explains "Permission Marketing", the groundbreaking concept that enables marketers to shape their message so that consumers will willingly accept it. Whether it is the TV…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 3

    Scientific Advertising

    Claude C. Hopkins · 1923

    4.063,981 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growth

    About the book

    Scientific Advertising is an important work on advertising from the early 20th century and is still used today by those learning the basics and more advanced parts of the advertising field. The author of Scientific Advertising, Claude C. Hopkins, is well…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 4

    The Ultimate Marketing Plan

    Find Your Hook. Communicate Your Message. Make Your Mark.

    Dan S. Kennedy · 1991

    4.12607 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growth

    About the book

    More than 5 million businesses have profited from this unique step-by-step marketing system. The Ultimate Marketing Plan, 3rd Edition shows you how to put together the most promotable message possible for any product or service. Filled with practical,…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 5

    Tested Advertising Methods

    John Caples · 1980

    4.231,208 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growth

    About the book

    A legend in advertising for more than 60 years, John Caples still serves as a guide to generations of creative marketing people. Now his classic work on how to create successful advertising has been updated by respected advertising consultant Fred Hahn. It…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 6

    Marketing 4.0

    Moving from Traditional to Digital

    Philip Kotler · 2016

    4.063,430 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growth

    About the book

    Marketing has changed forever, this is what comes next Marketing 4.0: Moving from Traditional to Digital is the much-needed handbook for next-generation marketing. Written by the world's leading marketing authorities, this book helps you navigate the…

    On AmazonAudible

Published in the last three years, newest first, for what you told us.

  • 1

    Simple Marketing For Smart People

    The One Question You Need to Win Customers without Gimmicks, Hype, or Hard Selling

    Billy Broas · 2024

    4.35305 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growthFirst salesCompany building

    About the book

    Why do so many smart people struggle with marketing? The answer is smart people love complexity, and complexity brews problems. Does your marketing feel like it has way too many moving parts? If so, Simple Marketing for Smart People is the solution you’ve…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 2

    Personal Branding for Introverts

    Goldie Chan · 2025

    4.41211 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growthCompany building

    About the book

    A top expert in personal branding shows introverts how to leverage their unique strengths to get ahead    To build a career, you need a personal brand to showcase your distinct skills, experience, and expertise. Building that brand can feel…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 3

    Lean Marketing

    More Leads. More Profit. Less Marketing.

    Allan Dib · 2024

    4.31452 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growthCompany building

    About the book

    Bigger Results with Less Marketing You keep being told to do more marketing―more complex, more aggressive, and more expensive marketing. Chasing the latest bright, shiny object is exhausting. Increased efforts keep leading to disappointment. The overwhelm…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 4

    Brand It Like Serhant

    Stand Out From the Crowd, Build Your Following, and Earn More Money

    Ryan Serhant · 2024

    3.95275 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growthCompany building

    About the book

    Bestselling author and real estate, television, and media icon Ryan Serhant shares his proven, three-step strategy to build your brand from scratch Brand is everything. Whether you’re a real estate broker, a hair stylist, or a freelance contractor, your end…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 5

    Little Bosses Everywhere

    How the Pyramid Scheme Shaped America

    Bridget Read · 2025

    3.965,793 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growthCompany building

    About the book

    A groundbreaking work of history and reportage that unveils the stranger-than-fiction world of multilevel marketing, from the shadowy cabals at the top to the strivers at the bottom, whose deferred dreams churn a massive money-making scam that has remade…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 6

    Glossy

    Ambition, Beauty, and the Inside Story of Emily Weiss's Glossier

    Marisa Meltzer · 2023

    3.2912,235 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growthCompany building

    About the book

    The bombshell exposé that reveals, for the first time, exactly what happened at Glossier, one of America’s hottest and most consequential startups, and dives deep into the enigmatic, visionary woman responsible for it all. Called “one of the most disruptive…

    On AmazonAudible

How companies like yours were actually built, from the people who built them.

  • 1

    Shoe Dog

    A Memoir by the Creator of Nike

    Phil Knight · 2016

    4.45389,310 ratings · Goodreads

    Founder storiesCompany building

    About the book

    In this candid and riveting memoir, for the first time ever, Nike founder and CEO Phil Knight shares the inside story of the company’s early days as an intrepid start-up and its evolution into one of the world’s most iconic, game-changing, and profitable…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 2

    Never Die Easy

    The Autobiography of Walter Payton

    Walter Payton · 2000

    4.231,581 ratings · Goodreads

    Founder stories

    About the book

    "Never die easy. Why run out of bounds and die easy? Make that linebacker pay. It carries into all facets of your life. It's okay to lose, to die, but don't die without trying, without giving it your best." His legacy is towering. Walter Payton, the man they…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 3

    Steve Jobs

    Walter Isaacson · 2011

    4.161,391,990 ratings · Goodreads

    Founder storiesCompany building

    About the book

    Walter Isaacson's worldwide bestselling biography of Apple cofounder Steve Jobs. Based on more than forty interviews with Steve Jobs conducted over two years--as well as interviews with more than 100 family members, friends, adversaries, competitors, and…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 4

    Bitter Brew

    The Rise and Fall of Anheuser-Busch and America's Kings of Beer

    William Knoedelseder · 2012

    4.056,011 ratings · Goodreads

    Founder storiesCompany building

    About the book

    “Bitter Brew deftly chronicles the contentious succession of kings in a uniquely American dynasty. You’ll never crack open a six again without thinking of this book.”, John Sayles, Director of Eight Men Out and author of A Moment in the Sun The creators of…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 5

    Sam Walton, Made in America

    My Story

    Sam Walton · 1992

    4.1628,881 ratings · Goodreads

    Founder storiesCompany building

    About the book

    As Sam Walton himself said, this is "...a story about entrepreneurship, and risk, and hard work, and knowing where you want to go and being willing to do what it takes to get there. And it's a story about believing in your idea even when maybe some other…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 6

    Never Finished

    Unshackle Your Mind and Win the War Within

    David Goggins · 2022

    4.3850,509 ratings · Goodreads

    Founder stories

    About the book

    This is not a self-help book. It's a wake-up call! Can't Hurt Me, David Goggins' smash hit memoir, demonstrated how much untapped ability we all have but was merely an introduction to the power of the mind. In Never Finished, Goggins takes you inside his…

    On AmazonAudible

What founders at seed keep coming back to, if you have not read them yet.

  • 1

    Inspired

    How to Create Tech Products Customers Love

    Marty Cagan · 2008

    4.2226,350 ratings · Goodreads

    Company buildingFinding product-market fit

    About the book

    Learn to design, build, and scale products consumers can't get enough of How do today's most successful tech companies–Amazon, Google, Facebook, Netflix, Tesla–design, develop, and deploy the products that have earned the love of literally billions of…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 2

    Lok Vyavhar

    Diamond Books · 1936

    4.221,157,905 ratings · Goodreads

    Company building

    About the book

    This is the translation of famous - HOW TO WIN FRIENDS AND INFLUENCE PEOPLE - a classic book that gave birth to the self-help industry. Through this book, Dale Carnegie offers practical and proven advice on how to deal with people and understand them in order…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 3

    Empire of Pain

    The Secret History of the Sackler Dynasty

    Patrick Radden Keefe · 2021

    4.53151,147 ratings · Goodreads

    Company building

    About the book

    The highly anticipated portrait of three generations of the Sackler family, by the prize-winning, bestselling author of Say Nothing .The Sackler name adorns the walls of many storied Harvard, the Metropolitan Museum of Art, Oxford, the Louvre. They are one of…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 4

    No Logo

    Naomi Klein · 2000

    3.9033,309 ratings · Goodreads

    Company buildingMarketing and growth

    About the book

    With a new Afterword to the 2002 edition, No Logo employs journalistic savvy and personal testament to detail the insidious practices and far-reaching effects of corporate marketing, and the powerful potential of a growing activist sect that will surely alter…

    On AmazonAudible

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From the record

Written by the people who write the cheques

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