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

    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

  • 3

    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

  • 4

    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

  • 5

    The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing

    Violate Them at Your Own Risk

    Al Ries · 1993

    4.0522,738 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growthCompany building

    About the book

    There are laws of nature, so why shouldn't there be laws of marketing? As Al Ries and Jack Trout, the world-renowned marketing consultants and bestselling authors of Positioning, note, you can build an impressive airplane, but it will never leave the ground if…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 6

    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

  • 7

    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

  • 8

    Book Marketing is Dead

    Book Promotion Secrets You MUST Know BEFORE You Publish Your Book

    Derek Murphy · 2013

    3.95422 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growthCompany buildingFirst sales

    About the book

    Librarian Note: Alternate Cover Edition for B00HC6HQ70. How to sell a ton of books (even if you're starting with no platform).If you've found this book I'm assuming you have or will soon have a bookout on the market, and are exploring ways to turn it into…

    On AmazonAudible

The books most about marketing and growth.

  • 1

    Strategic marketing for the digital age

    Bill Bishop · 1996

    9 Open Library reading lists

    Marketing and growth

    About the book

    Strategic Marketing for the Digital Age shows you how to build a digital marketing strategy, develop a plan, and execute it profitably. Bill Bishop gives you a practical, step-by-step model for developing an effective marketing program using digital and…

    On AmazonAudibleOpen LibraryAuthor's Podcasts

  • 2

    Ogilvy on Advertising

    David Ogilvy · 1983

    4.1511,960 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growth

    About the book

    A candid and indispensable primer on all aspects of advertising from the man  Time  has called "the most sought after wizard in the business." Told with brutal candor and prodigal generosity, David Ogilvy • How to get a job in advertising • How to choose…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 3

    Obviously Awesome

    How to Nail Product Positioning so Customers Get It, Buy It, Love It

    April Dunford · 2019

    4.234,359 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growth

    About the book

    You know your product is awesome, but does anybody else? Forget everything you thought you knew about positioning. Successfully connecting your product with consumers isn’t a matter of following trends, comparing yourself to the competition or trying to…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 4

    Brandwashed

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

    Martin Lindstrom · 2011

    3.814,394 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growth

    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

  • 5

    The Storytelling Animal

    How Stories Make Us Human

    Jonathan Gottschall · 2012

    3.707,280 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growth

    About the book

    Humans live in landscapes of make-believe. We spin fantasies. We devour novels, films, and plays. Even sporting events and criminal trials unfold as narratives. Yet the world of story has long remained an undiscovered and unmapped country. It’s easy to say…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 6

    Pandeymonium

    Piyush Pandey On Advertising

    Piyush Pandey · 2015

    3.831,440 ratings · Goodreads

    Marketing and growth

    About the book

    You’ve seen most of the things that Piyush Pandey has seen in his life. You’ve seen cobblers, carpenters, cricketers, trains, villages, towns and cities. What makes Piyush different is the perspective from which he views the same things you’ve seen, his…

    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

    Jim Henson

    The Biography

    Brian Jay Jones · 2013

    4.0415,877 ratings · Goodreads

    Founder stories

    About the book

    For the first time ever-a comprehensive biography of one of the twentieth-century's most innovative creative artists: the incomparable, irreplaceable Jim Henson. He was a gentle dreamer whose genial bearded visage was recognized around the world, but most…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 2

    The Ride of a Lifetime

    Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company

    Robert Iger · 2019

    4.4099,495 ratings · Goodreads

    Founder storiesCompany building

    About the book

    A grand vision defined: The CEO of The Walt Disney Company shares the ideas and values he has used to reinvent one of the most beloved companies in the world, and inspire the people who bring the magic to life. In 2005, Robert Iger became CEO of The Walt…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 3

    Elon Musk

    Walter Isaacson · 2023

    4.3281,328 ratings · Goodreads

    Founder storiesCompany building

    About the book

    From the author of Steve Jobs and other bestselling biographies, this is the astonishingly intimate story of the most fascinating and controversial innovator of our era, a rule-breaking visionary who helped to lead the world into the era of electric vehicles,…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 4

    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

  • 5

    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

  • 6

    Finding My Virginity

    The New Autobiography

    Richard Branson · 2017

    4.073,696 ratings · Goodreads

    Founder storiesCompany building

    About the book

    Global business icon Richard Branson has written many books, but none have been more popular than his first memoir, 1998's Losing My Virginity. Now he's finally publishing his second volume of memoirs, covering all of his fascinating ups and downs of the past…

    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

    Nunca te pares

    Phil Knight · 2016

    4.46361,920 ratings · Goodreads

    Company building

    On AmazonAudible

  • 3

    How to Win Friends and Influence People

    Dale Carnegie · 1936

    4.211,172,289 ratings · Goodreads

    Company building

    About the book

    "How to Win Friends and Influence People' is one of the first best-selling self-help books ever published. Just after publishing, it quickly exploded into an overnight success, eventually selling more than 15 million copies worldwide, and pioneering an entire…

    On AmazonAudible

  • 4

    Purple Cow, New Edition

    Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable

    Seth Godin · 2009

    3.7856,315 ratings · Goodreads

    Company buildingMarketing and growth

    About the book

    The cult classic that revolutionized marketing by teaching businesses that you’re either remarkable or invisible. Few authors have had the kind of lasting impact and global reach that Seth Godin has had. In a series of now-classic books that have been…

    On AmazonAudible

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