Business books most recommended to me.

I used to be a part of the wonderful Rebel Book Club until my daughter came along and eradicated all reading time.

Now she’s a little older, I find that recommendations of non-fiction books from people I respect are the best way to choose my material for the precious little time I have to read.

But why hog all the fun? I thought you’d like to hear them too, so I’ve made a compilation of the 6 most recommended books here:

The 4-Hour Work Week: Escape the 9-5, Live Anywhere and Join the New Rich by Timothy Ferriss

It shocked me that 70% of the people I asked, recommended this book.

It’s a personal favourite of mine, but I was surprised by how many people I respect share the same love of this book. It’s one I revisit every year (currently on my 9th read through!) and every time I feel recharged by Tim’s new way of looking at work, life, and the mysterious balance of the two.

If you haven’t read it, don’t be put off by the provocative title. I honestly think that there is food for thought for all- employee or entrepreneur, and across all industries.

Company of One: Why Staying Small is the Next Big Thing for Business by Paul Jarvis

This book is a gem for those who work alone or in a micro business. It’s helped by the fact that Paul is a designer himself, so it feels especially relevant to the Kaffeen crowd.

I’d always felt that being solo was an impediment to scaling my business, but this book made me rethink it, to the point where I feel it’s actually a huge asset.

If you’re small and considering scaling, read this first.
If you’re small and feeling insignificant, you need to read it too.

Be More Pirate: Or How to Take On the World and Win by Sam Conniff Allende

I’ve not read this myself yet, but a friend who is very senior at a performance marketing agency nominated it, with the comment "This book basically completely changed the way we ran our agency”.

The same agency was also recently winner of Campaign’s best places to work award.
If that’s not compelling, I don't know what is. It’s on my reading list.

Oversubscribed: How To Get People Lining Up To Do Business With You by Daniel Priestley

I can’t wait to get stuck into this book, I have a feeling that it’s going to prompt a lot of ideas on my favourite topic: inbound traffic. It was nominated by a friend who founded and runs a multinational ski company.

When I said I’d not read it, she came back with "Whaaaaat!!!! You must! That is one of my all time faves”, which needless to say, made me feel a little foolish for not having read it sooner.

The Snowball: Warren Buffett and the Business of Life by Alice Schroeder

A friend who runs an international UX design company always has a lot of reference points in conversations, but when I asked him what his favourite business books were, I was surprised to hear that he only reads biogs, and he nominated this as his favourite.

Warren Buffett, the legendary Omaha investor has never written a memoir, but finally has given this author unprecedented access to him and all those closest to his work, opinions, struggles, triumphs, follies and sageness. It’s bound to be a wisdom-packed read.

Tools of Titans: The Tactics, Routines, and Habits of Billionaires, Icons, and World-Class Performers Kindle Edition by Timothy Ferriss

Tim Ferriss bequeathed the world the 4HWW, but there is so much more to his talents. He has a wonderful skill of getting access to the most successful people in the world, and interviewing them in an impressively efficient manner.

Tools of Titans is one of my most dog-eared books on the shelf. It's a mine of best practices, advice, and further reading from some of our current day champions, spanning business through to sport.

Anyhow, that should be enough to keep the bedside table stocked for a while.
I’ve got another 5 top books to share with you soon so keep an eye out!