March 18, 2005 2:36 PM
I gave a speech a few days ago during which I asked the audience one of my favorite “Let Me Ask Ya This…” questions:
“What’s the one book that has most influenced your business?”
The responses were excellent…and varied. People yelled titles ranging from
The Bible to
How to Win Friends and Influence People to
The Yellow Pages (nice creative thinking on that last one.)
Then I read a post by Seth Godin called Part of the 30, which lists his required reading for his “Personal MBA.”
Several other bloggers followed suit, The 30 Book MBA in Entrepreneurship, for example, and also Josh Kauffman’sPersonal MBA Reading List.
And because I’m an avid reader (2 books a week), I thought I’d pull a Seth Godin and share my Personal MBA Reading List:
SALES
The Sales Bible, Jeffrey Gitomer
The Greatest Salesman in the World, Og Mandino
The Little Red Book of Selling, Jeffrey Gitomer
MARKETING
The Brand Called YOU, Peter Montoya
The Tipping Point, Malcom Gladwell
Purple Cow, Seth Godin
CREATIVITY
The War of Art, Steven Pressfield (my favorite book in the world)
A Whack on the Side of the Head, Roger von Oech
Thinkertoys, Michael Michalko
MOTIVATIONAL
The Power of Positive Thinking, Norman Vincent Peale
Shut Up, Stop Whining and Get a Life, Larry Winget
See You at the Top, Zig Ziglar
Love is the Killer App, Tim Sanders
PRESENTATION/WRITING SKILLS
Public Speaking for Dummies, Malcom Kushner
On Writing, Stephen King
How to Give a Damn Good Speech, Philip Theibert
INTERPERSONAL SKILLS/NETWORKING
Asshole No More, Xavier Crement
Conversation, Theodore Zeldin
How to Connect in Business in 90 Seconds or Less, Nicolas Boothman
Dig Your Well Before You’re Thirsty, Harvey Mackay
The Networking Survival Guide, Diane Darling
Bowling Alone, Robert Putnam
Influence, Robert Cialdini
LET ME ASK YA THIS…
What’s your Personal MBA Reading List?
* * * *
Scott Ginsberg
Author/Speaker/That guy with the nametag
www.hellomynameisscott.com