10 Books Every Founder Must Read

With millions of books on how to be the best you can imagine you can be, it can be intimidating even to know where to start with the literature. Tellingly, 88% of the wealthiest people in the world spend at least 30 minutes of their day reading: reading expands our perspectives and our minds.

We’ve rounded up the ten books every founder needs on their nightstand to help them become better startup founders, leaders, thinkers, and habit makers. 

The Wealth Choice: Success Secrets of Black Millionaire, Dennis Kimbro

Readers learn about how business leaders, entrepreneurs, and celebrities like Bob Johnson, Spike Lee, L. A. Reid, Herman Cain, T. D. Jakes and Tyrese Gibson found their paths to wealth; what they did or didn’t learn about money early on; what they had to sacrifice to get to the top; and the role of discipline in managing their success. Through these stories, which include men and women at every stage of life and in every industry.  The bestselling author shows readers how to commit to lifelong learning, develop a wealth-generating mindset, andtake calculated risks when opportunity presents itself, among other things.

Atomic Habits, James Clear

Get ready to change the way you think about progress and success. It’s sold over 15 million copies worldwide, it’s been on the New York Times Bestseller list for over 230 weeks, and it’s the book that will change your life, but not how you might think. James Clear, author of Atomic Habits, challenges the idea that in order to make big change, we need to think big. Instead, he advises us to make real change through the compound effect of small decisions: waking up just five minutes earlier and making that single short phone call. Through simple life hacks such as Habit Stacking or the Two Minute Rule and inspiring stories of leading CEOs and distinguished scientists, he teaches us how to implement small changes that will revolutionize our careers and lives. James Clear himself made his name as the author of one of the fastest-growing newsletters in the world, growing his audience from zero to 100,000 subscribers in under two years. Today, that newsletter has over 400,00 subscribers. 

We Should All Be Millionaires, Rachel Rogers

It’s a no-holds-barred look at the power that comes with building a successful business and building wealth, especially for women and minorities, as well as the ripple effect that it can have on communities. Only 10 percent of the world’s millionaires are women, making it difficult for women to wield the economic power that will create lasting equality. In this book, Rachel Rodgers— a Black woman, mother of four, attorney, business owner, and self-made millionaire— shares the lessons she’s learned both in her own journey to wealth and in coaching hundreds of women through their own journeys to seven figures. The book is an eye-opening history lesson on how women and people of color have been shut out of the ability to build wealth for centuries—and how we can fix this. We Should All Be Millionaires will forever change the way you think about money and your ability to earn it.

Rise and Grind, Daymond John

Daymond John knows what it means to push yourself hard–and he also knows how spectacularly a killer work ethic can pay off. As a young man, he founded a modest line of clothing on a $40 budget by hand-sewing hats between his shifts at Red Lobster. Today, his brand FUBU has over $6 billion in sales. In the anticipated follow-up to the bestselling The Power of Broke, Daymond takes an up close look at the hard-charging routines and winning secrets of individuals who have risen to the challenges in their lives and grinded their way to the very tops of their fields. Along the way, he also reveals how grit and persistence both helped him overcome the obstacles he has faced in life and ultimately fueled his success.

Co-intelligence, Ethan Mollick 

Hailed by the Wall Street Journal as “the AI expert advising the White House, JP Morgan, Google, and the rest of Corporate America,” Professor of management at Wharton, University of Pennsylvania, Ethan Mollick, brings you the definitive guide to living and working with AI. Mollick has become one of the most prominent and provocative explainers of AI, focusing on the practical aspects of how these tools can transform our world. In his book, he encourages us to think of AI as co-workers, co-teachers, and coaches – avoiding the polarising binaries of AI evangelists and doom-mongers. Before turning to academia, Mollick was an entrepreneur, co-creating the world’s first paywall (a feat he says “I feel bad about […] still”). Writing about AI, Mollick encourages us to learn what it’s good and bad at, not forgetting where our human strengths lie. He tells us that in order to get our AI working for us in the way we want, we must treat it like a human. “Managers are often so good at working with AI. Give it instructions the way you would a person”, he says. Mollick’s book teaches us the imperative business skills needed to master working with AI.

Just the Good Stuff: No-BS Secrets to Success, Jim Vandehei

Co-founder of Axios and Politico, Jim Vandehei takes us on a personal, authentic journey through his teenage years, to building a meaningful and successful career. After an unlikely start at high school and almost getting kicked out of the University of Wisconsin-Oshkosh, Jim Vandehei’s life turned when he finally discovered his passion for politics and journalism. He went on to found two of the biggest modern news outlets, Politico and Axios, In his hall-mark, no-BS style, he teaches us about the importance of matching passion to opportunity, making your own luck, surrounding yourself with the right people, and harnessing the energy of healthy revenge. VandeHei lived by these mantras and transformed Axios into a media powerhouse in just five years, leading to a $ 525 million acquisition by Cox Enterprises. In 2017, Vanity Fair named VandeHei to its “New Establishment List,” the magazine’s annual compilation of industry titans, and Entrepreneur magazine named him one of the year’s “50 Most Daring Entrepreneurs.” Vanity Fair also formerly listed him among the 100 most powerful “Information Age” thinkers for helping to create “the model for the new media success story.”

The subtle art of not giving a f*ck, Mark Manson

Another blockbuster, with over 10 million copies sold worldwide, and a #1 New York Times Bestseller, this cut-the-crap self-help book is a dose of refreshing honesty about how to truly become better and happier people. Manson makes the argument, backed by academic research, that improving our lives hinges not on our ability to turn lemons into lemonade but on learning to stomach lemons better. Human beings are flawed and limited—”not everybody can be extraordinary, there are winners and losers in society, and some of it is not fair or your fault.” Manson advises us to get to know our limitations and accept them. Once we embrace our fears, faults, and uncertainties, once we stop running and avoiding and start confronting painful truths, we can begin to find the courage, perseverance, honesty, responsibility, curiosity, and forgiveness we seek.

Good to Great, Jim Collins 

Why do some companies go from being good companies to great companies? After five years of research, Jim Collins uncovers the underlying variables that allow any time of organisation from being good to great. Both a management book and a fast-paced novel, it’s an engaging read and a must read for founders. This book discusses concepts like Level 5 Leadership; First Who, Then What (first get the right bus, then figure out who to drive it); the Hedgehod Concept, and the Flywheel. There’s a reason the Financial Times called it “the biggest selling and most influential management book of the new millennium.” Pick it up and study a copy!

The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Build a Business When There Are No Easy Answers, Ben Horowitz.

Well-known Silicon Valley VC and founder of Andreessen Horowitz, Ben Horowitz brings us an extraordinarily relatable, and yet infinitely useful book full of practical advise. It feels like there are no easy voices as a founder, and this book shares practical wisdom to help get through some of the most difficult problems you face in the startup world. Filled with humor and straight-talking, Horowitz walks us through the trials of firing a friend, poaching talent from competitors, and managing your own psychology. Amplifying his business lessons with his favorite rap lyrics, Horowitz tells it straight. This book is a must read for veteran entrepreneurs and new founders. 

Lean In, Sheryl Sandberg 

Former COO of Facebook, Sheryl Sandberg, offers up a wealth of personal stories and practical advise in Lean In to help women achieve their fullest potential in the workplace. The central premise is that women must “lean in” – take risks and make moves, to achieve their success. Too many women have been conditioned to lack confidence, doubt their abilities and self-censor. Sandberg challenges that, asking “What would you do if you weren’t afraid?” and encouraging us to ask ourselves that question every morning. Sensitive to the precarious act of balancing motherhood and work. Sandberg nonetheless rallies women to take charge of their own careers and push forward, despite the gender bias stacked against them. Lean In is compelling and readable, it’s an inspirational read for all female founders.