9 books in this topic
Some skills matter in every company, whatever you sell: knowing how a business makes money, negotiating, persuading people and building a network around you. This shelf covers those, from a self-taught business education to negotiation tactics and how startup communities grow in a city.
If you never studied business, start with The Personal MBA. If you are about to raise, sell or hire, read Never Split the Difference before the conversation.
The oldest book here is How to Win Friends and Influence People (1936); the newest is Never Split the Difference (2016).
Chris Guillebeau
Chris Guillebeau studied people who built profitable small businesses with very little money and turned their stories into a simple method: find what people want, make an offer, launch fast and keep costs low.
First published 2012Michael E. Gerber
Michael Gerber explains why skilled people who start a business end up trapped in it, and shows how to build documented systems so the business runs without you doing every job yourself.
First published 1995Jim Collins
Jim Collins and his research team compared companies that jumped from average to lasting excellence with similar companies that did not, and drew out the habits of leadership, people and focus that separated them.
First published 2001Dale Carnegie
Dale Carnegie's 1936 classic on getting along with people: show real interest, listen, avoid arguments, let others save face and praise sincerely. Simple ideas that still decide sales, hires and partnerships.
First published 1936Chris Voss and Tahl Raz
A former FBI hostage negotiator teaches the listening and questioning techniques he used in kidnappings and shows how they work in salary talks, sales, fundraising and everyday disagreements.
First published 2016Josh Kaufman
Josh Kaufman condenses a business school education into short, plain-language entries on value, marketing, sales, delivery, finance, psychology and systems. A reference book founders return to for years.
First published 2010Victor W. Hwang and Greg Horowitt
Two Silicon Valley venture investors compare busy startup regions to rainforests and argue that trust, culture and social norms, more than money or technology, decide whether new companies take root.
First published 2012Jim Camp
Negotiation coach Jim Camp argues that chasing win-win deals makes you weak, and teaches a disciplined system built on inviting a no, removing neediness and focusing on actions you control.
First published 2002Brad Feld
Investor Brad Feld uses Boulder as a case study to show how any city can grow a lively startup community, as long as founders lead it, think in decades and welcome anyone who wants to take part.
First published 2012Or browse the full directory of 100 startup books.