Startup Booksby Fe/male Switch

6 books in this topic

Startup Finance and Funding Books: Cash, Investors and Exits

Money decisions shape a startup for years: how you manage cash, whether you raise, on what terms and how you eventually sell. These books cover the full arc, from simple cash systems for small businesses to venture capital term sheets and acquisition talks.

Read Venture Deals before you speak to any investor, and Profit First if cash flow keeps you awake. Exit Path and Getting Acquired help you plan for a sale long before an offer arrives.

The oldest book here is Rich Dad Poor Dad (1997); the newest is Exit Path (2022).

Exit Path

Touraj Parang

A playbook for selling a startup, written by a founder who also spent years buying companies. Parang argues that the exit plan belongs at the start, alongside the business plan.

First published 2022

Getting Acquired

Andrew Gazdecki

A founder memoir about building a bootstrapped software company and selling it. Gazdecki shares the near misses, the platform scare and the sale process in plain language.

First published 2022

Profit First

Mike Michalowicz

A cash management system for small companies. Michalowicz flips the usual formula so profit comes off the top of every sale and the business has to run on what is left.

First published 2014

Rich Dad Poor Dad

Robert T. Kiyosaki and Sharon L. Lechter

A money parable built on two father figures. Kiyosaki contrasts a salaried dad with an entrepreneur dad to argue for buying assets, learning finance and owning businesses.

First published 1997

The Soul of Money

Lynne Twist and Teresa Barker

A fundraiser's memoir and manifesto about money. Twist argues that the fear of never having enough shapes most money decisions, and that a sense of sufficiency leads to better ones.

First published 2003

Venture Deals

Brad Feld and Jason Mendelson

The standard plain-language guide to venture capital term sheets. Two investors explain what each clause means, which ones matter and how to negotiate them without wrecking the relationship.

First published 2011

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Other startup book topics

Startup methodsLean Startup, customer development, design sprints and business model tools.Customer validationCustomer interviews, experiments and proof that people will pay.StrategyWhere to compete, how to win and how platforms and monopolies work.Disruption and technologyDisruption theory, AI-era companies, DevOps and creative confidence.Founder storiesMemoirs and histories that show what building a company feels like.Leadership and managementHiring, goals, culture and leading a team through hard calls.Mindset and habitsHabits, decision-making, resilience and designing a working life.Marketing and salesPositioning, messaging, word of mouth and building a sales process.Product and growthProduct discovery, habit-forming products, traction channels and scaling.Women and inclusive foundersAdvice, stories and money talk for women and underrepresented founders.Business skillsHow a business works, negotiation, persuasion and startup ecosystems.

Or browse the full directory of 100 startup books.