Business books to read

What does it take to be number one? A recent survey by Fast Company suggests that the answer could be a well-lined bookshelf. In fact, the average number of books read by a CEO is 60 books per year, or five books each month. Whether they are on the road, in office or anywhere else, CEOs always have a neat stack of books with them to devour in their time off.

The Berkshire Hathaway tycoon- Warren Buffett is a classic bookworm who reads an astounding average of 500 pages each day. "That's how knowledge works. It builds up, like compound interest. All of you can do it, but I guarantee many of you will not do it," he said.

Here are seven books that shaped some revolutionary personalities, like that of Buffett, and can inspire the youths.

THINK AND GROW RICH by Napoleon Hill

Nearly a century ago, journalist Napoleon Hill studied around 500 self-made millionaires like John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie and Henry Ford. His research culminated in the 1937 bestseller, 'Think and Grow Rich' where he mentions the 13 principles of success. The book focuses on how the psychological power of mind can drive one's career achievements as well as personal satisfaction.

Daymond John, the CEO of the American hip hop apparel company FUBU, has read the book 20 times. In an interview with CNBC, he said "The book teaches you: If you can imagine it, you can accomplish it." In the 21st century, Hill's 'money-making secret' still remains relevant. The book acts as a guiding light for youths to fearlessly come up with new ideas, set goals and achieve them.

SHOE DOG: A MEMOIR BY THE CREATOR OF NIKE by Phil Knight

Shoe Dog is the autobiography of Nike's founder Phil Knight, who in 2016, decided to share the inside story of building Nike from a small startup to $30bn shoe giant. The book gives us a rare glimpse of how the founding team of Nike endured chaos, made countless mistakes and overcame seemingly-impossible odds. Bill Gates named Shoe Dog one of his five favourite books of 2016 and called it "an amazing tale, a refreshingly honest reminder of what the path to business success really looks like." Shoe Dog is an inspirational story that reminds young entrepreneurs to never give up, as even a giant like Nike had to endure years of struggle.

ZERO TO ONE: NOTES ON STARTUPS OR, HOW TO BUILD THE FUTURE by Peter Thiel

Peter Thiel is a legendary entrepreneur and investor who has an impressive record of creating successful teams. He is one of the co-founders of PayPal alongside Elon Musk and other business moguls. Musk endorsed Thiel's book, writing, "Peter Thiel has built multiple breakthrough companies, and Zero to One shows how." In the book, Thiel has provided a number of unconventional advice for tech startups. He contends that game-changing startups create something new rather than refining something that already exists. Entrepreneurs are encouraged to create a monopoly based on innovation which will move the world from 0 to 1.

Zero to One is thus full of counter-intuitive insights that promotes creative thinking.

THE CHARISMA MYTH: HOW ANYONE CAN MASTER THE ART AND SCIENCE OF PERSONAL MAGNETISM by Olivia Fox Cabane

In business, charisma can help one to get a job, get their ideas heard and effectively negotiate. In order to be at the top, one must develop charisma and empathy as part of their leadership strategy. Contrary to popular belief, Olivia Fox says that charisma is not inborn, rather it can be learnt by anybody. Charisma is a matter of presence, warmth and power. When Marilyn Monroe turned off her charisma, she managed to blend into the subway crowd with no one noticing her. Yet, once she turned it back on, her fans recognised her.

It would be wrong to think that this book is about manipulating others.  Rather it depicts the tools to communicate more effectively. Regarding this book, Marissa Mayer, former CEO of Yahoo! has commented "A fascinating look at how to improve our leadership skills and philosophy."

GOOD TO GREAT: WHY SOME COMPANIES MAKE THE LEAP AND OTHERS DON'T by Jim Collins

Back in 2001, Amazon was just four years old, struggling to get its footing after the dot-com bust. With the wisdom from Good to Great, Jeff Bezos and his team were able to make necessary strategic changes to the business and made its first profit in the last quarter of 2001.

The book explains how these companies confront the brutal facts of their business, find out what they are uniquely good at and master their flywheel-the idea that each part of the business accelerates the other parts. It is also a great reminder about the importance of on-boarding the right people. The writer says, "Technology is an accelerator of momentum, not a creator. It's all about the people, the employees."

THE RIDE OF A LIFETIME by Robert Iger

"Whenever someone asks me to recommend one book on business, I suggest 'Business Adventures by John Brooks' most often. But I recently read another business book that I will happily recommend to anyone- The Ride of a Lifetime, by former Disney CEO Robert Iger," says Bill Gates in his blog.

Robert Iger became the CEO of the Walt Disney Company in 2005. During that time, competition was more intense than ever and technology was changing faster. In this book, Iger explores this massive media company and shares the lessons he learnt while running Disney and leading its 200,000 employees. He analyses the principles necessary for true leadership; and does a great job explaining what it is like to be a CEO.

LEAN IN: WOMEN, WORK AND THE WILL TO LEAD by Sheryl Sandberg

Sheryl Sandberg is the chief operating officer (COO) of Facebook. In this book, Sandberg describes specific steps women can take to combine professional achievements with personal fulfillment. She also demonstrates how men can benefit by supporting women both in the workplace and at home.

In the words of Mark Zuckerberg, "For the past five years, I've sat at a desk next to Sheryl and I've learnt something from her almost every day. Lean In combines Sheryl's ability to synthesise information with her understanding of how to get the best out of people." By reading Lean In, readers particularly women will learn to tackle gender inequality themselves by overcoming their "internal barriers," for instance, lack of confidence and ambition. It can guide young readers to achieve their dreams in their career by 'leaning in,' which basically means to speak up, stand out, and be courageous in the pursuit of success.

The writer is a second-year student of BBA programme at the Institute of Business Administration (IBA), University of Dhaka. She can be reached at [email protected]