There are many books on business; however, these are our five favorites, probably because they are five of our mentors. The first is about achieving the right mindset for growing your empire, and the second is more nuts and bolts. The third is all about growing a sales team. The last two are about marketing and how to improve lead flow.
The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It – Michael E. Gerber
If you were ever the person doing the job (technician, therapist, chiropractor, etc.), this book will change how you think, act, and see the world. This is the book that teaches you to work ON your business, not IN your business. It makes you see the roles of the Entrepreneur, the manager, and the technician.
CEO Tools. 2.0: A System to Think, Manage, and Lead like a CEO – Jim Canfield & Kraig Kramers
This book introduced us to the Trailing-12 graph and how important it is to see trends in your business. Chapter 3 on how to track KPIs and provide feedback is awesome—explaining what to measure, how to track and manage with that information. If you want to build a culture of excellence and accountability, this book is fantastic.
Hyper Sales Growth – Jack Daly
Jack does an amazing job of explaining sales culture. How sales departments, teams, and salespeople work and are motivated. He explains how to measure their performance, provide feedback and keep the environment healthy so that everyone succeeds.
Wizard of Ads (Trilogy) – Roy H. Williams
Ok, it’s three books instead of one. But, these are the three books that explain how to make branding work for small owner-operated businesses. Roy has been turning dreamers into millionaires for years. These are the books that we read over twenty years ago that changed everything for us. My copies are underlined, highlighted, dogeared, and within reach so I can quickly reference the information.
We also recommend the Magical Worlds course from WizardAcademy.org.
The Ultimate Marketing Plan, The Ultimate Sales Letter – Dan Kennedy
Ok, I’m cheating again. Yes, these are two of Dan’s books. Dan is a legend of direct response marketing, and we have personally learned so much from him. These two books will provide you with a quick jumpstart on marketing and writing, and understanding sales copy.
All of these books are available at Amazon, so what are you waiting for; go read. Go build your Empire!
