As a follow up to my last post, I really don’t know what the CEOs of Fortune 500 companies read. The only way to really know what each of them reads is to go visit their homes and look into their, and this is the key folks, library (so says Ron White in a Success Magazine audio clip). It’s not the act of reading that is important (from what I understand of Steven Levitt’s Freakonomics), it’s the importance placed on it. You can get someone to carry a book and you may even be able to get them to read it (schools have been doing this for ages) but you cannot get someone to seek out the knowledge if they don’t want to. Now, if someone has a library of books that they read (not just a library for looks) than it’s a pretty safe assumption that they value learning.
I can only assume that the books these CEOs are reading are directly related to their field and to what they want. I’m sure Steve Jobs and Bill Gates read a lot of tech and business books. I’m sure Trump and Buffett read a lot of investment and business books. There is no easy answer to success, however, I’m sure if you read about their lives you’ll discover what books have influenced their lives.
However, if you’re still looking for books to read than here’s a list of 25 books recommended by the April/May 2008 issue of Success Magazine and many, many, many others:
- Think & Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill (the guy really thought unusually, and I guess that’s why he gained an unusual amount of wealth)
- How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie (you need to read this and stop being such an @$$)
- The Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clason (a very easy to read book that is “the most inspiring book on wealth ever written!” how can you not want to read it?)
- The 9 Steps to Financial Freedom by Suze Orman (good book, though I don’t agree with it all)
- The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People (’cuz what you got is a result of who you are)
- Who Moved My Cheese by Dr. Spencer Johnson (’cuz change happens, don’t get stuck when it does)
- The Power of Positive Thinking by Norman Vincent Peale
- The Magic of Thinking Big by David J. Schwartz
- The Way of the Peaceful Warrior: A Book That Changes Lives by Dan Millman (does watching the movie count)
- See You at the Top by Zig Ziglar
- Acres of Diamonds by Russell H. Conwell
- Maximum Achievement by Brian Tracy
- As a Man Thinketh by James Allen
- The Laws of Success by Napoleon Hill
- The Seasons of Life by Jim Rohn & Ronald Reynolds
- The One Minute Manager by Kenneth Blanchard
- The Automatic Millionaire by David Bach
- The Greatest Salesman in the World by Og Mandino
- The Sales Bible by Jeffrey Gitomer
- Chicken Soup for the Soul series by Jack Canfield & Mark Victor Hansen, with other contributors
- Success Through a Positive Mental Attitude by Napoleon Hill and W. Clement Stone
- Developing the Leader Within You by John C. Maxwell
- Good to Great: Why some Companies Make the Leap and Others Don’t by Jim Collins
- Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert T. Kiyosaki (changed the way I think about work and my career)
- Awaken the Giant Within by Anthony Robbins
Whew, it’s tiring just reading the titles, but if you intend to keep up with multi-million dollar CEOs it should take you only 5 to 6 months to finish them all. What? Already read them all? Wow, aren’t you quite the over achiever. Lucky for you Success Magazine also suggested 4 others in their article:
- The Slight Edge by Jeff Olson
- The Secret by Rhonda Byrne (the mind is a very powerful thing)
- Become a Better You by Joel Osteen
- Why Not You?: 28 Days to Authentic Confidence by Valorie Burton
And a little more scouring of the pages provided a few more books:
- Unlimited Power by Anthony Robbins
- The Courage to Be Rich by Suze Orman
Still not satisfied? Here’s what my paltry library adds:
- Leading an Inspired Life by Jim Rohn
- The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership (if you’re gonna be in charge of anything, better learn how to do it well)
- The Tipping Point by Malcolm Gladwell (not as easy as he makes it sound)
- The 21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader (believe me, you ain’t got them)
- The 5 People You Meet in Heaven by Mitch Albom
- Tuesdays with Morrie by Mitch Albom (face it, we’ll all die. but only some of us will every make an impact)
- The Game by Neil Strauss (I’m a male psychology student, I couldn’t resist)
- Dragonlance Chronicles & other related books (I like stories about dragons and elves. What? Everyone has to relax)
- Equity Happens by Robert Helms & Russell Gray
- How to Invest in Gold & Silver by Mike Maloney
- Cashflow Quadrants by Robert Kiyosaki
- Why We Want You to Be Rich by Robert Kiyosaki and Donald Trump
- The Zahir by Paulo Coelho
- The Alchemist by Paulo Coelho
Well, that’s it. Anyone else got books they wanna share?
