Top 5 Books for Entrepreneurs from 2009

Outside of building companies, reading has been one of my daily passions since I was a young child. Each year, I attempt to read more books than the previous year. This year I read 146. The following books were the five that made the most impact and immediate improvement on my performance as an entrepreneur.

Jump start your New Year at full speed by picking up a couple of these books. You will not be disappointed.

1. Your Brain at Work: Strategies for Overcoming Distraction, Regaining Focus, and Working Smarter All Day Long by David Rock

My personal theme for 2010 is ‘Return on Attention’ and I have been on a tear this past year diving deep into the latest neuroscience research. Of the 19 books I read this year on the brain, this is my overall favorite and has had the biggest overall impact on my life. Feeling like a slave to Twitter, your inbox, or daily distractions? This book has some answers and is a quick, easy read (occasionally the writing style is unnecessarily simplistic). The author does a solid job of not only helping you understand how the brain deals with certain stressful situations of daily life, but also demonstrating simple techniques to effectively improve the quality of your life. The book balances the latest neuroscience research with case studies and walkthroughs of changes you can put into practice immediately. Since reading this book in October, I have recommended it to several of friends who have all said it has changed their lives for the better.

Although most founders focus on their cash burn rate, very few focus on the burn rate of their daily time. As entrepreneurs we are constantly bombarded with streams of information from all directions and how we manage our daily time can be a big determinant in our outcomes.

2. Beautiful Data: The Stories Behind Elegant Data Solutions by Jeff Hammerbacher and Toby Segaran

Data. Data. Twitter sells stream access to Google & Bing. Big Data. Our culture is sharing more and more of our lives in real time and enterprises are focused on using data to make more informed decisions. All of us are impacted by this onslaught of data. This book provides examples and can help you understand how to leverage data to find insights and derive value. Jeff Hammerbacher’s chapter on his time at Facebook with their data team as well as Jeff Jonas and Lisa Sokol’s chapter on ‘data finding data’ are worth the price of admission alone.

3. Performance at the Limit: Business Lessons from Formula 1 Motor Racing by Mark Jenkins, Ken Pasternak, and Richard West

Formula 1 is my favorite sport. Its similarities with startups run deep and this book examines them in detail. If you are a fan of Eric Ries’ Lean Startup, think of this book as the guide to how to effectively manage the operations of your startup. What do Formula 1 and Startups have in common?

• Small teams attempting to accomplish massive tasks
• Limited budget
• Pushing the boundaries of innovation
• Metric driven performance
• Constant change
• Highly competitive environment

4. Presenting to Win: The Art of Telling Your Story by Jerry Weissman

If you are a founder, then this book may be the best $20 you will ever spend. I raised money from top tier investors for two different companies this year and this book proved invaluable in communicating each company’s story. The author, Jerry Weissman, has helped CEOs in Silicon Valley for years build presentations and communicate them effectively. This book lays out how to build effective pitches and how to present them in explicit detail. The chapters outlining how to build a presentation deck slide-by-slide are worth the cost of the book alone. This is truly a must have.

5. The Inner Game of Tennis: The Classic Guide to the Mental Side of Peak Performance by W. Timothy Gallwey

As an entrepreneur you struggle with the external “game” of dealing with co-founders, employees, investors, and customers. Perhaps even more importantly, you also deal with the internal “game” existing in your head as you fight fear, anxiety, and doubt. The roller-coaster of these two games can derail you from focusing on what is truly important and be a hinderance to success. In this book, Gallwey provides you with techniques and lessons on how to balance the two games by establishing the proper mental grounding. I cannot say enough for how this book has helped to achieve clarity in thought and focus.

Also check out Galleway’s related book: The Inner Game of Work

Bonus: I would love to hear what you read in 2009 that made a difference in your life! If you drop me a quick email (tim@socialcast.com) and share a book that has impacted your life this past year, I will email you back access to my last few years of books I read (over 300+ books).