Have you ever read a book that had a big impact on your life, a book that divided your life into a before reading the book and an after? A book that made you question everything that surrounds you?

Books are one of the most powerful tools that humans have ever created. This sounds ironic considering that books are literally sheets of paper with different hieroglyphs that we have invented written on them. But these pieces of paper with words have, no matter their genre, the power to change us, they influence us in a way that not many things in life do.

As entrepreneurs, we cannot ignore the power of books and the knowledge they contain.

So whether you want to change your life, mindset, find your direction in life, create your own business, or are simply looking for an impacting book to read, here are the top 10 books every entrepreneur should read at least once in their life.

The books in this list all discuss different matters and ideas, but regardless of this, they will all open your eyes to a truth rarely expressed in our society nowadays. They will make you question and rethink all the ideas we assume about life, the world, and the society in which we live, but most importantly each and one of these books will give you a tool to help you make your dreams come true and change your life.

So without further introduction, let´s begin!

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THE MIRROR LAW (spirituality)

And we open the list of the top 10 every entrepreneur should read with The Mirror Law (2006), a book about spirituality and personal development written by Yoshinori Noguchi, explains in a very clear way what the law of attraction is and how it impacts our life.

Noguchi, explains this rule with a story about a housewife, Eiko, who, affected by the constant bullying that his son is exposed to, decides to contact a families friend. Thanks to this family friend, Eiko discovers and learns about the Mirror Law, which considerably helps her better both her life and the life of those surrounding her.

Don´t underestimate the size of this book, because despite its length it contains a very valuable lesson and tool (the mirror law) to help us not only change our relationship with ourselves and others but also to come to terms with our past and future.

This book is currently only available in Spanish.

If you want to learn more about the mirror law and how to change your relationship with others and yourself, click here!

THE LEAN STARTUP METHOD (entrepreneurship)

Do you want to start your own business but don’t know where to start or which way is the right one?

Just thinking about how to create and set up your company sounds scary and leaves you filled with a thousand doubts and questions but without any answers or a clear path.

If that is your case then The Lean Startup Method is a must-read for you.

The Lean Startup Method, written by Eric Ries, talks about every step you need to take to create a proper business that fits today’s modernity. It also discusses entrepreneurship and how to follow the same steps as the world’s largest companies to successfully launch your products into the marketplace.

This innovative book explains how to create a company with a totally different approach than the traditional one. In it, you will find tips on how to start a business on the Internet and create companies in the online world.

BUSINESS MODEL GENERATION (entrepreneurship)

And speaking of business, do you know what is one of the most important basics when creating a company? Creating a solid and detailed business plan.

A business plan is an outline detailing and describing how an organization/ business creates, delivers, and captures value. In this outline, you establish important factors like which will be your main income source, what is your value proposition, how you will relate to customers, what are the key activities of your business…

Although this is not an easy task, there is no need to worry because the book Business Model Generation written by Alexander Osterwalder (a speaker, entrepreneur, and business writer) facilitates this task enormously.

This book, which has a number of practical examples, not only explains in a clear way what business models are but also includes the best techniques and models used today.

Business Model Generation also talks about the different components of a business and how they relate to each other.

In conclusion, if you are thinking of starting your own business, it is worth taking a look at this book as it will help you greatly in creating a solid foundation for your business and avoiding common mistakes from minute one.

OUTLIERS (personal development)

Outliers (2008) was written by Malcolm Gladwell, a new york times journalist and sociologist that is now dedicating his life to writing books about different topics, such as phycology and social behavior.

What really differentiates this book from the rest is the way in which he explains what it takes to be successful. Most books talk about the different skills and qualities someone who wants to be successful in life needs to have. Things like passion, discipline, compromise, talent, intelligence…

But what about our background, the way we were educated, the country we grew up in, even the month we were born in…? 

This book collects and analyzes the success of 10 different cases, from rock stars to field hockey players to brilliant minds taking into account not only their skills and qualities but also all the factors mentioned above.

So, if you think you have a clear idea of what it takes to be successful, I recommend you read this book, because it will not only give you a broader vision of the word success, but it will even make you question all the success stories you ever heard.

THE PURPLE COW (entrepreneurship)

Seth Godin (a businessman considered one of the most important marketing theorists of our time) wrote The Purple Cow, a book full of marketing strategies for your business that will help you succeed in your market.

These marketing strategies are based on Gothin’s philosophy that says: “Stop looking for perfection in your products and run to really differentiate yourself from your competition”.

This book with its strategies and methods aims to turn us into that purple cow that differentiates and stands out from the rest.

Here you will find numerous tips on different topics such as how to treat customers and how to create that characteristic that will make you stand out from other companies in your market.

THINK AND GROW RICH (entrepreneurship)

We all know this list wouldn´t be complete without including the book Think And Grow Rich, by Napoleon Hill. Because, despite being such an old book (written in 1937), it is still one of the most famous and powerful books nowadays.

Now, this book has only one purpose and that is to show you the secret to wealth.

Napoleon Hill was an American writer who conducted exhaustive research with more than 500 millionaire families from all over the world. 

Why? To discover the secret of their wealth and success. The result? “Think and Grow Rich”.

In this book, you will find the 13 steps that anyone needs to follow to achieve personal, financial and business success. 

Think and Grow Rich covers topics such as the brain, persistence, determination, knowledge, and much more. This book will help you open your mind, overcome the obstacles you encounter along the way and help you achieve success in any area of your life.

RICH DAD, POOR DAD (finances and entrepreneurship)

Rich dad, poor dad (1997) is an introductory book about finances and the entrepreneurial world written by Robert Kiyosaki one of the most famous entrepreneurs and coaches ABOUT PERSONAL FINANCES of our time. 

This book explains the eight most important lessons about personal finances and entrepreneurship you need to learn, including bits of his life and how he created the business empire he manages nowadays.

Rich dad, poor dad covers topics such as the path of an entrepreneur, professional education, and its strong point: the basics of financial education. In this last matter, he teaches us about savings, investments, and how to manage your money in the most intelligent way possible.

Want to learn the five key ideas discussed in Rich Dad, Poor Dad? Click here!

THE ENTREPRENEURS BLACK BOOK (entrepreneurship)

If you’ve ever wanted to get a glimpse of what an entrepreneur must face on the road to success, this book is for you.

The Entrepreneur’s Black Book (2007), written by Fernando Trias de Bes (a highly recognized Spanish economist and writer), is a book that goes beyond the ordinary by talking about what any entrepreneur must go through before reaching success.

This book deals with topics such as failure, the hard road of entrepreneurship, and the different obstacles to overcome.

But not only that because in this book you will find a description of the traits that characterize an entrepreneur, the common mistakes that people usually make, and important keys to overcome any mistakes and failure.

This book is currently only available in its original language (Spanish).

THE RICHEST MAN IN BABYLON (finances)

The Richest Man in Babylon (1926), written by George S.ClasonS, is considered a classic about finances. This book is based on a series of short stories about the basic fundamentals of personal finance.

Clason covers topics from the simple rules of money, how to acquire riches and build your wealth, savings, investing, the importance of hard work, and much more. 

The Richest Man in Babylon is a short read that will drastically change the way you see money and the way you take care of your personal finances.

THE SURRENDER EXPERIMENT (spirituality)

The Surrender Experiment (2015), written by Michael Singer, is a thought-provoking and inspiring read about the magic of just letting go.

In this book, Singer tells us the true story about his life, or more specifically what direction his life took when, after a spiritual awakening during his 20´s, he decided to surrender to the miracle of life instead of letting his personal fears and desires control this one. 

The stories and events in this book will make you question even your deepest assumptions about the world as well as inspire you to look at your own life in a completely different way. All this while discovering what would happen if we remained in the seat of a conscious witness of our own lives and let go of our own personal preferences.

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Thank you so much for investing your time in reading this article. Now you have a list full of life-changing and thought-provoking books, so the only question left to ask is which will you start with? Love to hear it in the comments!