Picture by Simon Zirkunow

You know the saying “Rich people have big libraries, poor people have big TV’s”?  Well,  if not… you do now

Well, I’ve been in quite a few houses of what most people would call rich people and most of them have big TV’s.  So that quotes not always right.  But, one thing that every single one of them did ALSO have… was a ton of books.

So, what books do successful entrepreneurs read?

I was in Orlando a couple weeks back (before we did the Jump For Opportunity) with about 24 other really fun, successful, and inspired young entrepreneurs in a mastermind and one of the things we talked about was some of our favorite books.  The books that made big differences in our marketing, life, business knowledge, fun, or whatever.  And just so you know the level of young entrepreneurs in the mastermind retreat…

• 26 year old founder of the 2nd largest email service provider (does about $40mm a year)
• 23 year old who sold his company to Google for $80mm+ last October
• 28 year old founder of one of the largest entrepreneur education organizations for college students in the US
• 28 year old outdoor media (billboards) and real estate mogul from Ohio
• 29 year old stock trader and former hedge fund manager rated one of the best in the US in his category
• 25 year old who created multiple million dollar businesses before he was 22, best selling author, has been on Oprah, Big Idea…
• About 3 or 4 Inc. Magazine 30 under 30 guys
• … I could go on and on… but every single person in the group is top notch, doing huge things, and all of us under 30.

So, here’s some of the “favorite books” from our little crew. Enjoy

25 Books 25 Influential Young Entrepreneurs Say You Need To Read

• Ultimate Sales Letter by Dan Kennedy
  
• Unmarketing by Scott Stratten
• Nemises of A Stock Trader
• Siddhartha by Hermann Hesse
• Influence: Psychology of Persuasion by Robert Cialdini
• The Discipline of Market Leaders by Micheal Treacy
• Orbitting the Giant Hairball by Gordon Mackenzie
• Good to Great by Jim Collins
• Power of Unreasonable People by John Elkington
• Rich Dad, Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki
• The 4-Hour Workweek: Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich by Tim Ferriss
• The Purple Cow by Seth Godin
• Mastering the Rockefeller Habits by Verne Harnish
• Thinking Like Leonardo DiVinci by Micheal Gelb
• Leadership and Self Deception by Arbinger Institute
• Ready, Aim, Fire by Michael Masterson and Mary Ellen Tribby
• Duct Tape Marketing by John Jantz
• A Compass to Fulfillment
• Monk and the Riddle by Randy Komisar
• Delivering Happiness by Tony Hsieh
• Ty Cobb
• Richest Man in Babylon by George S. Clayson
• Go Giver by Bob Burg
• The E-Myth Revisited: Why Most Small Businesses Don’t Work and What to Do About It by Michael Gerber
• Six Thinking Hats by Edward De Bono

So there you have it.  25 books that have helped 25 entrepreneurs kick some serious ass in life and biz.

Make it a goal to read a book a month.  Grab a few from this list, shut the TV off… and start doing what all successful entrepreneurs I know do… they read

(now, one thing… if you don’t like reading books no biggie.  Heck, get the audio book… get a few magazine subscriptions like Inc. Mag, Entrepreneur Mag, Fast Company, or whatever).

I know my blog audience right now is all of 17 people (including my wife and a few friends since I haven’t posted on here consistently in the past year while I’ve been focused on growing my companies… but, lets keep this conversation going… all 17 of you

What’s your favorite book?  Put it in the comments below.  Could be a business book.  Fun book. Whatever.  The main way I find great books to read is by other peoples recommendations.