One thing that we’ve learnt from watching great entrepreneurs is that they never stop learning. The ultimate entrepreneur Bill Gates still reads 50 books per year. American investor Warren Buffet uses 80 per cent of his day for reading. Lama users are no different than Buffet or Gates! They are continuous learners and literary aficionados. So we rounded up all our experts to share their most important reads that have defined their entrepreneurial journeys.

1. The Lean Startup by Eric Ries

“I don’t want to sound very mainstream but one must-read book is The Lean Startup. It is the bible for doing a startup. Getting into the mentality of launching a product, how to build a MVP and how to approach the business overall. It gives you great insights especially in your early-stage startup. It is very popular and you should definitely read that one. ”

2. The Hard Things About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz

“Great question and actually one that I have been asked a lot and I have asked a lot! I want to recommend 3 books. First one being The Hard Thing About Hard Things by Ben Horowitz which is a great book on how to manage your own psychology and it has very actionable insights if you are building a company, what to do and how to cope when you are hitting a rough patch, or really dire straits. A definite must read for every entrepreneur in my view. If you are interested in some more book advice, I do have a book review series on Medium. If you look me up there or if you google The Entrepreneur’s Book Guide, you’ll find articles and more books there. Have fun!”

3. Pitch Anything: An Innovative Method for Presenting, Persuading, and Winning the Deal by Oren Klaff

“If you are starting a journey with startups, I’d really recommend you to take a look at Pitch Anything by Oren Klaff. Basically, he is presenting in his book very innovative and simple methods on how to present information, how to persuade people and how to win the deal. For me, it was an amazing book and allows me to take a look on this part from a different angle. He is approaching the topic from a scientific way. Explaining why people behave as they behave and how to prepare your pitch in a way that will win the deal and take over the conversation and lead it in the direction where you want to go.  So I really recommend it and it will give you valuable lessons on how to present to your potential investors, partners and customers.”

4. The Entrepreneurial Mindset by Ian C MacMillan and Rita Gunther McGrath

“While i like this question, limiting it to one book is going to be really really hard. The Entrepreneurial Mindset is a small, little talked about book which is a powerful read.  I read business books all the time. I love books. While I have an iPad, I love to physically touch a book. I’m currently reading The Power of Broke by Daymond John which is much better book than I thought it would be. And it’s about his journey leading all the way to his success at Shark Tank.”

5. Kopf schlägt Kapital by Günter Faltin

“The number 1 person who encouraged me to become an entrepreneur is Günter Faltin who an economics professor in Berlin, Germany. His book Brains versus Capital is available in English by now. He was the award-winning founder in 2010 for the German prize for Entrepreneurship. And his ideas on focusing a startup around the person of the startup instead of the startup financial business plan is excellent. Because the long term motivation he brings, and the view of how to go through ups and downs, especially in starting something exciting yet also dangerous like a business. That one really helped!”

6. The Old Man & the Sea by Ernest Hemingway

“So the book that I would recommend is The Old Man & the Sea by Ernest Hemingway. The book taught me a lot about how to deal with hardships and also made me reexamine my values. I think as a startupper going in with strong values is very important.”

7. How to Deliver a Ted Talk by Jeremey Donovan

“I tend to listen to podcasts or look at magazines where Warren Buffet or Richard Branson have input on a matter. Those are two people who inspire me to think outside the box.  How to Deliver a Ted Talk – this book will do wonders. You will have to do a lot of speaking when you are a startup. One day you will probably be on a stage giving a Ted Talk about your business idea and how you came about it.  This is a book you need. Whether you are joining an incubator, or an accelerator, pitching your idea to one person or thousand people, or at an networking event, you need to be able to speak in a timely manner and making sure you are hitting the right points.”

Do you have a book in mind that isn’t on our list but every startup founder should read? Come and share it with our Lama users and help them become the best versions of themselves. Download the video Q&A app Lama or get in touch with us via: info@lama-app.com

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