Business Books and Pogs

For the past few weeks I have been listening to a fantastic podcast called Entrepreneurs On Fire. The host of the podcast, John Lee Dumas, interviews very successful entrepreneurs, asking them a variety of questions. The questions range anywhere from what their biggest failure has been to what their favorite success quote is. However, the question that I most look forward to during the interview is when he asks what their favorite business book is.

Growing up, I did not enjoy reading at all. My mindset as a child was "If I have time to read a book, I have time to do something else." If the weather was nice, I was outside jumping on the trampoline or shooting hoops. If the weather was bad, I was inside playing video games or putting together Hot Wheels race tracks or playing with pogs. Pogs were the bomb. But the only time I felt excited to just sit down and read was when my family would go to our cozy little cabin in the woods (far away from trampolines and video games). And the only thing I really enjoyed reading was Goosebumps. I burned through those babies like dry moss.

Anyways... The older I've gotten, the more I've realized how much potential knowledge there is to gain from reading. So, I've compiled a list of the business books mentioned by various successful entrepreneurs as their favourites. Yeah, I typed favourites. Just like the way it looks. I've made it a goal to read most of these during the summer. After finishing each book, I'll share my thoughts and insights as a little book report, if you will. Why do people say that? "If you will." Sounds goofy. Here is the short list, in no particular order:

• The 4-Hour Workweek - Timonthy Ferriss
• The Pumpkin Plan - Mike Michalowicz
• The Lean Startup - Eric Ries
• The Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right - Atul Gawande
• The $100 Startup - Chris Guillebeau
• Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion - Robert B. Cialdini
• Turning Pro: Tap Your Inner Power and Create Your Life's Work - Steven Pressfield
• Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose - Tony Hsieh
• Built to Sell: Creating a Business That Can Thrive Without You - John Warrillow
• Made to Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die - Chip Heath
• Secrets of the Millionaire Mind: Mastering the Inner Game of Wealth - T. Harv Eker
• How to Win Friends & Influence People - Dale Carnegie
• Outliers: The Story of Success - Malcolm Gladwell
• The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change - Stephen R. Covey

Looks like I'll have to keep the POG collection under my bed for a little while longer. I have a lot of reading to do this summer...

First Blog

My first attempt at blogging. This will be a personal blog, a place for me to record and share my thoughts, activities and the like. It will probably be pretty hard for me at the beginning. That's what she said. But this will be a journey that will help me learn a lot about myself. Join me for the ride! That's what she said.