I ventured into entrepreneurship two and a half years ago when I wanted the flexibility to be able to work around my family life and ambitions for developing a successful business. This decision was not easy, plus there were a lot of things I wasn’t sure of, but once everything got up and running, I discovered so many reasons why I love being a mom and an entrepreneur.
Flexibility and freedom, being my top 2 reasons, brought many benefits for me, including doing the things I love, like reading! I find myself reading 1-3 books each quarter, which allows me to gain knowledge, reflect on my practices and keep my learning curve as a business owner on the rise at all times.
My reading time is precious and limited (#mompreneurlife) which is why I ensure I am investing my time right by researching and looking for books that are inspirational and insightful with actionable guidance and practical steps that I can implement in my business and personal life to achieve my goals and live the life I have dreamed of.
Today, I’m sharing my top ten must-read business/life-changing books that will help you shape your entrepreneurial journey and achieve a better work/life balance.
Why Do I Need to Spend My Time Reading?
If you want to be successful and build a sustainable business in today’s challenging world of automation, ongoing innovation, and evolving market needs, it’s essential to spend your time learning. Most successful people are lifelong learners and one of the ways you can also stay ahead and keep your learning curve on the rise is to spend your time reading.
“Read 500 pages like this every day. That’s how knowledge works. It builds up like compound interest. All of you can do it, but I guarantee not many of you will do it.” – Warren Buffett
Bill Gates reads 50 books each year. He consistently emphasizes how reading has always been his number one way of gaining knowledge, learning new things, and testing his understanding. Each book he read has opened up new avenues of learning for him to explore.
Mark Zuckerberg, founder and CEO of Facebook, is also a strong advocate of reading. He believes that reading allows you to commit to personal growth and development. In 2015, he challenged himself to read one book every week for the entire year and also created a fan page called “A Year of Books” to post about the books he read.
Oprah Winfrey has been quoted saying,
“Books allowed me to see a world beyond the front porch of my grandmother’s shotgun house and gave me the power to see possibilities beyond what was allowed at the time.” – Oprah Winfrey
It’s clear that reading helps successful business leaders build a solid knowledge base, learn new things, and test their understanding. Ready to read? Let’s have a look at my top list of ten inspiring and knowledgeable books you need to read in 2022 to level up your game.
Top ten influential, Inspiring and Knowledgeable Books To Read As An Entrepreneur/ Mompreneur to Level Up
Written by: Donald Miller and Dr. J.J. Peterson
About the authors:
Donald Miller is the CEO of StoryBrand, a marketing company. He is also a New York Times best-selling author of the book “Blue like Jazz.”
Dr. J.J. Peterson is an expert on brand strategy and how to lead a business that connects with customers and eliminates confusion. This method has been trusted by thousands of organizations, including Intel, Pantene, and Berkshire Hathaway.
About the book:
This book is a step-by-step guide and a must-have for small business owners looking to scale their business by working on their marketing skills. It will teach you how to create and implement a sales funnel to increase traffic and drive sales.
Why you should read this book: Based on proven principles from Building a StoryBrand, this book with a 5-part practical checklist is a must-have resource for business owners as they cultivate a sales funnel that flows across key customer touchpoints to effectively develop, strengthen, and communicate their brand’s story to the marketplace.
If you are looking for some great practical and actionable guidance to improvise your marketing game, I highly recommend that you read this book.
Key takeaways:
This book is a simple, easy-to-understand step-by-step marketing guide that you can implement immediately in your business. The practical guidance in this book will be around:
- creating and implementing a sound marketing plan.
- Developing a sales funnel that attracts the right customers to your business.
- Creating email campaigns that result in customer traffic and growth in brand awareness.
- Wireframing a website that commands attention and generates conversions.
Written by: Mike Michalowicz
About the author:
The author, Mike Michalowicz, is the creator of Profit First which companies use worldwide to increase profits. His method “Clockwork” is a tool for businesses to automate their business. Mike is a former columnist for The Wall Street Journal, a business makeover specialist on MSNBC, and the American Express Turning Points podcast host.
About the book:
This book is about being your own boss and living life on your terms while running a business. You must read this book if you are looking to grow your business as it guides you on developing a system in your business where employees act like owners and the company can run on its own. This allows you as a business owner to have the freedom to do what you want when you want in your business.
Why you should read this book:
This book is a comprehensive guide for business owners who want their business not to be dependent on them so that they can enjoy a better work/life balance.
If you’re feeling stuck in business, working long hours, and looking for better systems to run your business effortlessly, then you need this book.
Key takeaways:
This book is a practical and straightforward guide on how to automate your business, resulting in the company running without the business owner. I just love reading books like this one where I can implement my learning and acquired knowledge immediately into my business and personal life.
The practical and relatable advice in the book will give you more freedom to do what you want to do and own your business instead of running it. You can finally go on vacation – for real!
Written by: Valerie Khoo
About the author: Valerie Khoo is an award-winning writer, journalist, keynote speaker, and one of Australia’s most popular commentators on small business. She founded the Sydney Writers Centre for the training of corporations and individuals.
About the book: This book gives readers an insight into the skills they need to effectively use the craft of storytelling to make sales and close deals. The book is filled with examples and strategies for using storytelling to turn prospects into customers.
Why you should read this book: If you are new to the storytelling game, this book is a must-read to equip you with the basics. In addition, it is a practical guide for business owners who are beginning to build a business and struggle with how to tell their story to turn prospective clients into customers. It’s full of practical tips and advice on how to flourish through the power of connection.
Key takeaways: Through this book, you will learn what types of stories you should tell your audience to connect with them. Not only this, but you will also find a lot of templates that you can use to write your stories and share it with your audience on social media, website, etc.
Written by: James Clear
About the author:
James Clear is the author of New York Times Best Seller Atomic Habits, which has sold more than 4 million copies worldwide. He is also known for his popular 3-2-1 newsletter, which has thousands of subscribers.
Why you should read this book:
This book is about practical strategies that will lead to forming good habits and break the bad ones naturally by creating a system to improve every day. It will reshape your thoughts about progress and success and provide you with tools to transform your habits that will lead you to achieve your goals.
The book is a must-read for anyone looking to systematically change habits to achieve their personal or career goals by having a framework for everyday life around them while focusing on changing their environment. For example, if you want to reform an organisation, build a morning routine, quit smoking, or change any other personal habit, this would be a great book to read.
Key takeaways:
You will learn insightful strategies, practical steps and examples that will help you build good habits and break bad ones. This book clearly explains how the habit-building techniques work and how you can keep a track of your progress and improvise over time to achieve desired results.
If you are looking to build good habits or break bad ones to create the life that you have always imagined, this book is for you.
Written by: James Schramko
About the author: James Schramko is based in Sydney and has developed and sold multiple successful businesses. His expertise includes making the business world simple so that business owners can have a healthy lifestyle. In addition, he is an investor, coach, and mentor.
About the book: In this book, James Schramko, through his personal story, explains how it is possible to build a multi-million-dollar business with the right attitude and have the time for things that you do enjoy.
The book is about practical strategies for building a business without being overloaded with work and having a fulfilling life.
Why you should read this book: This book is a guide for business owners who want to run a business and have a healthy lifestyle where they have time to do things they enjoy. Through his personal experience, James explains in this book that having to work less and make more is not a luxury that few people are blessed with. Instead, it can be achieved by anyone with an open mind and the ability to focus on what’s important.
Key takeaways: Through this book, you will understand strategies told through James’s personal experience on how you can free up more time living your life while running a business.
The book will teach how to increase personal effectiveness by planning and setting goals for yourself, your business, and your team. It will also explain how to have a business model that leverages the profit formula to increase cash flow and understand customer lifetime.
Written by: Donald Miller
About the author: Donald Miller is the CEO of StoryBrand, a marketing company and Simple, which is an online platform that teaches aspiring business professionals how to grow a business. He is the host of the Business Made Simple Podcast. He also co-hosts the chart-topping podcast “Building a Storybrand” with J J Peterson.
About the book: The book is a sixty-day guide and explores areas where successful leaders and their businesses excel. It is a must-have guide for anyone who feels lost or overwhelmed by the modern business climate, even if they attended business school.
Why you should read this book: This book is a simple guide for business owners or aspiring business professionals. The author breaks down the basics of running a successful business, including very specific and actionable tips that will make some of these overwhelming skills feel a bit more manageable. If you are in your initial years of business, this is an excellent book to read.
Key takeaways: In this sixty-day guide, you will be introduced to the nine areas where truly successful leaders and their businesses excel:
- Character: What kind of person succeeds in business?
- Leadership: How do you unite a team around a mission?
- Personal Productivity: How can you get more done in less time?
- Messaging: Why aren’t customers paying more attention?
- Marketing: How do I build a sales funnel?
- Business Strategy: How does a business really work?
- Execution: How can we get things done?
- Sales: How do I close more sales?
- Management: What does a good manager do?
What I love about this book is that this book gives you free access to daily videos that helps you reinforce what you learn and implement in your professional career. Watching these videos helps you make the most out of this book.
Written by: Ann Handley
About the author: Ann Handley is the author of Everybody Writes, co-author of Content Rules, a speaker, and the world’s first Chief Content Officer.
About the book: This book is a go-to guide for anyone creating or publishing any kind of online content — whether you’re a big brand or you’re small and solo. The author deconstructs this strategy and delivers a practical approach to create ridiculously compelling and competent content.
Why you should read this book: As a business owner, if you have a website and you are looking after activities in your business such as marketing, social media management, and email marketing all by yourself, then you need to read this book. It helps teach you how to rely on your words and content to convey your marketing messages to your target audience effectively.
Key takeaways: This book gives guidance and insight into the process and strategy of content creation, production, and publishing, with actionable how-to advice designed to get results. You can apply these lessons and rules across all your online assets — like web pages, home pages, landing pages, blogs, email, marketing offers, Facebook, Twitter, Linked In, and other social media.
Written by: Julia Baird
About the author: Julia Baird is a globally renowned author and award-winning journalist. She hosts The Drum on ABC TV and writes columns for The New York Times and The Sydney Morning Herald.
About the book: The national bestseller, Phosphorescence is a beautiful, intimate and inspiring investigation into how we can find and nurture within ourselves that essential quality of internal happiness – the ‘light within’ – which will sustain us even through the darkest times.
Why you should read this book: This book has inspired me in various ways. After reading only a few chapters, I was forced to stop and self-reflect on my life. I was full of optimism, positivity, and hope. I knew what changes I need to bring to explore my emotions of awe and wonder.
If you are a business owner, especially a solopreneur where you are working a lot under pressure, hardly get time to practice self-care and need something inspirational to read to get back on track, I highly recommend you read this book as you will find hope, positivity, and optimism.
Key takeaways: You will walk away with a fresh and positive approach to life.
Written by: Lisa Sasevich
About the author: Lisa Sasevich has helped over 15,000 clients in 134 countries earn more by doing what they love, all without being pushy or sales-y. She has been included on the Inc. 500 list of America’s Fastest Growing Private Companies two years in a row and has ranked #20 on the list of woman-owned businesses and #2 on the list of biggest training companies in San Diego.
About the book: In this book, Lisa Sasevich, an award-winning entrepreneur and business coach, outlines an easy-to-follow formula that helps you own your unique value, make more money, have more impact, and get more out of life-all without being pushy or sales-y.
Why you should read this book: If you are looking for motivation, meaning and a purpose in life then this book is for you. The author helps us realise that we all have something unique within us that we should appreciate and offer to the world and reap the rewards. This book will upgrade your mindset, unleash your inner-confidence, and claim your value.
However, if you do not lack self-motivation and already have a strong belief on yourself and your passion, then you may not find this book very useful and may skip a few chapters.
Key takeaways: You will walk away with a road-map and worksheet exercises that are easy to follow and will help you organise your thoughts, clarify the unique gift that you have to offer and make irresistible offers to finally get what you’re worth. This is a perfect read during the pandemic where we are facing several challenges, lacking motivation and trying to work things out to survive.
Written by: Donald Miller
About the author: Donald Miller has helped more than 3,000 businesses clarify their marketing messages so their companies grow. He’s the CEO of StoryBrand, the cohost of the Building a StoryBrand Podcast, and the author of several books, including the bestsellers Blue Like Jazz and A Million Miles in a Thousand Years.
About the book: Donald Miller’s StoryBrand process is a proven solution to the struggle business leaders face when talking about their businesses. This revolutionary method for connecting with customers provides readers with the ultimate competitive advantage, revealing the secret for helping their customers understand the compelling benefits of using their products, ideas, or services.
Building a StoryBrand does this by teaching readers the seven universal story points all humans respond to; the real reason customers make purchases; how to simplify a brand message so people understand it; and how to create the most effective messaging for websites, brochures, and social media.
Why you should read this book: This book teaches you about the story points that all humans respond to and how you can simplify your brand message so that your target market can easily understand the benefits of using your products, ideas or services and the unique value that you bring to your customers.
Key takeaways: You will walk away with the knowledge and understanding of action steps that you need to take to transform the way you communicate with your customers and attain competitive advantage in the market.
You will know how to create effective messaging for your websites, brochures and social media.
“My favourite books always make me feel inspired, insightful, and knowledgeable. I am already working on a lot of things that will help me transform my business and achieve my personal and professional goals in the near future.” – Nadia Omair, Founder-Winowin Consulting
I hope that you’ve found this list of my top ten business books helpful. Whether you’re looking for some inspiration before your next big meeting, building your morning routine or need clarity on how to start thinking about growing your business, these ten are sure to help.
As a mompreneur, if you are looking to manage time and improve your productivity, head on to my blog The Secret to a Productive, Planned and Successful Working Week where I’m sharing some useful tips on planning your working week and talking about the planning tool that has helped me stay organised throughout the working week.
Find out how you can create a simple feedback system in 5 steps to achieve ongoing business and personal growth here.
Ana Sastrias
Excellent presentation of these important books in business. Thanks so much Nadia.