This was going to start as a “highly recommended list”, but then that list would be too large to work! Instead, we’ve tried to group them into “categories” instead of just one long list. I hope it helps.
As we read more books (or remember the ones we’ve already read :), we’ll add it to the list.
(Also note, some of the books may not be where you think they should be or could be. For some of them it has been a while since I’ve read them, so as we revisit the books, we may move them. If you have any suggestions or comments, email us at eskills@theexceptionalskills.com. Thanks!)
Where-to-start Leadership Books
If you are looking to just pick up a book or two on leadership, these are some of our top recommendations for that.
It’s Your Ship – Michael Abrashoff
Extreme Ownership – Jocko Willink & Leif Babin
Leadership is Language – L. David Marquet
Leadership Strategy and Tactics – Jocko Willink
The Leadership Gap – Lolly Daskal
Great books for new leaders (and those wanting to become leaders)
Developing the Leader Within You 2.0 – John Maxwell
Leadership 101 – John Maxwell
Leading Without Authority – Keith Ferrazzi
21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership – John Maxwell
21 Indispensable Qualities of a Leader – John Maxwell
Great leadership books that could be considered geared more toward small businesses and entrepreneurs
The Emyth Revisited – Michael E. Gerber
Entreleadership – Dave Ramsey
Beyond Entrepreneurship 2.0 – Jim Collins & Bill Lazier
Great books for teams, team building, feedback, motivation, and culture
The Ideal Team Player – Patrick Lencioni
The 5 Dysfunctions of a Team – Patrick Lencioni
Teamwork 101 – John Maxwell
The Culture Code – Daniel Coyle
Unstoppable Teams – Alden Mills
HBR Guide to Collaborative Teams
Silos, Politics, and Turf Wars – Patrick Lencioni
Quiet Leadership – David Rock
Coaching for Emotional Intelligence – Bob Wall
Radical Candor – Kim Scott
The Truth About Employee Engagement – Patrick Lencioni
Drive – Daniel Pink
Great management books
(Note: to be a great manager, you also need to be a great leader, so don’t think none of these other books don’t apply to you :).
The First Time Manager – Jim McCormick, et al.
The Making of a Manager – Julie Zhuo
Great books on Meetings
The Surprising Science of Meetings – Patrick Lencioni
Death by Meeting – Patrick Lencioni
Other great Leadership Books
Leaders Eat Last – Simon Sinek
Start With Why – Simon Sinek
Leadership & Self Deception – The Arbinger Institute
Dare to Lead – Brené Brown
Leading at a Higher Level – Ken Blanchard
The 360 Degree Leader– John Maxwell
Good Leaders Ask Great Questions – John Maxwell
The Advantage – Patrick Lencioni
Great Leaders Have No Rules – Kevin Kruse
The Infinite Game – Simon Sinek
Turn the Ship Around! – L. David Marquet
Leading With Gratitude – Adrian Gostick and Chester Elton
How Toyota Became #1 – David Magee
Start With Why – Simon Sinek
Remote Work Revolution – Tsedal Neeley
The Essential Drucker – Peter Drucker
Great company-building books
Good to Great – Jim Collins
Great By Choice – Jim Collins
Built to Last – Jim Collins
Other miscellaneous management/leadership/company-buildingish books
Managing for Results – Peter Drucker
Managing in a Time of Great Change – Peter Drucker
The Innovator’s Dilemma – Clayton M. Christensen
Great story-based books
The 5 Temptations of a CEO – Patrick Lencioni
Obsessions of an Extraordinary Executive – Patrick Lencioni
The Motive – Patrick Lencioni
Getting Naked – Patrick Lencioni
Death by Meeting – Patrick Lencioni
Silos, Politics, and Turf Wars – Patrick Lencioni
The Truth About Employee Engagement – Patrick Lencioni
The Five Dysfunctions of a Team – Patrick Lencioni
The Ideal Team Player – Patrick Lencioni
Okay, just about any Patrick Lencioni Book ???? There are other good ones similar. I’ll add them when I remember them.
Great marketing related books
Storybrand – Donald Miller
$100M Offers – Alex Hormozi
$100M Leads – Alex Hormozi
Contagious – Jonah Berger
Unthinking – Harry Beckwith
Influence – Robert B. Cialdini
Presuasion – Robert B. Cialdini
Great sales related books
To Sell is Human – Daniel Pink
The Ultimate Sales Machine – Chet Holmes
The Psychology of Selling – Brian Tracy
The Sales EDGE – Gene McNaughton
Great Problem Solving Books
Stop Guessing – Nat Greene
Think Smarter – Michael Kallet
Problem Solving 101 – Ken Watanabe
The Thinker’s Toolkit – Morgan D. Jones
Why Not? – Barry Nalebuff and Ian Ayres
Great Conflict Resolution Books
Crucial Conversations – Joseph Grenny, Kerry Patterson, Ron McMillan, Al Switzler, and Emily Gregory
When Goliaths Clash- Howard M. Guttman
Difficult Conversations – Douglas Stone, Bruce Patton, and Sheila Heen
Working with You is Killing Me – Katherine Crowley and Kathi Elster
Fierce Conversations – Susan Scott
The Anatomy of Peace – The Arbinger Institute
Great Time Management/Productivity/Procrastination books
Get More Done at Work – Thomas R. Harris
Organize Tomorrow Today – Dr. Jason Selk and Tom Bartow
15 Secrets Successful People Know About Time Management – Kevin Kruse
Eat That Frog! – Brian Tracy
Master Your Time Master Your Life – Brian Tracy
Getting Things Done – David Allen
Great Personal Goal Setting Books
Goals! – Brian Tracy
The Magic Lamp – Keith Ellis
Your Best Year Ever – Michael Hyatt
Hard Goals – Mark Murphy
Great (or Greatish) Business-specific Goal Setting Books
The 4 Disciplines of Execution – Chris McChesney, Sean Covey, and Jim Huling
Measure What Matters – John Doerr
Great Decision Making Books
Decisive – Dan Heath and Chip Heath
Thinking in Bets – Annie Duke
Thinking, Fast and Slow – Daniel Kahneman
Smart Choices – John S. Hammond, Ralph L. Keeney, and Howard Raiffa
Nudge – Richard H. Thaler and Cass R. Sunstein
The paradox of Choice – Barry Schwartz
Why Not? – Barry Nalebuff and Ian Ayres
Algorithms to Live By – Brian Christian and Tom Griffiths
How We Decide – Jonah Lehrer
Great personal growth books
13 Things Mentally Strong People Don’t Do – Amy Morin
The 5 Elements of Effective Thinking – Edward B. Burger and Michael Starbird
High Performing Habits – Brendon Burchard
Atomic Habits – James Clear
The Success Principles – Jack Canfield and Janet Switzer
The Bible
Other great books that we’ve enjoyed
Think Again – Adam Grant
Rejecion Proof – Jia Jiang
Cues – Vanessa Van Edwards
The Charisma Myth – Olivia Fox Cabane
Captivate – Vanessa Van Edwards
The Like Switch – Jack Schafer & Marvin Karlins
The Psychology of Money – Morgan Housel
Smarter Faster Better – Charles Duhigg
The War of Art – Steven Pressfield (warning – has a bit of language in it, if that’s a concern)
Deep Work – Cal Newport
How to Fail at Almost Everything and Still Win Big – Scott Adams
Principles – Ray Daleo
The Honest Truth About Dishonesty – Dan Arierly
