Alyssa Powell/Business Insider
- Reading is an important common denominator amongst many of the biggest names in business.
- It's a fast way to acquire new information, think creatively, and diversify your perspective.
- Below, we've chosen and compiled 31 of the most influential business books of all time, from "$4" by Eric Ries to "$4" by Adam Smith.
Warren Buffett - arguably the most skilled investor of our time - said $4 was the key to success. "That's how knowledge works. It builds up, like compound interest," he explained.
That's probably why so many important businesspeople make reading a daily ritual. It's why Bill Gates reads $4(roughly one per week) and perhaps why Mark Zuckerberg $4 with the goal of reading one every other week.
If you want exposure to new ideas, modes of thinking, and a compounded aggregate of diverse knowledge, then reading is important. And it's going to help you in business, be it by a mixture of accounts on other corporate successes or failures and lessons on lean startups, or a 2,500-year-old military tome that has been known to influence tactics in boardrooms as much as in war.
We researched and cross-referenced lists of the best business books according to influential business people and major media outlets to bring you this list.
Descriptions provided by Amazon and edited for length.
$4
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Disclosure: This post is brought to you by the $4 team. We highlight products and services you might find interesting. If you buy them, we get a small share of the revenue from the sale from our commerce partners. We frequently receive products free of charge from manufacturers to test. This does not drive our decision as to whether or not a product is featured or recommended. We operate independently from our advertising sales team. We welcome your feedback. Email us at insiderpicks@businessinsider.com.