Book picks similar to
Entering Startupland: An Essential Guide to Finding the Right Startup Job by Jeff Bussgang
business
entrepreneurship
career
professional-development
Lost and Founder: The Mostly Awful, Sometimes Awesome Truth about Building a Tech Startup
Rand Fishkin - 2018
His company, Moz, makers of marketing software, is now a $45 million/year business, and he's one of the world's leading experts on SEO. But his business and reputation took fifteen years to grow, and his startup began not in a Harvard dorm room but as a mother-and-son family business that fell deeply into debt.Now Fishkin pulls back the curtain on tech startup mythology, exposing the ups and downs of startup life that most CEOs would rather keep secret. For instance: A minimally viable product can be destructive if you launch at the wrong moment. Growth hacking may be the buzzword du jour, but initiatives can fizzle quickly. Revenue and growth won't protect you from layoffs. And venture capital always comes with strings attached.Fishkin's hard-won lessons are applicable to any kind of business environment. Up or down the chain of command, at both early stage startups and mature companies, whether your trajectory is riding high or down in the dumps: this book can help solve your problems, and make you feel less alone for having them.
Elon Musk: Lessons in Life and Business from Elon Musk
Ryan Foster - 2015
It is an inspirational short read that will offer you a concise insight of his life, not only as a simple biography but also as a guide for self-improvement and innovative thinking. The main facts gathered here are drawn from interviews, articles and books about him and explain the simple principles, which he used to build his vast fortune. At the end of each chapter, you will find summarized tips that you can quickly access when you need inspiration or useful advice. Learn the most significant skills and qualities that made Musk one of the most famous and creative entrepreneurs of our time and follow his lessons.
The 24-Carrot Manager
Adrian Gostick - 2002
Providing strategies and solutions for the managers of today, this book offers answers for improving employee commitment and profitability by strategically acknowledging employee effort. How is it done? The deceptively simply answer: with carrots.
Escaping the Build Trap: How Effective Product Management Creates Real Value
Melissa Perri - 2018
Companies that live and die by outputs often fall into the "build trap," cranking out features to meet their schedule rather than the customer’s needs.
In this book, Melissa Perri explains how laying the foundation for great product management can help companies solve real customer problems while achieving business goals. By understanding how to communicate and collaborate within a company structure, you can create a product culture that benefits both the business and the customer. You’ll learn product management principles that can be applied to any organization, big or small.
In five parts, this book explores:
Why organizations ship features rather than cultivate the value those features represent
How to set up a product organization that scales
How product strategy connects a company’s vision and economic outcomes back to the product activities
How to identify and pursue the right opportunities for producing value through an iterative product framework
How to build a culture focused on successful outcomes over outputs
Peopleware: Productive Projects and Teams
Tom DeMarco - 1987
The answers aren't easy -- just incredibly successful.
Never Split the Difference: Negotiating As If Your Life Depended On It
Chris Voss - 2016
Never Split the Difference takes you inside his world of high-stakes negotiations, revealing the nine key principles that helped Voss and his colleagues succeed when it mattered the most – when people’s lives were at stake.Rooted in the real-life experiences of an intelligence professional at the top of his game, Never Split the Difference will give you the competitive edge in any discussion.
Shape Up: Stop Running in Circles and Ship Work that Matters
Ryan Singer - 2019
"This book is a guide to how we do product development at Basecamp. It’s also a toolbox full of techniques that you can apply in your own way to your own process.Whether you’re a founder, CTO, product manager, designer, or developer, you’re probably here because of some common challenges that all software companies have to face."
Cracking the PM Interview: How to Land a Product Manager Job in Technology
Gayle Laakmann McDowell - 2013
Cracking the PM Interview is a comprehensive book about landing a product management role in a startup or bigger tech company. Learn how the ambiguously-named "PM" (product manager / program manager) role varies across companies, what experience you need, how to make your existing experience translate, what a great PM resume and cover letter look like, and finally, how to master the interview: estimation questions, behavioral questions, case questions, product questions, technical questions, and the super important "pitch."
Résumés Are Dead and What to Do About It
Richie Norton - 2012
Covey, RESUMES ARE DEAD is not for the faint of heart. This ebook tackles one of life's most compelling choices: money or meaning? The audio is relevant, timely and career-critical. Learn how to design a career that supports your quest for both money and meaning—providing you the freedom to pursue your dreams and live your ideal lifestyle.This is career development reworked, unconventional and results-driven. Whether you're retired, in the middle of your career, fresh out of college, or have been hit hard by economic crisis, RESUMES ARE DEAD is chock-full of powerful, raw principles that will help you find your footing, contribute to the world in meaningful ways, and simultaneously create your ideal lifestyle.“My verdict: SHEER GENIUS! I love it, I think it’s brilliant, I think it’s bold and courageous, I think it will help people out everywhere.”—Stephen M.R. Covey, author of The New York Times bestseller, The Speed of Trust“Richie hits the nail on the head in the pursuit of dreams. We cannot sit back and wait for life to serve up opportunities, but rather we must create our value and contribute in a powerful way.”—Kenny Anderson, author of Common Denominators for Success“Can I just say WOOOOOOOOOOOW!!! I’m just moved and on fire right now. Very relevant and timely message for our days (and for everyone)!”—Juri Widiger, Brussels, Belgium“This is a great book at so many levels. If you are looking to find your own direction or just need the motivation to move forward, Richie’s book can help. I found it empowering as an employer as well. I want the employees Richie describes in this book, and it helps me to recognize what I need to do to attract and keep those kinds of employees.”—Jeff Heggie, CEO, Kodiak Mountain Stone, Canada“This turned my brain upside-down—in the best way possible!”—Rachel DeVault, photographer, mother, wife, Texas“This really helps me get off my retirement rocking chair and want to do something meaningful for myself and others around me.”—Andy Macatiag, adjunct professor, Chaminade University, Hawaii1st message: “Love the e-book. Thank you for taking the leap and inspiring me. I’m just so grateful for your book! It gave me some meaningful direction.”2nd message: “Richie, I’m headed to an interview tomorrow. I’m beyond stoked and appreciate your e-book. I read it again and it got me pumped. I’ll let you know how it turns out. Thank you, sir.”3rd message: “Dude. I got the job. Thank you for your inspiration!”—Adam Buchanan, Portland, Oregon1st message: “I should NOT have read this just before going to bed last night. I felt so empowered after I read it and I had a million ideas going through my head. Amazing experience, but a little rough on the sleep department.”2nd message: “When I read the book I was stuck in a rut. After reading your book, changes came immediately. I found an internship with a major opera company, introduced myself and was hired within a week. Life is different. Your book gave me the key to a door to the world that I had been staring at my entire life, but I didn’t know how to open.”—Olivia Biddle, Adjunct Professor of Voice and Music
Thinking Like a Boss: Uncover and Overcome the Lies Holding You Back from Success
Kate Crocco - 2020
Maybe you feel the pull to start a business but deep down you're afraid that you don't have what it takes. Maybe you have a great idea but wonder if you're actually qualified to make it happen. Or maybe you want to expand your business, but you're worried about how it will affect your family. If that's you, it's time to start thinking like a boss.In this practical and encouraging book, Kate Crocco exposes the 12 limiting beliefs that are holding you back from your true potential, such as- I should have it all together and I don't- I'm not ready or qualified to start- I don't have enough time- It's already been done before- and moreWith plenty of inspiring true stories and actionable steps you can take--starting now--Thinking Like a Boss will help you turn your limiting beliefs into limitless opportunity.
Predictable Revenue: Turn Your Business Into a Sales Machine with the $100 Million Best Practices of Salesforce.com
Aaron Ross - 2011
This is NOT just another book about how to cold call or close deals. This is an entirely new kind of sales system for CEOs, entrepreneurs and sales VPs to help you build a sales machine. What does it take for your sales team to generate as many highly-qualified new leads as you want, create predictable revenue, and meet your financial goals without your constant focus and attention? Predictable Revenue has the answers!
Flawless Execution: Use the Techniques and Systems of America's Fighter Pilots to Perform at Your Peak and Win the Battles of the Business World
James D. Murphy - 2005
At Mach 2, the instrument panel of an F-15 is screaming out information, the horizon is a blur, the wingman is occupied, the jet is hanging on the edge -- and yet fighter pilots routinely handle the stress. It's not much different in today's unforgiving business world. One slipup and your company is bankrupt before your employees know what hit them.What works on the squadron level for F-15 pilots will also work for your marketing team, sales force, or research and development group. By analyzing the work environment and attacking its centers of gravity in parallel, you'll begin to utilize the Plan-Brief-Execute-Debrief-Win cycle that will rapidly impact your business's future success. U.S. fighter squadrons have been using this program for nearly fifty years to reduce their mistake rate, cut casualties and equipment losses, and rack up an envious victory record. Now, with Flawless Execution, your business can too.
Resonate: Present Visual Stories that Transform Audiences
Nancy Duarte - 2010
So why then do so many audiences leave feeling like they've wasted their time? All too often, presentations don't resonate with the audience and move them to transformative action.Just as the author's first book helped presenters become visual communicators, Resonate helps you make a strong connection with your audience and lead them to purposeful action. The author's approach is simple: building a presentation today is a bit like writing a documentary. Using this approach, you'll convey your content with passion, persuasion, and impact.Author has a proven track record, including having created the slides in Al Gore's Oscar-winning An Inconvenient TruthFocuses on content development methodologies that are not only fundamental but will move people to action Upends the usual paradigm by making the audience the hero and the presenter the mentor Shows how to use story techniques of conflict and resolution Presentations don't have to be boring ordeals. You can make them fun, exciting, and full of meaning. Leave your audiences energized and ready to take action with Resonate.
HBR's 10 Must Reads on Strategy (including featured article “What Is Strategy?” by Michael E. Porter)
Michael E. PorterRobert S. Kaplan - 2010
Porter). We've combed through hundreds of Harvard Business Review articles and selected the most important ones to help you catalyze your organization's strategy development and execution.HBR's 10 Must Reads on Strategy will inspire you to:• Distinguish your company from rivals• Clarify what your company will and won't do• Craft a vision for an uncertain future• Create blue oceans of uncontested market space• Use the Balanced Scorecard to measure your strategy• Capture your strategy in a memorable phrase• Make priorities explicit• Allocate resources early• Clarify decision rights for faster decision making"This collection of best-selling articles includes: featured article "What Is Strategy?" by Michael E. Porter, "The Five Competitive Forces That Shape Strategy," "Building Your Company's Vision," "Reinventing Your Business Model," "Blue Ocean Strategy," "The Secrets to Successful Strategy Execution," "Using the Balanced Scorecard as a Strategic Management System," "Transforming Corner-Office Strategy into Frontline Action," "Turning Great Strategy into Great Performance," and "Who Has the D? How Clear Decision Roles Enhance Organizational Performance."
Alchemy: The Surprising Power of Ideas That Don't Make Sense
Rory Sutherland - 2019
Wonderfully applicable to everything in life, and funny as hell.’ Nassim Nicholas TalebTo be brilliant, you have to be irrationalWhy is Red Bull so popular – even though everyone hates the taste? Why do countdown boards on platforms take away the pain of train delays? And why do we prefer stripy toothpaste?We think we are rational creatures. Economics and business rely on the assumption that we make logical decisions based on evidence.But we aren’t, and we don’t.In many crucial areas of our lives, reason plays a vanishingly small part. Instead we are driven by unconscious desires, which is why placebos are so powerful. We are drawn to the beautiful, the extravagant and the absurd – from lavish wedding invitations to tiny bottles of the latest fragrance. So if you want to influence people’s choices you have to bypass reason. The best ideas don’t make rational sense: they make you feel more than they make you think.Rory Sutherland is the Ogilvy advertising legend whose TED Talks have been viewed nearly 7 million times. In his first book he blends cutting-edge behavioural science, jaw-dropping stories and a touch of branding magic, on his mission to turn us all into idea alchemists. The big problems we face every day, whether as an individual or in society, could very well be solved by letting go of logic and embracing the irrational.