No one wants to add to the scrap heap. But if you restrict yourself to only reading articles from people who have actually created a business, hit some revenue target, or broken out of the MVP-in-an-incubator stage, there’s very few books and blogs left. This is why we hope this book is relevant to you.It’s not packed with startup clichés, nor is it steeped in myths about how huge companies got their break. Yes, Airbnb sold cereal before they were a 31 billion dollar company, and Slack was one hell of a pivot, but those wells have been over-drilled for their useful lessons at this point. This book is our honest, opinionated take on what we’ve learned building Intercom over the past 6 years. You won’t like it all, you won’t agree with it all, but you’re not supposed to. Your mileage will vary.

     Inspirational technologist Shaku Atre, who rose from second-class citizen in an Indian village to prominence as one of the first women in technology AND, the legendary Hal Elrod creator of the bestselling Miracle Morning series of books. Exclusively for you at: http://nichedownbook.com/thankyou “Be known for a niche that you own. This is a powerful idea. One that transforms how people think about their lives, careers and business ventures.” — Hal Elrod, author of the best-seller, The Miracle Morning: The Not-So-Obvious Secret Guaranteed to Transform Your Life Do you have the courage to stand out? From the inventor of cubism Pablo Picasso to Spanx founder Sarah Blakely, the people we admire most in the world are original, unique, different. They take risks, claim new ground. They do not fit in, they stand out. And they do not compete for attention in the traditional sense. Most of us are tricked into believing that achieving personal and professional success means fitting in. What it really takes is the courage to stand out. Are you ready? In this dynamic, direct and succinct book, Lochhead and Clancy describe a research-based approach to thinking about your life and business called “category design.” Through a narrative stuffed with inspiring stories, they examine how legendary people — especially legendary entrepreneurs — introduce the world to new ways of thinking and solving problems. They reveal how to exploit the exponential value of what makes you different vs. the incremental value of what makes you better. And they show how to conquer a market category that you design, becoming its de facto queen or king. After reading this ground-taking book, you’ll gain the insights required to become known for a niche that you own.

    Willis Johnson, the founder of Copart [CPRT], offers up a personal and inspirational account of this journey to the top including lessons he learned from love, war and building a global, multi-billion dollar business. Even at the pinnacle of success, Willis remained grounded in his family-first values. His stories will inspire and provoke the entrepreneur in everyone to start building their dream.

    The book profiles both budding and experienced entrepreneurs across a broad range of industries (from fashion designers to hoteliers) in cities across the globe (from Copenhagen to Dubai). Readers will learn how today’s industry leaders handle both their successes and failures, achieve work-life balance, find motivation in the face of adversity, and so much more.

    For anyonewho wants to thrive in this new order, this requires a revolution in thinking--a steady stream of disruptive strategies and unexpected solutions. "Disrupt" "Think the Unthinkable to Spark Transformation in Your Business" shows how to generate and execute those solutions--a disruptive approach for a disruptive age. Author Luke Williams demonstrates his experience creating disruptive products and services at frog design, one of the world s leading innovation firms. Williams combines the fluid creativity of "disruptive thinking" with the analytical rigor that is indispensable to business success. The result is a simple yet complete five-stage process for imagining a powerful market disruption and transforming it into reality. Using many examples and a book-length case study of Little Miss Matched, Williams shows how the more unexpected an idea, the smaller the number of competitors, and the more successful the company that brings it to market. He walks through generating a disruptive hypothesis, defining a disruptive market opportunity, creating multiple disruptive ideas, shaping them into an actionable solution, and persuading key stakeholders to adopt or invest in the solution. "Disrupt "offers readers a systematic way to redefine the future of a company, catch entire industries by surprise, and leave competitors scrambling to catch up."

    It was also a weapon.Simplicity isn’t just a design principle at Apple—it’s a value that permeates every level of the organization. The obsession with Simplicity is what separates Apple from other technology companies. It’s what helped Apple recover from near death in 1997 to become the most valuable company on Earth in 2011.Thanks to Steve Jobs’s uncompromising ways, you can see Simplicity in everything Apple does: the way it’s structured, the way it innovates, and the way it speaks to its customers.It’s by crushing the forces of Complexity that the company remains on its stellar trajectory.As ad agency creative director, Ken Segall played a key role in Apple’s resurrection, helping to create such critical marketing campaigns as Think different. By naming the iMac, he also laid the foundation for naming waves of i-products to come.Segall has a unique perspective, given his years of experience creating campaigns for other iconic tech companies, including IBM, Intel, and Dell. It was the stark contrast of Apple’s ways that made Segall appreciate the power of Simplicity—and inspired him to help others benefit from it.In Insanely Simple, you’ll be a fly on the wall inside a conference room with Steve Jobs, and on the receiving end of his midnight phone calls. You’ll understand how his obsession with Simplicity helped Apple perform better and faster, sometimes saving millions in the process. You’ll also learn, for example, how to:• Think Minimal: Distilling choices to a minimum brings clarity to a company and its customers—as Jobs proved when he replaced over twenty product models with a lineup of four.• Think Small: Swearing allegiance to the concept of “small groups of smart people” raises both morale and productivity.• Think Motion: Keeping project teams in constant motion focuses creative thinking on well-defined goals and minimizes distractions.• Think Iconic: Using a simple, powerful image to symbolize the benefit of a product or idea creates a deeper impression in the minds of customers.• Think War: Giving yourself an unfair advantage—using every weapon at your disposal—is the best way to ensure that your ideas survive unscathed.Segall brings Apple’s quest for Simplicity to life using fascinating (and previously untold) stories from behind the scenes. Through his insight and wit, you’ll discover how companies that leverage this power can stand out from competitors—and individuals who master it can become critical assets to their organizations.

    And to do this as a public sector company, having to follow all governmental systems and procedures and having to please both its masters in the government and Suzuki Motor Corporation.However, the Maruti project succeeded and in ways that were unimaginable in 1983. the car revolutionized the industry and put a county on wheels. Suddenly, ordinary middle-class men and women could aspire to own a reliable, economical and modern car and the steep sales target were easily met. 26 years later, the company, now free of government controls and facing competition from the world's major manufacturers who have entered the Indian market,still leads the way. Not only that, cars made by Maruti can be seen in all continents.By any yardstick, it is an incredible story, involving grit, management skill and entrepreneurship of a high order. R. C. Bhargava, who was at the helm of the company and is currently its chairman, co-writing with senior journalist and author Seetha, shows how it was done in this riveting account of a landmark achievement.

    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. Whether you are the marketing director of a multibillion dollar company, the owner of a small business, a politician running for office, or the lead singer of a rock band, Building a StoryBrand will forever transform the way you talk about who you are, what you do, and the unique value you bring to your customers.

    Indian companies took up products that came in from the West and either replicated it or re-engineered it. Indians, when they went to other countries, were part of creative teams that came up with, and implemented great ideas. But, when in their own country, Indians do not have a reputation for coming up with innovative ideas. So, what is it that stops them?The author laments this situation in his book Making Breakthrough Innovation Happen: How 11 Indians Pulled Off The Impossible. He points out that even the Indian branches of MNCs do not see their Indian operations as centers of innovations. They just work on things that have already been conceived elsewhere.In this book, Munshi tells the true stories of 11 breakthrough ideas conceived and executed by Indians. These ground-breaking examples show that if someone dares to think out-of-the box and follows their dream, then seemingly impossible things can be achieved.The examples cover a wide range of industries. from public sector to private sector, and from MNCs and huge Indian companies to startup firms. The book talks about 11 ideas that had a deep impact, and achievements that were original and influential.The examples include the creation of the slimmest water proof watches by Titan, and the business model of Cavinkare - a small company that took on giants in the field of personal care products and succeeded. It includes the story of how Aravind Eye Hospital came up with an idea - assembly line surgery - to improve the productivity of its surgeons. Today, the hospital treats 70% of its patients free of charge and yet manages to make a good profit.Then, there is the case of the Hindi daily, Dainik Bhaskar, that combined intensive in-house marketing surveys and research with innovative marketing ideas to capture a large segment of the market in each new city they entered.The book throws light on the innovative strategies of Trichy police to turn around a city that was crime prone and known for communal clashes into one of the safest in the country. He further talks about the power backup company Su-kam that succeeded by creating its own niche, and Shantha Biotech that launched a low-cost Hepatitis B vaccine.The other success stories include Surat City’s transformation after the plague outbreak into one of the cleanest cities in the country, and Chic shampoo’s innovation of introducing sachet packs, which revolutionized the retail market. Making Breakthrough Innovation Happen: How 11 Indians Pulled Off The Impossible further elaborates how Bosch India came up with a new cost-effective pump that meets the Euro standards, ITC’s e-Choupal marketing model, and Chola Vehicle Finance’s innovative business model.All these real-life examples in Making Breakthrough Innovation Happen: How 11 Indians Pulled Off The Impossible give an insight into the ability of Indians to go beyond conventions and create innovative products and strategies that could turn their respective industries on their heads.About the AuthorPorus Munshi is a psychology graduate and has a passion for helping people realize their potential. He is also a partner consultant at Erehwon Innovation Consulting.He previously contributed a column to Hindu Busnessline called Work and You. His book, Making Breakthrough Innovation Happen: How 11 Indians Pulled Off The Impossible, is already on its second reprint.Munshi works with clients and helps them release mental blocks and conventional restraints to help them achieve their goals and dreams. He helps facilitate innovative thinking and organizational transformations. Besides his passion for innovation and realizing the human potential, he has an avid interest in martial arts, from Karate to Tai Chi.

    Everything you need to know to get the most bang from your Prime bucks.

    Making matters worse, those leading the demos can rarely afford to spend months at a time figuring out how to improve their success rates. In Just F*Ing Demo!, Rob Falcone outlines the tactics that helped him overcome these challenges, lead clear, relevant demos, and exceed revenue generation goals quarter after quarter. The book will teach readers: - How to structure a demo; - How to ask questions that uncover what your audience truly cares about; - How to translate audience needs into a flow that is extremely easy to follow; - How to use simple but powerful interpersonal tactics within the demo itself. Just F*Ing Demo! distills Falcone’s highly successful training program into an intentionally concise yet impactful read. From the entrepreneur seeking investment to the sales professional chasing a deal, anyone can carve out a few hours, read this book, and immediately make their demos kick ass.

    As Senior VP of Apple, Jay served as Steve's right-hand man and trouble-shooter, overseeing all corporate operations and business planning, as well as software development and HR. In "Leading Apple with Steve Jobs," Jay details how Steve managed and motivated his people--and what every manager can learn from Jobs about motivating people to do the best work of their lives.Steve Jobs used the phrase "Pirates Not the Navy" as a rallying cry--a metaphor to "Think Different." In the days of developing the Macintosh, it became a four-word mission statement. It expresses the heart of Apple and Steve. The management principles that grew out of that statement form the backbone of this book. Explains how to find talented people who will understand your objectives and be able to make a contribution to that effort Lists traits that can determine whether a person will be so committed to the vision that they will provide their own motivationExplains how to ensure that your employees hold an allegiance to the captain and to his/her shipmates, and also possess the ability to come up with original, unique ways to approach a problem, and be self-guided with a strong sense of direction"Leading Apple with Steve Jobs" will shift your thought paradigm and inspire you to assemble and lead innovative teams.

    I saw them spending more and more time with their team in the office until their week became highly laborious. They would only leave the office to eat and sleep. I don’t mean to say that we should only work from 9 to 5, 5 days a week and then completely ignore our work on weekends. I know that sometimes we have to put in the extra hours to meet our deadlines and achieve our targets; however, when this becomes the norm, it means that we need to consider alternatives such as working smarter rather than harder. This is the reason why I am writing this book Dedicated to all Entrepreneurs, Business Owners, CEOs, Managing Directors and Company Managers who think that every working day should be 48 hours, during which the need to eat, sleep and socialize is nonexistent.  To all those who wait for the weekend just to rest...I, too, was one of them so many years back!

    It was their natural ability to start with why that enabled them to inspire those around them and to achieve remarkable things.In studying the leaders who've had the greatest influence in the world, Simon Sinek discovered that they all think, act, and communicate in the exact same way—and it's the complete opposite of what everyone else does. Sinek calls this powerful idea The Golden Circle, and it provides a framework upon which organizations can be built, movements can be lead, and people can be inspired. And it all starts with WHY.Any organization can explain what it does; some can explain how they do it; but very few can clearly articulate why. WHY is not money or profit—those are always results. WHY does your organization exist? WHY does it do the things it does? WHY do customers really buy from one company or another? WHY are people loyal to some leaders, but not others?Starting with WHY works in big business and small business, in the nonprofit world and in politics. Those who start with WHY never manipulate, they inspire. And the people who follow them don't do so because they have to; they follow because they want to.Drawing on a wide range of real-life stories, Sinek weaves together a clear vision of what it truly takes to lead and inspire. This book is for anyone who wants to inspire others or who wants to find someone to inspire them.

    And when that power is harnessed to create new communities, technologies, businesses or charities, the results can be absolutely stunning. In this book, Alexis will share his ideas, tips and even his own doodles about harnessing the power of the web for good, and along the way, he will share his philosophy with young entrepreneurs all over the globe. At 29, Ohanian has come to personify the dorm-room tech entrepreneur, changing the world without asking permission. Within a couple of years of graduating from the University of Virginia, Ohanian did just that, selling reddit for millions of dollars. He's gone on to start many other companies, like hipmunk and breadpig, all while representing Y Combinator and investing in over sixty other tech startups. Without Their Permission is his personal guidebook as to how other aspiring entrepreneurs can follow in his footsteps.