The Personal MBA Recommended Reading List
Category: Applied Psychology
2007 Edition: Revised and Updated
by Josh Kaufman
Business schools don’t have a monopoly on worldly wisdom. If you're serious about learning advanced business principles, the Personal MBA can help. The Personal MBA recommended reading list is the tangible result of hundreds of hours of reading and research, and features only the very best books the business press has to offer. So skip the fancy diploma and $150,000 loan - you can get a world-class business education simply by reading these books.
To learn more about the Personal MBA, read the manifesto.
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The Entire List (Printable)
How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie
It has been said that Dale Carnegie knew more about human nature than anyone before or since. After reading How to Win Friends and Influence People
Based on the core idea that people have a fundamental psychological need to feel important, Carnegie details “three fundamental techniques for handling people, six ways to make people like you, twelve ways to win people to your way of thinking, and nine ways to change people without arousing resentment.”
Each of the principles Carnegie discusses is presented in a clear memorable way, usually accompanied with examples that illustrate the principle in action. You'll learn about the importance of remembering names, asking questions instead of giving orders, speaking with others about their interests, emphasizing areas of agreement, giving people a reputation to live up to, and allowing people to come to your conclusions on their own.
Many of Carnegie’s tips on working with people seem to be common sense, but beneath all of the stories and anecdotes is a simple, valuable lesson: if you choose to be genuinely interested in the people you work with and you let them know it, they will always be happy to work with you.
Crucial Conversations by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, and Al Switzler
Life is full of difficult situations that require not-so-fun conversations with the people around us, both at home and at work. Arguing is not the answer, and avoiding the issue doesn’t solve anything – you have to be courageous and skilled enough to have Crucial Conversations
By reading this book and mastering the principles it teaches, you can diffuse or avoid many unpleasant and unproductive situations before they occur. By setting expectations, listening with your full attention, and showing respect for the other party, you'll be able to keep moving forward in a productive and enjoyable way instead of getting bogged-down in disagreement and strife.
Major topics include: making the situation emotionally safe for both parties to speak, how to manage your emotions, how to discuss sensitive issues, how to persuade others without being abrasive or pushy, and how to work with people who are upset or angry.
Secrets of Consulting by Gerald M. Weinberg
If you are responsible for influencing others as part of your job, you can learn a great deal from professional consultants: it's what they do for a living. Gerry Weinberg has been in the consulting business for more than three decades, and he knows a thing or two about working with people. Originally published 22 years ago, Secrets of Consulting
Part of the magic of this book is Weinberg's masterful storytelling. Instead of blasting you non-stop with "do this" and "don't do that" statements, Weinberg shares his insights using short stories and anecdotes that illustrate each principle in action. It's easy to dismiss the importance of statements like "don't spread yourself too thin" or "once you eliminate your #1 problem, #2 gets a promotion", but when they're brought to life as "The Law of Raspberry Jam" and "Rudy's Rutabaga Rule", you'll never forget them.
This book isn't just for consultants: if you're ever asked for advice, using the principles outlined in this book can help ensure that your advice is taken favorably and is ultimately acted upon. You'll also find this book useful if you're in the market for a consultant - it'll give you good advice on what to look for, as well as what to avoid.
Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert B. Cialdini
A self-described "sucker" for sales tactics, Robert Cialdini was every salesman's dream prospect, and he wanted to know why. To find out, Dr. Cialdini, a social psychologist, worked undercover in fields like sales, PR, advertising, and fund-raising to discover what actually makes people comply with the demands of others. Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion
Through his research, Cialdini identified six ways that people are unsuspectingly (and often automatically) persuaded: reciprocity, scarcity, liking, authority, social proof, and commitment/consistency. Knowing these natural psychological tendencies will help you in two ways: (1) you'll become more persuasive, and (2) you'll be able to identify when these tendencies are present, protecting you from being misled in the future.
As a side note, Influence is on the recommended reading list of Charlie Munger, Warren Buffett’s long-time business partner, who picked up some of his basic psychological models from this book. Munger was so impressed by Cialdini’s thorough explanation of how rational decision-making can break down that he gave Cialdini one Class A share of Berkshire Hathaway stock (currently worth $109,000) for his “contributions to humanity.” How’s that for a strong recommendation?
Sources of Power: How People Make Decisions by Gary Klein
When decision-making is taught in business schools, it's typically presented as a rational, linear process: gather information, analyze the possible solutions, and select the one that best fits the objective. There's one tiny little problem with this "rational choice model": in the real world, 99% of decisions aren't made that way.
Gary Klein studies time-constrained, high-stakes decision-making in the field, and in Sources of Power: How People Make Decisions
Much of Klein's research is focused on the military and civil service, so you'll follow a team of firefighters trying to rescue a woman from a car hanging off the side of a bridge, observe an aircraft carrier officer order his gunners to shoot down an unidentified bogey, and observe the crew of Apollo 13 as they discover the reality of their situation, formulate plans, and adjust their goals and actions accordingly. Along the way, you'll be exposed to the key elements of Klein's "Recognition-Primed" decision-making model, which takes into account elements like experience, intuition, and mental simulation that allow human beings to make extraordinarily complex decisions quickly and accurately.
In this book, you'll learn about the importance of communicating intent and context, asking clarifying questions, using analogy and metaphor, and how to deal with uncertainty and lack of information. By understanding how people actually make decisions, you'll be equipped to provide your colleagues with the facts and context they need to make smart, informed decisions, and you'll have a better understanding of how to ensure your decisions are as good as they can possibly be.
Deep Survival by Laurence Gonzales
On the face of it, this book has absolutely nothing to do with business: it's a collection of stories about people who have found themselves fighting for their lives, and have survived. There is, however, a method to my madness.
If you want to really learn about a complex system like the human mind, study what happens when it's pushed to the breaking point. Deep Survival
Between stories of mountain climbers getting caught in an avalanche, hikers getting lost in the wilderness, and sailors being shipwrecked without equipment, you'll learn about the importance of "Positive Mental Attitude", the effect of stress and uncertainty on physical and mental performance, and the importance of being present in the moment and accepting the current reality, no matter how bad things seem.
Life in the business world can be tough: layoffs, recessions, and business failures are not uncommon, and this book will help you tremendously if you ever find yourself in hard times. As in life, survival in business is a combination of attitude and skill, and this book can help you develop the mental and emotional toughness necessary to make it through to better days.
3-D Negotiation by David A. Lax and James K. Sebenius
Once you’re at the bargaining table, 2/3 of the negotiation is already over, and tactics can only take you so far. In 3-D Negotiation
Designing the proposed deal is the second dimension of negotiating, and it can determine success or failure. Information is king here, and accurate, detailed knowledge of your negotiation partner's position can help you create a deal that serves both of your interests while ensuring your most important needs are met.
The third and most commonly overlooked dimension of negotiation is the deal setup: "ensuring that the right parties have been approached, in the right sequence, to deal with the right issues that engage the right set of interests, at the right table, at the right time, under the right expectations, and facing the right consequences of walking away if there is no deal."
Negotiating a complex deal successfully takes planning, analysis, perseverance, critical thinking, and hard work, but by thinking through the entire deal from start-to-finish instead of obsessing about bargaining tactics, you'll have the upper hand.
Bargaining for Advantage by G. Richard Shell
Negotiating tactics are still important, however, and Bargaining For Advantage
Most books on negotiation fall toward the extremes of handling bargaining relationships: heavy-handed power plays or compromise-to-keep-everyone-happy. Shell strikes a fine balance between getting what you want and strengthening and preserving your relationship with your negotiating partner. Bargaining is a process, and only by identifying your goals, priorities, and points of leverage will you be able to identify a solution that's acceptable to everyone involved.
This book also takes into account that more and more negotiations are being conducted remotely by phone, e-mail, or instant messaging. Negotiation in a networked world has many advantages and disadvantages that are different from face-to-face bargaining, and you'll find the recommended tactics useful in almost any situation imaginable.
Made to Stick by Chip and Dan Heath
No one has the goal of communicating ideas that people immediately forget and fail to act upon. More often than not, however, when people attempt to get others to remember and take action on important ideas, they fail miserably. (For proof, try to remember the last boring PowerPoint presentation you sat through.)
In Made to Stick
One very useful mental model you'll be exposed to in Made to Stick is "The Curse of Knowledge." Just because you know exactly what you mean when you're communicating doesn't mean your audience will always be able to follow you - you must take care to present contextual information in a "sticky" way. By using the principles the Heath Brothers explain in this book, you can overcome the Curse of Knowledge and craft an idea that will spread on its own.
Regardless of what idea you're trying to spread, this book will give you a simple, useful framework for tuning your message for maximum impact.
Purchase All Nine Books
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