The Personal MBA Recommended Reading List

Category: Business History

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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Money and Power: The History of Business by Howard Means

It's easy to forget that, historically speaking, the current role of business in society is a relatively recent phenomenon. Based on a CNBC documentary by David Grubin, Money and Power: The History of Business traces the development of modern business from its roots in Medieval Europe all the way to the dawn of the Information Age.

Along the way, you'll follow the careers of some of history's greatest (and worst) businessmen: St. Godric, Cosimo de’ Medici, Phillip II of Spain, the merchants behind Tulipmania, James Watt and Matthew Boulton, the shareholders of the American Transcontinental Railroad, J.P. Morgan, John D. Rockefeller, Henry Ford, Robert W. Woodruff, the staff behind the merger of Time Warner, and Bill Gates.

This book is the most concise yet comprehensive history of modern business currently available. With engaging storytelling and a fantastic sense of relevant detail, this entertaining and informative history will give you a very good sense of how the business world came to be how it is now.

(Discuss this book in the PMBA Member Forums)

An Empire of Wealth by John Steele Gordon

After you read this book, you'll understand why John Steele Gordon claims that “the history of America is the history of business.”

Stretching from the settlements of the early American explorers to the events of September 11th, An Empire of Wealth will give you a clear and vivid picture of the role of business in the growth and evolution of the United States as a world economic, political, and cultural power.

Gordon is a master narrator, and his grasp of history as well as economics and business make this book on American history an enjoyable as well as informative read. You'll learn how a business financing innovation (the joint-stock company) enabled British entrepreneurs to pool their capital for expeditions to the New World; how the early settlements struggled to support themselves until a viable cash export crop (tobacco) was discovered; and how the high degree of economic and social freedoms enabled generations of entrepreneurs to "pull themselves up by their bootstraps" in the hopes of creating a better life for themselves and their families.

From the introduction of steam power to the burst of the Internet bubble in 2000, this is no dry academic history text: it's downright riveting. If you're interested in economics and American history, you'll really enjoy this book.

(Discuss this book in the PMBA Member Forums)

Brand New: How Entrepreneurs Earned Consumer’s Trust from Wedgewood to Dell by Nancy F. Koehn

Consumer brands like Starbucks, Heinz, and Dell are such fixtures of modern life that it's easy to forget that product branding is still a relatively new phenomenon. This book will show you how these brands developed.

Brand New tells the story of six entrepreneurs who built national brands that changed the world of business: Josiah Wedgwood, Henry Heinz, Marshall Field, Estee Lauder, Howard Schultz, and Michael Dell.

By examining the companies these innovators created alongside the business and social environment in which they worked, Nancy Koehn presents six detailed, fascinating case studies of how these entrepreneurs developed brands and distribution systems that took full advantage of major changes in the marketplace.

Comprehensive without being dry, this book is a very detailed look into the lives of people who saw an opportunity and worked tirelessly to make their visions a reality.

(Discuss this book in the PMBA Member Forums)

Founders at Work: Stories of Startups’ Early Days by Jessica Livingston

Founders at Work is the closest thing that exists to a comprehensive history of technology-fueled entrepreneurial revolution of the 1980s and 1990s.

Using an easy-to-read interview format, you'll listen as Livingston interviews the founders of companies like 37signals, Adobe, Alliant Computer, Apple, ArsDigita, Blogger, Bloglines, Craigslist, Del.icio.us, Excite, Firefox, Flickr, Fog Creek Software, Google, Groove Networks, Hotmail, Hot or Not, Lotus, Lycos, Marimba, Paypal, Research in Motion, Six Apart, Software Arts, Tickle, TiVo, TripAdvisor, Viaweb, WebTV, and Yahoo.

The most striking thing about these interviews, aside from sheer amount of useful advice and perspective they provide, is how honest and frank the interviewees are. The entrepreneurs Livingston interviews aren't shy about discussing the good, the bad, and the ugly of life in a startup, and you'll benefit from what they've learned in the process of creating their businesses.

Even if technology's not your cup of tea, if you're considering starting a business, this book is required reading.

(Discuss this book in the PMBA Member Forums)

The Books of Business Wisdom Series by Peter Krass

What would you give to have hundreds of successful business leaders tell you everything they've learned from their experiences? Peter Krass has compiled hundreds of essays written by some of the best minds in business, past and present, and you can read them all in these wonderful books.

Each volume contains over 50 essays by some of the best-known and well-respected people in business. This is a collection of essays, not a narrative, so you'll learn directly from legendary professionals like Lee Iacocca, Bill Gates, Jack Welch, John D. Rockefeller, Andrew Carnegie, Henry Ford, Lillian Vernon, Charles Schwab, Mary Kay Ash, Sam Walton, B.C. Forbes, and Benjamin Franklin.

This is not a "how-to" series: it's an opportunity to learn how others have have accomplished their goals and overcome significant challenges. Pick whichever topic you're most interested in and read a few essays each day. You’ll think about business differently after hearing from these legends in their own words.

(Tip: to purchase one of these titles, click on the picture of the book.)

(Discuss this book in the PMBA Member Forums)

Purchase All Nine Books

You can purchase all nine of these books from Amazon.com by clicking the box below:

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