10 Great Books to Inspire You to Write Your Business Book
January 25, 2022
Articulating book ideas is not a straightforward proposition. There are times when books stall because it is not easy to transform an idea into a tangible manifestation.
Thus, finding inspiration in other sources can help frame one’s ideas into a clearer picture.
To help a business leader find inspiration, books by other influential business professionals can provide a useful frame of reference. Here are ten books to inspire professionals to write their business books.
10 Great Books to Inspire You to Write Your Business Book
1. Steve Jobs by Walter Isaacson
This classic biography features tech pioneer Steve Jobs’ rise from a garage to the heights of the business world.
Serving as both a personal story and business masterclass, the book revolves around interviews and accounts by Jobs himself as well as others that knew him.
This book provides inspiration on how one’s personal story can intertwine with business endeavors.
It is a must-read for anyone looking to find the best way to combine their personal and professional journeys.
2. Losing My Virginity: How I Survived, Had Fun, and Made a Fortune Doing Business My Way by Richard Branson
Richard Branson’s autobiography details his rise to prominence. In particular, Branson highlights how he defied conventional wisdom to put his mark on this business world.
This voluminous account reveals insight into why his business ventures have been successful.
Moreover, readers can distill crucial lessons into why some of his other ventures failed.
Professionals can find inspiration in this volume as it is part autobiography, part business guide.
As such, business leaders looking to share their recipe for success can find a good blueprint in this book.
3. Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap…, and Others Don’t by Jim Collins
Good to Great has become a staple of business literature.
In this book, Collins distills years of research and anecdotal evidence into lessons businesses and professionals can implement to lead their businesses from bad, to average, to great.
Most importantly, the book features personal insights into how leadership is a crucial element in any successful business.
Good to Great provides a model for any professional looking to establish themselves as a subject matter expert.
Professionals who have research and abundant experience can take this book’s approach to present their data.
Moreover, this volume uses a straightforward tone, thus making a highly complex topic digestible for readers of any background.
4. The Millionaire Next Door: The Surprising Secrets of America’s Wealthy by Thomas J. Stanley and William D. Danko
The Millionaire Next Door is a treatise into how America’s wealthy have made their fortune.
After decades of research into behavioral economics, the authors compiled their findings—along with personal observations and data driven analyses—into a roadmap for wealth accumulation and preservation.
This book is a great source of inspiration for anyone looking to take their experience, coupled with data and analytics, and transform both elements into a coherent contribution.
Additionally, subject matter experts can find a useful example to follow in this classic of personal finance.
5. Built from Scratch: How a Couple of Regular Guys Grew the Home Depot from Nothing to $30 Billion by Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank, with Bob Andelman
Built from Scratch chronicles the story of Home Depot founders Bernie Marcus and Arthur Blank.
This fascinating book tells how Marcus and Blank grew their business from nothing and transformed it into a multi-billion-dollar enterprise.
Taking readers through the authors’ dismissal from their jobs up to their crowning achievements, Built from Scratch is a great source of inspiration for anyone looking to write a company history book.
Professionals, founders, and business owners looking to chronicle their company’s story must read Built from Scratch.
6. Idea Man: A Memoir by the Co-Founder of Microsoft by Paul Allen
Idea Man is a compelling memoir by Paul Allen. As the co-founder of Microsoft, he was the less public figure behind the corporate giant.
In this book, he recounts his experiences while delivering useful insights into his business dealings.
Throughout the book, Allen goes into detail about his thought process and how he approached his life following his retirement from Microsoft.
In this memoir, business leaders can find a guide on how to frame their personal contributions to their specific domain.
This book can serve as a model by which professionals from all walks of life can systematize the lessons they want to preserve for generations to come.
7. Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill
Think and Grow Rich is a classic of the business world.
In this book, Hill chronicles his experiences with wealthy individuals.
In particular, he distills these experiences into lessons and principles anyone can follow on their way to building wealth.
Think and Grow Rich helped catapult Hill into subject matter expert territory.
Business professionals looking to translate their experiences and expertise into a methodical guide can find inspiration in this timeless work.
The lessons and principles contained in this tome remain relevant nearly one hundred years later. Thus, business professionals from all walks of life can find the inspiration they need in this book to translate their acumen into a subject matter expert masterpiece.
8. Shark Tales: How I Turned $1,000 Into a Billion Dollar Business Bu Barbara Corcoran with Bruce Littlefield
Shark Tales is a memoir/autobiography about real estate mogul Barbara Corcoran.
This book offers various facets of her personal and business life.
It is a company history book, memoir, and autobiography all polled into one.
In this story, readers can discover the secrets and insights that led to Corcoran’s highly successful business empire despite her humble beginning.
Shark Tales inspires readers to write about their transformational journeys.
Moreover, this book delivers a clear roadmap for entrepreneurs seeking to shed light on their personal brand of success.
9. The Martha Rule by Martha Stewart
Celebrity juggernaut Martha Stewart distills her expertise into ten clear-cut rules business professionals can follow to navigate the corporate landscape successfully.
Stewart flexes her subject matter expert muscle to deliver a masterclass on running a successful business in this book.
Business professionals looking to share their expertise as subject matter experts can find inspiration in this highly informative volume. In particular, focusing on how Stewart frames her rules can help aspiring authors present their knowledge in an easily digestible format.
10. Start Something that Matters by Blake Mycoskie
In Start Something that Matters, readers discover a feel-good story about giving back.
The story centers on Blake Mycoskie’s soul-searching journey following multiple failed startups. He founded TOMS based on the idea of giving back to poor children around the world.
This book is a fascinating combination of personal and company history. Additionally, the author reveals his recipe for success following failure.
This book inspires readers, especially after succeeding in the face of failure. In particular, entrepreneurs can find a wonderful source of inspiration to combine personal causes that matter with successful business or charitable ventures.
Making Sense of It All
Ultimately, a business book is about reflecting one’s own journey through the business world.
The books described in this article serve as examples of how other successful individuals have leveraged their subject matter expertise to create masterclasses.
Nevertheless, there may be times when inspiration may not necessarily translate into immediate writing success. As such, hiring a ghostwriter or ghostwriting agency can help make a book idea come to fruition.
Most importantly, the aim is to ensure that great book ideas become a reality.
