22 books to get savvy with business, brand and money in 2023

books to get savvy with business, brand and money.

Give a boost to your success blueprint with these 3 essential elements to entrepreneurial success  – a growth-centric mindset, a brand presence that helps differentiate you, and a smart strategy with managing money. The best business books for savvy entrepreneurs have known to be game changers.

Give a boost to your entrepreneurial success! For a growth-centric mindset as well as smarts, read these books to get savvy with business, brand and money.

You can tread the learning curve or you can be smarter and learn even faster from expert insights. Top entrepreneurs and business owners talk about the books that inspired them in the areas of entrepreneurship, brand building and financial strength.

How to do your best and then get better – Read these 22 books to get savvy with business, brand and money!

Best Books on Building a Business

Vision without execution usually flops

Traction by Gino Wickman - top business books for savvy entrepreneurs. Maroon Oak

Veronica Romney, President and Co-Founder of LoSoMo finds that for her, Traction by Gino Wickman is “like 30 of the best business books into one. It’s the bible of how to organize your company at any size revenue and get everyone on the same page. Especially during the first couple of years as an entrepreneur, this book helped me to keep all aspects of my business in line when everything felt like it was zig-zagging.”

Robin Levine, Founder at Scouted swears by Principles by Ray Dalio. “Some of the nuggets my co-founder and I rely on most come from here. For example, the need to visualize and then granularize your vision. As an example – you can be getting better but you can still be failing to achieve your goal.”

Principles by Ray Dalio - top business books for savvy entrepreneurs. Maroon Oak

Turn a no to a yes (without being pushy)

Persuasion - top business books for savvy entrepreneurs. Maroon Oak

Christy Cook, Founder & CEO at Teach My feels that Arlene Dickinson is the one woman entrepreneur whose work has resonated throughout the key years of building her business. Her book Persuasion – A New Approach To Changing Minds and All is “full of great tips on how to pitch a business idea, get people to buy in and savvy sales techniques.”

If opportunity doesn’t knock, build a door

Kristi Soomer of Encircled likes Million Dollar Woman by Julia Pimsleur. “This book is all about scaling from a ‘kitchen table’ business to a million dollar plus organization. It covers not only the how, but the what, the why and what may happen along the way as your business shifts and changes.

Scaling your business fast, is an exciting and crazy journey. It’s nice to finally read along with a book from a female perspective on growing your business triple digits.”

Million Dollar Women - top business books for women entrepreneurs. Maroon Oak
You are a BadAss - best business books for savvy entrepreneurs. Maroon Oak

Latoya Mathews of L&R Image Group shares that You are a Badass by Jen Sincero has bolstered her entrepreneurial journey. “This book has really helped me to tap into who I am really am, and surrendering to the universe to make things happen. To stop doubting myself and love me.”

Jamie King,  The Slay Coach LLC  finds You Are A Badass at Making Money by Jen Sincero to be valuable.

“It’s the second of her “Badass” books, and this one really hits the nail on the money relationship head. It opens women’s eyes to all of the potential to attract and make more money, using our unique gifts in this world. It really helped me open my eyes to the power of money energy. Once I started investing into my business, the money started rolling in.”

Kristin Gibson photographer at 614 Boudoir Photography also recommends the Badass books.

“Jen Sincero truly opened my eyes to my own limiting beliefs. I was telling myself about why I couldn’t be or have or do everything I’ve ever wanted. Reading her books have revolutionized my businesses.”

You are a badass at making money - best business books for money savvy entrepreneurs. Maroon Oak

top personal development books to enrich your professional self

Want more winning habits, courage and confidence?

Explore the Best Books for Personal Development!

Without data, it’s just an opinion

Winning with Data - best business books for savvy entrepreneurs. Maroon Oak

Winning with Data: Transform Your Culture, Empower Your People, and Shape the Future by Tomasz Tunguz and Frank Bien. Levine finds it “practical and insightful and applies to everything we are doing as entrepreneurs in this data age – and helps us adapt our team to use data to the best effect.”

Experience isn’t so much about seeing, as seeing wisely

Jacquelyn Kyle of Traveliste  feels that The Martha Rules by Martha Stewart is such a great book. “She has such a gift for taking her own experience and turning it into useful advice for women in any niche. Plus, I love that she started outlining her book while she was in prison as a talk, to give to her fellow inmates who often asked her for business mentoring.”

The Martha Rules - top business books for savvy entrepreneurs. Maroon Oak

Wise choices result in positive outcomes

Anything you want - books to get savvy with business, brand and money. Maroon Oak

Holly Reisem Hanna of  The Work at Home Woman, LLC likes

Anything You Want: 40 Lessons for a New Kind of Entrepreneur by Derek Sivers.

“Derek’s book has so many excellent nuggets of wisdom, but this one really stood out for me. When a request, proposal, meeting, or opportunity comes knocking on your door if it’s not a Hell YES, then it’s a NO.

I was guilty of saying yes to almost everything! Since reading Derek’s book, I’ve been applying this rule to my life, and it’s made such a difference! It’s given me breathing room to work on my priorities and get rid of the noise and shiny objects that are distractions.”

The Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact by Chip and Dan Heath inspired Rebecca Sutherns, Ph.D, of Sage Solutions “to be more imaginative when it comes to customer service.”

The power of moments - books to get savvy with business, brand and money. Maroon Oak

Value before worth

Becoming a category of one - books to get savvy with business, brand and money. Maroon Oak

Sarah McVanel, Chief Recognition Officer, Greatness Magnified recommends Becoming a Category of One by Joe Calloway.

“If you don’t stand out and claim your space as an expert, you won’t be able to charge the fees as an expert (what you deserve). You might show up less worthy and it will take longer to grow your profits and customer base. It’s also about how to be a service-oriented business owner where you serve first. Only then do you earn the right to get paid, get rehired and get referrals versus expecting it.”

Books on Brand building & Social

Don’t stop building your audience

King also,  recommends Crushing It – by Gary Vaynerchuk for building a personal brand, and expanding your sphere of influence in this digital age. “If you can grow a tribe of raving fans, that level of trust will translate into financial security and success for the rest of your life.”

April Davis, President & Matchmaker at LUMAsearch also recommends  Crushing it! She calls it “one of the most inspirational books I have read that really makes you believe you can do whatever you put your mind to.” She believes that this book shares 3 important lessons.

  1. In order to profit from your passion, you have to turn yourself into a brand.
  2. Pick a medium that fits you to tell stories people want to hear.
  3. Always be authentic in your content.
Crushing it - books to get savvy with business, brand and money. Maroon Oak
New Rules of Marketing and PR - books to get savvy with business, brand and money. Maroon Oak

Davis also likes The New Rules of Marketing by David Meerman Scott. “This  book walks through every single digital and social media platform you can use to promote your business. Plus, tips on how to get the best performance out of each one. He also covers the social and digital strategies would work best for YOUR company.”

While she finds it incredibly informative, Davis also has an additional observation. “It has been written in a way that it is actually interesting and keeps your attention.”

Stand out or get out

Soomer also finds Blue Ocean Strategy by Chan Kim and Renee’ Mauborgne to be very impactful.

“An essential for creating a differentiated brand in a very saturated market. It helped me figure out how to make my brand stand out in one of the most competitive industries in the world fashion.”

Blue Ocean Strategy - books to get savvy with business, brand and money. Maroon Oak
You Are a Brand - books to get savvy with business, brand and money. Maroon Oak

Mathews likes You Are A Brand by Catherine Kaputa – “This has really helped me to set myself apart from the competition. I’m a premium brand, and to be like anyone else would be generic. She takes the commercial style of marketing and applies it personally.”

Show up first!

McVanel suggests Jab, Jab Right Hook – Gary Vaynerchuck  and what she calls “two juicy pieces of value” when you look at the role of content in a business.

“You need to show up to serve. This means that you need to get content out there repeatedly before asking anyone to buy anything.

It also gives you good and bad examples of posts on the main social media platforms. This ensures that you don’t make the common mistakes (e.g. boring content that nobody pays attention to). You need to decide which of the many platforms you should use. (In other words, go where your customers are…if they aren’t there, you don’t need to be, either!

Jab, Jab, Jab, Right Hook - books to get savvy with business, brand and money. Maroon Oak

Top Books on Financial savviness

Everyone sees the risk. An entrepreneur sees the reward.

Rich Dad Poor Dad - books to get savvy with business, brand and money. Maroon Oak

Stacy Caprio of Accelerated Growth Marketing feels that Rich Dad Poor Dad by Robert Kiyosaki  would be her #1 recommendation for women entrepreneurs, because “it instills a mindset and perspective on the best way to handle money so you can grow what you have into true wealth. She believes that many women tend to ignore this in their own lives.

“I think it is essential for women to be able to understand finances and how to grow their own wealth, without relying on others or a man to do it for them.”

Sutherns , a voracious reader also finds Worth It by Amanda Steinberg has helped boost her business acumen. “It helped me pay attention to my “money story.” As well as how my limiting beliefs have caused me to resist pursuing value-based pricing with confidence.”

Worth It: Your Life, Your Money, Your Terms - books to get savvy with business, brand and money. Maroon Oak

Budget for the bottomline

All the Money in the World - books to get savvy with business, brand and money. Maroon Oak

Money Coach April Caldwell, says that her favorite book is All the money in the World by Laura Vanderkam (Kindle). “It helped me change the way I look at money and how I spend money.  Speaking as a financial planner, it is also a valuable resource for teaching my clients to change their money mindset.”

For working professionals, Caldwell recommends The Better Money Method by Terry Laxton. “It did a really good job of explaining the 401k industry in a way that was simple and understandable.”

Better Money Method - books to get savvy with business, brand and money. Maroon Oak

When you attract money, you earn it!

Profit First - books to get savvy with business, brand and money. Maroon Oak

Adrianade la Torre feels that Profit First: Transform Your Business from a Cash-Eating Monster to a Money-Making Machine by Mike Michalowicz is critical to success. “As an entrepreneur, one can get overwhelmed with simply working harder, thinking that is the only way to succeed. However, due to multiple demands in women’s lives, we need to work smarter too. This book will help do that.”

Andrea Paris, an employment attorney who’s also an avid reader also recommends Profit First. “You can have a million dollar company, but if you don’t take profits first but instead allow your overhead to eat it up, what’s the point?”

She especially appreciates the finer details in the book. “It tells you exactly what bank accounts to open and what percentages to pay to each account based on where you are, and the initial steps you need to take in order to start.”

Master the money game

Levine suggests that “every aspiring business owner should read Unshakeable: Your Financial Freedom Playbook by Tony Robbins. It pulls knowledge from fifty of the business world’s greatest investors like Carl Icahn and Ray Dalio to bring together a detailed guide of how to rethink one’s investment strategies to not only protect assets but also maximize overall wealth.”

Unshakeable - books to get savvy with business, brand and money. Maroon Oak

So which are the best books to read – business or brand or others?

In the ultimate analysis, a good book can only be a guideline. A successful startup founder or entrepreneur is one who can take those insights and adapt these bookstand their learnings  to their business needs and circumstances.

Tell us – which read has helped you succeed?

Pooja Krishna

An Entrepreneur, Business Mentor and Mom, Pooja  has worked both in large corporates and managed startups over the last 20+ years. 

She’s  a co-founder at Maroon Oak, and is founded Win Thinks, where she writes, speaks and teaches about Digital Media, Brand Building and Future Ready Businesses. A day trader for over a decade, Pooja launched Trading Paces to educate amateur and pro stock traders. As a classroom mentor, Pooja loves teaching students across the U.S. about job skills and entrepreneurship. Read about her on Huffington Post and Forbes.

A trivia buff and yoga & hula hoop enthusiast, she’s discovering the pleasure of drawing Zentangle patterns for ‘creative mindfulness.’

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16 Comments
  1. Catherine 5 years ago

    What a great reading list! I definitely need to check some of these titles out! I always find business reads inspiring as well as informative. Thank you for sharing!

  2. Heather 5 years ago

    What a great reading list! I’ll definitely add some of these to my holiday list.

  3. alexandra cook 5 years ago

    I’ve been already read a few of them and would love to dig out more about You Are A Brand by Catherine Kaputa!

  4. kumamonjeng 5 years ago

    So many great books from this list. I strongly believe reading is the key to succeed. One book a week is never too many.

  5. Laura Schwormstedt 5 years ago

    These all look like really great books for business and finance for a freelancer which I am – just wish I have more time to read but just so busy at the moment

    Laura x

  6. Lex Styles 5 years ago

    I really want to read the “badass book”! I’m having trouble believing in myself so I’m sure it would be beneficial. Next on my list.

  7. Allie 5 years ago

    Tony Robbins is the man when needing a bit of guidance. That’s who I want to be when I grow up.

  8. onlyremotejobs 6 years ago

    Interesting books! Thanks for sharing.
    Greetings,
    Eve

  9. Chels 6 years ago

    Saving this list for future reference. I absolutely love the “do it yourself” attitude of the books you listed here. So into this.

  10. All She Things 6 years ago

    Rich dad, poor dad is by far one of the best books to read and understand about business and money. Great selection you’ve got here. I need to get my hands on the other recommendations you’ve listed.

  11. Shawna 6 years ago

    “Creative Freedom” by Lisa Robbin Young is a great book for creative entrepreneurs. I can’t recommend it enough.

    Great list! There’s a few that will probably get added to my Audible play list!

  12. Laura Webb 6 years ago

    Yes! I am always looking for great business books! Can’t wait to start reading some of these!

  13. Julie Haider 6 years ago

    Wow, I don’t even know where to start on this reading list, because it all sounds so good! The perfect reading list for any entrepreneur!

  14. Indrani 6 years ago

    This is a great list of useful books! I have saved the names and planned to pick one at a time.

  15. These are all such great resources for people in business. Sometimes you need someone outside your circle to show you the path and give you a shove in the right direction.

  16. Omg, there are so many great books here! These are definitely enough to get anyone pumped about starting a business!

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