Untitled Document

I'll add more books to this list later. My list covers a few must-reads. Read Bob's list for great business books. They did wonders for me.

Ken’s Reading List
A few good books, in no particular order.

Optimum Sports Nutrition by Dr. Michael Colgan. Its out of print, but you can still find some used. Try Amazon.com. This is the best book on nutrition I have ever read. Dr. Colgan trains Olympic-level athletes, and has done a lot of work to find out how effective supliments are. This is on my don't-loan list.

Influence - The psychology of Persuasion by Robert B. Cialdini. Great read. Discusses the weapons of infulence and how it is use against you. Written for marketers, these tools (as all tools) can be used for good or bad. Suggested by Evan Yares, this is a must-read book.

His Needs Her Needs by Willard F Harley, Jr. The best book on understanding the other sex. If you're single, you need to read this to understand the other side. If you're married, both of you need to read this. Aimed at saving marriage, it quite valuable for us single folks. You'll learn something about yourself, as well.

Bob’s Reading List
"This is a part of my classics list. Some are a bit heavy. Some of these books will help structure how you think about business. Others will help you figure out what to do about particular problems." Bob.

Management:

The Goal by Eliyahu M. Goldratt and Jeff Cox, North River Press. All the Goldratt work is important to help you understand process work. I’m not sure I like the novel style, but he may be one of the most important business thinkers alive today.

Today and Tomorrow by Henry Ford, Productivity Press. This is a true classic.

Honda, an American Success Story by Robert L Shook, Prentice Hall

McDonald’s Behind the Arches by John F Love, Bantam Books

Growing a Business by Paul Hawken, Simon and Schuster. This is a great story. I’m not sure he’ll ever be a rich man, but he is famous.

The E Myth by Michael E Gerber, Ballinger Publishing. This is a great book for small business.

Kaizen by Masaaki Imai, McGraw-Hill. When you know things can be better but you don’t know how to think about improving them, this book will help you think about it.

Quality is Free or Quality is Still Free by Philip B Croby, Mentor or McGraw-Hill. Same comment as above.

Why Employees Don’t Do What They’re Supposed To Do by Ferdinand F. Fournies, Liberty House. Read this next time you have employee problems.

The Improvement Book by Tomo Sugiyama, Productivity Press.

5S for Operators Workbook, Productivity Press.

20 Keys to Workplace Improvement, by Iwao Kobayashi, Productivity Press

The Money Game, Paper Money, and Super Money by ‘Adam Smith’.

Theory Z by William Ouchi.

Why Things Go Wrong by Gary Fellers, Pelican Publishing. Same as above. Of this group of three I might read this one first.

Marketing:

Marketing Myopia, in Levitt on Marketing, by Theodore Levitt, Harvard Business Review Press. This a book of reprints from the Harvard Business Review. Marketing Myopia is the most important thing ever written on marketing.

The 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing by Al Ries & Jack Trout, HaperBusiness. Their other books are also great, but I think this is the best summary. It is a replacement for their true classic, Positioning. This book is much better written.

Selling The Invisible by Harry Beckwith, Warner Books.

Crossing the Chasm by Geoffrey Moore, HaperBusiness. His other books are very good. Read this one first.

Advertising is a Waste of Money by Robert Ranson, HRD Press. Before you spend a dime advertising, read this.

Marketing Without Advertising, by Michael Phillips & Salli Rasberry, Nolo Press.

Ogilvy on Advertising by David Ogilvy, Vintage Books.

Guerrilla Marketing by Jay Conrad Levinson, Houghton Mifflin.

How to Advertise by Kenneth Roman and Jane Mass, St Martin’s Press.

Writing that works by Kenneth Roman and Joel Raphaelson, Harpers and Row. Read this before you write anything.

Other:

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen R Covey, Simon & Schuster. Some people don’t like this guy or his books. I think he’s an ###, but the message is important if you can get past him.

Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand. I’m not sure what to say about Ayn Rand, but this book had profound impact on my thinking.

Good Reading