Good books
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A running list of books I’ve loved. In no particular order…
Over the Edge of the World: Magellan’s Terrifying Circumnavigation of the Globe — Laurence Bergreen
A story of determination against all odds. For those in startups, there’s an interesting parallel between Magellan’s journey and starting/building a company — big idea with big reward / raising $ / building a team / moving through failure / scurvy.
Shoe Dog — Phil Knight
The story of Nike. Makes a compelling argument for taking at least one big risk in your life.
How to Get Filthy Rich in Rising Asia — Mohsin Hamid
Not your typical self-help book. It’s a quick read that will leave you feeling like you’ve lived another life.
Sapiens — Yuval Noah Harari
A brief history of mankind. The way Harari talks about our past will change the way you think about our future.
Extreme Ownership — Jocko Willink and Leif Babin
True leadership is complete accountability for everything that happens at every level of your organization. This applies to SEAL teams, 5-person startups, and Fortune 500 corporation.
American Kingpin — Nick Bilton
The unreal real story of Ross Ulbricht. Covers early bitcoin, hitmen, supply and demand. It follows the path of most tech startups — starting/scaling an internet company, funding, media relations, hiring…main difference being that Ross is building an online drug empire.
The Everything Store — Brad Stone
The story of Amazon starting in Jeff Bezos’ garage. I love books that show the lives of successful people before they made it. This is one of the best of that variety.
Wherever You Go, There You Are — Jon Kabat-Zinn
The best/most comprehensive book I’ve read on mindfulness and meditation. I found it best to read one chapter per day…reading cover-to-cover doesn’t allow enough time to think about ideas.
The Hard Thing About Hard Things — Ben Horowitz
Recommend this one to anyone in a challenging leadership position. Required reading for first-time founders.
Angel — Jason Calacanis
I’m not an angel investor but Angel gave me great perspective on what early-stage investors are thinking about. Helpful for fundraising.
