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Founder’s Book Nook

Reading is a great way to prepare for the adventure of building your own company.
We have compiled a list of books you should have on your bookshelf to help make better, more informed decisions.

[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”32001″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow_3d” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” link=”https://www.amazon.com/Zero-One-Notes-Startups-Future/dp/0804139296″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_column_text]

Why Read Zero to One?

 

Peter Thiel is an entrepreneur and investor. He co-founded PayPal and Palantir. He also made the first outside investment in Facebook and was an early investor in companies like SpaceX and LinkedIn. And he’s written this book with the goal of helping us “see beyond the tracks laid down” to the “broader future that there is to create.”

Zero To One is an exercise in thinking — about questioning and rethinking received wisdom to create the future. And thinking about thinking is what we’re all about.

Read the entire blog on the eight lessons you will take away from this book, Eight Things I Learned from Peter Thiel’s Zero To One.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”32002″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow_3d” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” link=”https://www.amazon.com/Lean-Startup-Entrepreneurs-Continuous-Innovation/dp/0307887898/ref=pd_lpo_14_t_1/146-7848424-7915868?_encoding=UTF8&pd_rd_i=0307887898&pd_rd_r=e6801907-f42d-4a1f-904c-e88479ff94d4&pd_rd_w=TEnbb&pd_rd_wg=6dj7C&pf_rd_p=7b36d496-f366-4631-94d3-61b87b52511b&pf_rd_r=X8XYMCTAVKKJPXFZNDP9&psc=1&refRID=X8XYMCTAVKKJPXFZNDP9″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_column_text]

Why Read The Lean Startup?

 

Entrepreneurs often dive head-first into an idea they are passionate about.  Yet there is a more scientific approach to building a startup.  Having a process to manage the chaos and uncertainties surrounding startups can be a lifesaver when you feel like you are struggling.

Read a summary of the book here.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”32004″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow_3d” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” link=”https://www.amazon.com/Venture-Deals-Smarter-Lawyer-Capitalist/dp/1119594820/ref=sr_1_1_sspa?crid=E0UGE4TITYF2&dchild=1&keywords=venture+deals+brad+feld&qid=1600186623&s=books&sprefix=venture%2Cstripbooks%2C173&sr=1-1-spons&psc=1&spLa=ZW5jcnlwdGVkUXVhbGlmaWVyPUEyV1JKUkYzQVdXVjcwJmVuY3J5cHRlZElkPUEwMjA0ODY2MjU4QjY2TU1DMFpWWCZlbmNyeXB0ZWRBZElkPUEwNzk1ODY2M0tTMjZFMk9DVTg2QSZ3aWRnZXROYW1lPXNwX2F0ZiZhY3Rpb249Y2xpY2tSZWRpcmVjdCZkb05vdExvZ0NsaWNrPXRydWU=”][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_column_text]

Why Read Venture Deals: Be Smarter Than Your Lawyer and Venture Capitalist?

 

Feld and Mendelson are serious and authoritative, but not without bits of humor. This book distills more than twenty years of their experience into just over 200 pages of wisdom, which can serve as an introduction to the process of obtaining venture capital funding, but that can also serve as a playbook as the process progresses. A robust index helps you to find terms you may come across and see what they mean and how they affect your funding.

No matter how much financing you are seeking for your business, you should read this book. Then, you should read it again, and keep it handy as you go through the process of building your business through investment.

Read the entire review here.[/vc_column_text][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”32005″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow_3d” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” link=”https://www.amazon.com/s?k=hard+things+about+hard+things+by+ben+horowitz&i=stripbooks&crid=33OFNWMWD70R6&sprefix=hard+things%2Cstripbooks%2C173&ref=nb_sb_ss_i_2_11″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_column_text]

Why Read The Hard Things About Hard Things?

 

“This is one of the best books you’ll ever read on entrepreneurship and being a CEO.  If you are a CEO, read this book.  If you aspire to be a CEO read this book.  If you are on a management team and want to understand what a CEO goes through, read this book.  If you are interested in entrepreneurship and want to understand it better, read this book.”  Brad Feld, author of Venture Deals and co-founder of Techstars.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”32006″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow_3d” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” link=”https://www.amazon.com/Hooked-How-Build-Habit-Forming-Products/dp/1591847788/ref=sr_1_3?crid=27MYB7R7OIZKH&dchild=1&keywords=hooked+how+to+build+habit+forming+products&qid=1600186692&s=books&sprefix=hooked%2Cstripbooks%2C192&sr=1-3″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_column_text]

Why Read Hooked?

 

What makes you check your phone 100 times per day? Why do you always use Google instead of Bing? Or why do lay awake at night, scrolling through your Instagram feed, even when you know you should be sleeping?

In this book, Nir Eyal provides the exact model that many digital products use to make us want to use it. According to the author, all these apps use the Hook model — finding ways to intertwine their usage into our daily lives, routines and habits.

Read the entire book summary here.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”32008″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow_3d” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” link=”https://www.amazon.com/Hooked-How-Build-Habit-Forming-Products/dp/1591847788/ref=sr_1_3?crid=27MYB7R7OIZKH&dchild=1&keywords=hooked+how+to+build+habit+forming+products&qid=1600186692&s=books&sprefix=hooked%2Cstripbooks%2C192&sr=1-3″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_column_text]

Why Read Monetizing Innovation?

 

Companies invest substantially in designing and building products. Yet they struggle to monetize them. Billions of dollars are spent and lost every year because more than 70 percent of innovations fail to meet financial goals – or fail entirely.

It’s wasteful. It doesn’t have to be this way. And it needs to stop.

Read the entire book summary here.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”32010″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow_3d” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” link=”https://www.amazon.com/Innovators-Dilemma-Revolutionary-Change-Business/dp/0062060244/ref=sr_1_4?crid=4IEM6E17W6CK&dchild=1&keywords=innovators+dilemma+clayton+christensen&qid=1600186817&s=books&sprefix=innovator%2Cstripbooks%2C186&sr=1-4″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_column_text]

Why Read Innovator’s Dilemma?

 

This book is one of the most — if not the most — important books chronicling how innovation takes place, and why its common that market leaders and incumbents fail to seize the next wave of innovation in their respective industries. The book is so good, that even after having read it multiple times, I pick up something new from the text.

Read the entire book summary here.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”32011″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow_3d” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” link=”https://www.amazon.com/Sapiens-Humankind-Yuval-Noah-Harari/dp/0062316117/ref=sr_1_3?crid=2H0FEKV19AYWC&dchild=1&keywords=sapiens+a+brief+history+of+humankind&qid=1600186776&s=books&sprefix=sapiens%2Cstripbooks%2C192&sr=1-3″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_column_text]

Why Read Sapiens: A brief History of Humankind?

 

“When Melinda and I went on our spring vacation, I encouraged her to pack a copy of Yuval Noah Harari’s Sapiens: A Brief History of Humankind. I had just finished the book and I was dying to talk to her about it. It’s so provocative and raises so many questions about human history that I knew it would spark great conversations around the dinner table. It didn’t disappoint. In fact, in the weeks since we’ve been back from our holiday, we still talk about Sapiens.

Harari, who is an Israeli historian, takes on a daunting challenge: to tell the entire history of us, the human race, in a mere 400 pages. I’ve always been a fan of writers who try to connect the dots and make sense of the sweep of history.

What’s unique about Harari’s take is that he focuses on the power of stories and myths to bring people together.”  Bill Gates 

Read the entire summary from Bill Gates  here.[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”32012″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow_3d” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” link=”https://www.amazon.com/Art-War-Sun-Tzu/dp/1590302257/ref=sr_1_3?crid=3F44FF1UZKD4X&dchild=1&keywords=art+of+war+sun+tzu+full+book&qid=1600186875&s=books&sprefix=art+of+war%2Cstripbooks%2C184&sr=1-3″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_column_text]

Why Read The Art of War?

 

Business has always been tough, but it has gotten even more difficult as competition has become more global, faster-paced and increasingly technology-dependent. So why in the 21st century would it make sense to look to this book for business advice, a book on ancient warfare written centuries before the birth of Christ?

Good question. The answer is that it lays out a brilliant strategic philosophy that has proven itself over the millennia in all types of competitive endeavors.

Read the entire summary here.

[/vc_column_text][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][/vc_column][/vc_row][vc_row][vc_column width=”1/4″][vc_single_image image=”32013″ img_size=”large” alignment=”center” style=”vc_box_shadow_3d” onclick=”custom_link” img_link_target=”_blank” link=”https://www.amazon.com/Blue-Ocean-Strategy-Expanded-Uncontested/dp/1625274491/ref=sr_1_3?crid=1H8APU4IOLLUI&dchild=1&keywords=blue+ocean+strategy+book&qid=1600186915&s=books&sprefix=blue+oc%2Cstripbooks%2C176&sr=1-3″][/vc_column][vc_column width=”3/4″][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_empty_space height=”10px”][vc_column_text]

Why Read Blue Ocean Strategy?

 

This is not a generic book about strategic planning. Blue ocean strategic moves are designed specifically for high-growth ventures, and the authors admit that not all strategic moves must be toward blue oceans—there is plenty of money to be made in red oceans. But organizations looking for significant growth, even within a particular division, can glean several valuable and applicable lessons in this book.

Read the entire summary here.

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