By Gareth Burton

The reading of business books is something that has always interested me. Whilst I don’t think that business books contain the silver bullet to fix any business problem, I do read a lot.  I enjoy almost all of them and have benefited from almost all that I’ve read. One thing I will say though is that whilst there’s always more to learn, there really is no substitute for hard work. Many people want the elusive silver bullet for their business but if you ask me, the only way to really get ahead is ‘get your fingernails dirty’ as I like to put it.

Anyway, I’d just like to share my favourite five with you if you’re interested? These are in no particular order.

1. Start With Why – Simon Sinek

This book really helps you to understand why it is that people want to work with certain businesses and why it is so hard to communicate what is different about your business. It shows how most of our decisions are driven by the emotional part of our brain, yet language is dealt with by the logical part (ever wondered why you can’t explain clearly why you just don’t trust that person you just met?!).

Once you understand this basic principle and why the best businesses are most successful at communicating their core driving purpose to the rest of the world, it really helps to shape how you think and talk about your own business. I couldn’t recommend this book highly enough. (Or just check out the YouTube video which gives you 80% of the info here – http://bbaccs.co/P4rSCi).

One other thing that I’ll say is that even though I recommend this book, the challenge of clearly communicating your ‘why’ is something that I find terribly difficult to do for Burton Beavan. Maybe it’s because it’s particularly difficult for me to do as an accountant, but maybe the same holds true for every business owner? By the way, if anyone reading this is a client of mine and could tell me what they think Burton Beavan’s ‘why’ is from an external perspective then please do let me know, I’d be really interested to hear it.

2. The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People – Stephen Covey

This is an all-time classic that covers almost all aspects that will help steer you towards a happier, more fulfilling and more successful life. Everything from having the right ‘balance’, to solving problems, managing your time and focussing on what will be most important to you when you look back on your life. This book is just a great big slice of common sense that makes you really stop and think. It’s that good I even bought my six year old daughter the children’s version!

3. The E-Myth (revisited) – Michael Gerber

A superb book for any small business owner. This book simply breaks down the three main types of driving character behind a successful business – the technician, the manager and the entrepreneur. It makes it clear that whilst many people think they’re an entrepreneur, they’re more likely technicians that happen to work for themselves (the E-Myth). When you look at any small business from this perspective it certainly makes a lot of sense. Not only that, but this book really breaks down the power and value of systemising your business to the point that it is replicable time and time again, no matter who is in charge of any role. So many small businesses lack structure and appropriate systems. I’m really not one for bureaucracy but I don’t like organised chaos either! (Sound familiar?) If you want a business that works without you, and doesn’t depend on you entirely, then this is the book to get you started.

4. The 80:20 Principle – Richard Koch

Some of the most successful people I’ve come across are masters of this principle. It’s based on ‘Pareto’s Law’ which, in general terms, is the principle that 20% of your efforts will produce 80% of your results. I often make the principle become real to people when I explain it from the opposite perspective and say “Does it feel as though 20% of your customers take up 80% of your time?!” So often, when you look at your customer base, the use of your time or the efficiencies within your business, you can see this law in action. It doesn’t have to be exactly 80:20, quite often it will be 70:30 for example, but simply being aware of it can be life-changing. Take a step back, look at everything you do and all the significant results they create. I’ll bet a large sum of money that there’s an inverse imbalance hidden there somewhere!

5. The Go-Giver – Bob Burg & John Mann

This book is pretty much the epitome of how I work. The premise is simple – don’t focus on making short term gains for yourself. Don’t be a ‘go-getter’.

The people that really get ahead in life are those that give more than they take. Always deliver much more in value than you take in payment, always be willing to help others without expectation or keeping score, if you put your efforts into being a ‘go-giver’ then ultimately the rewards will be incredible.

One other way that people like to describe this is as karma (you get out of life what you put in); personally I think it is just basic economics.

I’m well aware that I could have done a list of twenty books for this article and next time I might. If you have any reading suggestions for me then I’d be grateful to hear them and if you’d like to see the rest of my reading list I’d be happy to share it with you. In fact, any of the books that I have in hard copy, I’ll quite happily lend them to anyone that wants them!  Please leave your comments below and please click on any of the share buttons if you like what you’ve read.

Gareth