Task #17: A business book

[Marie]

For something more out of the box:

Comics Creators on Spider-Man is about the comic book business. It has interviews with Stan Lee and other writers and artists.

And Here's the Kicker: Conversations with 21 Top Humor Writers on their Craft and the Industry (free on Kindle unlimited)

Salt Sugar Fat: How the Food Giants Hooked Us - about the food industry.

Most books about the movie industry are entertaining. I've heard good things about Easy Riders, Raging Bulls.

[Shay]

I'm going to go with Works Well with Others: An Outsider's Guide to Shaking Hands, Shutting Up, Handling Jerks, and Other Crucial Skills in Business That No One Ever Teaches You because it seems like it would be relevant info for any job, and for dealing with people in general life.

[Mandi]

I'm reading Weird in a World That's Not: A Career Guide for Misfits, F*ckups, and Failures which works for this prompt. Although I'm more than halfway done and I don't like to pick books I started the previous year so I don't plan on using it.

I think I'll do American Prison: A Reporter's Undercover Journey into the Business of Punishment.

[Sherri]

I am reading Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard & Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth by Sarah Smarsh. It is a memoir but also a book on economics. Would it count for this prompt?

[Zoe]

I am going to listen to Resilience: Why Things Bounce Back

[Judith]

I've found a book about bookshops. They're businesses, right??

[Bonnie G.]

Is it a book about the business of selling books? If it is, that fits the prompt, but a book about a business, that is not about business would not IMO.

[Angela]

I'm hoping How To Find Your Vital Vocation: A Practical Guide To Discovering Your Career Purpose And Getting A Job You Love or Telling Lies for Fun & Profit count as business books, so I can read one of them.

They would also count for challenge #9.

[Bonnie G.]

Angela wrote: "I'm hoping How To Find Your Vital Vocation: A Practical Guide To Discovering Your Career Purpose And Getting A Job You Love or Telling Lies for Fun & Profit count as b..."

That first one has fewer than 100 reviews and is self published, so you could use it for one of those. The second one is about how to write novels, so I don't think it could be considered a business book.

[Lucia]

Hi there! I'm compiling lists of everyone's suggestions in case that's easier for people (I know it is for me!) c:

https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1...

[Lau]

I agree Bad Blood was excellent.

I think I will read Barbarians at the Gate: The Fall of RJR Nabisco which should also count for challenge #5 (a book by or about journalists). I don't believe it would count under non-violent true crime but correct me if I'm wrong :)

I assume Dare to Lead: Brave Work. Tough Conversations. Whole Hearts. would count too?

[sillypunk]

Do you think the Design of Everyday Things clings as a business book?

[Judith]

Bonnie wrote: "Is it a book about the business of selling books? If it is, that fits the prompt, but a book about a business, that is not about business would not IMO."

The cover blurb is a little vague, so I'm going to have to call it once I've finished it!

[Clay]

I've had Setting the Table: The Transforming Power of Hospitality in Business on my kindle for years now. I guess now's the chance to finally read it.

[Michelle]

Would Brené Brown’s Dare to Lead count here? It’s clearly focused on the business world.

[Olivia]

Michelle wrote: "Would Brené Brown’s Dare to Lead count here? It’s clearly focused on the business world."

That's what I'm reading for this prompt. It fits the Book Riot mod advice to look under Business subcategories on Amazon though it is classified under others as well.

[Ann]

Bullshit Jobs: A Theory or The Personality Brokers: The Strange History of Myers-Briggs and the Birth of Personality Testing are probably what I'm going with

[BookWormBen]

I will be reading "Crushing It" by Gary Vaynerchuk. The Audibook has each entrepreneur telling their own story of success which I always love to hear!

[Britany]

Finished The Four Tendencies: The Indispensable Personality Profiles That Reveal How to Make Your Life Better by Gretchen Rubin

1st book of the new year!

My Review:
https://www.goodreads.com/review/show...

[Lyssa131330]

This article has a few books that sound interesting https://www.businessinsider.com.au/bu...

[Jen]

Ava wrote: "Eujean2 wrote: "There are quite a few lists of business books on GoodReads. This is "the 100 best business books of all time" as per Marketplace on NPR: https://www.goodreads.com/list/show/1......"

Quiet is an excellent audiobook. I listened to in for a 2018 prompt and loved it.

[Suzanne]

For this one, I think I might read Start-up Nation: The Story of Israel's Economic Miracle. TBH I groaned when I saw this category because business in general is about as interesting to me as cold porridge.

[Stine]

I have to say that I was highly sceptical, but it turns out Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup is a treat on audio! To be recommended!

[Yesim]

I think I will read Stealing the Show How Women are Revolutionizing Television by Joy Press for this challenge.

[Karin]

Sherri wrote: "I am reading Heartland: A Memoir of Working Hard & Being Broke in the Richest Country on Earth by Sarah Smarsh. It is a memoir but also a book on economics. Would it count for this prompt?"

IMO that's a real stretch. I read that book earlier in December, it's really a memoir.

[Amie]

Anyone have suggestions on funny memoirs about business? Reading about business is dreadful for me, so I’d like to find something funny and preferably geared towards women. Thanks!

[Brian]

Currently reading Raving Fans: A Revolutionary Approach to Customer Service and loving it. Already found it useful and started using their advice.

[Emily]

oooo just saw Shonda's Year of Yes is on the goodreads list...thoughts?

also following the funny memoir suggestions!

[Jennifer]

Would Irresistible: The Rise of Addictive Technology and the Business of Keeping Us Hooked work? I am in education and most business books don't really interest me. I could relate this one to what I teach.

[Jennifer]

Amie wrote: "Anyone have suggestions on funny memoirs about business? Reading about business is dreadful for me, so I’d like to find something funny and preferably geared towards women. Thanks!"

Maybe it's a stretch, but I'm thinking How to Be Successful without Hurting Men's Feelings: Non-threatening Leadership Strategies for Women could work here!

[Tammy]

I'm wondering what you all think about a NON-PROFIT business book? I think I might be more interested in something like that, but don't know of many. One that comes to mind, that I partially read years ago, is a memoir/biography about the person who started the Wheelchair Foundation- they provide wheelchairs to disabled folks around the world. The book is Road to Purpose: One Man's Journey Bringing Hope to Millions and Finding Purpose Along the Way. I noticed he also has another book called Road to Leadership.

[Megan]

Emily wrote: "oooo just saw Shonda's Year of Yes is on the goodreads list...thoughts?

also following the funny memoir suggestions!"

I wouldn't consider that a business book.

[Lauren]

#GirlBoss by Sophia Amoruso - And I'm not even familiar with the author or her company.

[Elspeth]

Laura wrote: "Could you count a micro-history about businesses? One that I really enjoyed was The Emperors of Chocolate: Inside the Secret World of Hershey and Mars."

I loved that book. I read it years ago. I'm especially interested in how Mars was never able to get hazelnuts into America like he wanted, yet now you almost can't get away from them.

[Elspeth]

Tracy wrote: "ugh..... I don't want to

."

for me it's the comic books and manga that keep coming up but I don't want to read. And A western last year. At least business could be almost anything, non fiction, fiction, true crime (as in Bad Blood which tons of people are using for this prompt).

Not sure yet what I'm going to read for this but I happen to have a copy of 'The 10 Best and Worst Business Deals of all Time" that I was going to read anyway so I'm probably going do to that.

[Bonnie G.]

Lauren wrote: "#GirlBoss by Sophia Amoruso - And I'm not even familiar with the author or her company."

She is so awful! One of my students told me to read the book to show a person needed no business training or ethics to be successful in business. The same week (I was on maybe page 20) Nasty Gal went into bankruptcy. Now she is making money on the speaking circuit telling people why everything in Girl Boss was wrong. The woman sure knows how to back into cash.

[Kelly]

Shelley wrote: "I'm going with The Sushi Economy: Globalization and the Making of a Modern Delicacy. There's a bunch of books that still have business as a genre on GR, but just below more exciting c..."

I read that a while back. I really liked it.... a few interesting bits to chew on.... lol

[Kelly]

Serendipity wrote: "I'm offering bonus points to whoever can come up with a really short suggestion for this one. Its not something that interests me at all. Although admittedly I have been thinking more along the lin..."
How about Brene Brown's book Dare to Lead? Not overly short but interesting

[Beth]

I read Bad Blood: Secrets and Lies in a Silicon Valley Startup for this challenge. I really recommend it! It's not too business heavy. It also works as a book written by a journalist!

[Rachel]

Would something about Walt Disney or about the success of Disney work do you think?

[Deb]

Last year for a work training I read One Small Step and Switch: How to Change Things When Change Is Hard. I recommend them both. I'm interested in Quiet and Radical Candor. I'm curious what The Spirit of Kaizen adds to One Small Step, if anyone's read them both.

[ekr]

Can anyone recommend YA/middle grade, or something suitable for a kid? I saw Oh, The Places You'll Go! mentioned above, but that seems like a bit of a stretch?

[Breanna]

I'm reading Sweet and Low: A Family Story for this challenge.

[Judith]

OK, so I'm now three quarters of the way through "Bookshops" by Jorge Carrion. It's a mixed bag, really - some stuff about individual bookshops, some personal opinion about bookshops and literature and authors, but there is quite a bit about the business of selling books, the history of book selling and publishing, what different bookshops have had to do to stay in business, etc. I am going to count it because it's frankly the best I can do on this task and it hasn't been an easy read (maybe it's the translation from the Spanish), so for me it was "Read Harder"!

And he is quite rude about Bruce Chatwin for reasons I can't fathom and I love Bruce Chatwin.

[Elspeth]

I thought this would be an "easy" prompt since I already have a book at home on the 10 best and worse business deals, but I'm not enjoying it as much as I thought, and I'm getting hung up on what is really a 'business" book anyway.

So here are my thoughts:

What I wish I knew when i was 20 - Tina Seelig

The Robots are Coming: A Human's Survival Guide to Profiting in the Age of Information - John Pugliano

The No Asshole Rule - Robert Sutton

Change the Way You See Yourself through Asset - Based Thinking - Kathryn Cramer and Hank Wasiak

[Elspeth]

Kelly wrote: "Serendipity wrote: "I'm offering bonus points to whoever can come up with a really short suggestion for this one. Its not something that interests me at all. Although admittedly I have been thinkin..."

I found this in my library's business section. It's quick, and it also only has 1 review on Goodreads so you could do it for 2 prompts!

https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/2...

[Candace]

Oooh I'm going to read Emergent Strategy: Shaping Change, Changing Worlds for this task! Do y'all think it will work for this one?

[Karin]

Tammy wrote: "I'm wondering what you all think about a NON-PROFIT business book? I think I might be more interested in something like that, but don't know of many. One that comes to mind, that I partially read y..."

I don't know how deep in the weeds you're looking to go, but I work as a nonprofit director, and here's one used in the arts industry

[Kat]

I just finished Kim Scott's book Radical Candor for this category, and it was SO GOOD. While it's written for managers, I feel like anybody who works with others in any capaciry can seriously benefit from this book on how compassion and truthfulness need to be combined in order to create a workplace environment that's good for the people within it, as well as the business itself. I can't recommend this book highly enough!

[Elizabeth]

I think I'm going with The Dressmaker of Khair Khana.
The thought of this item initially made me want to barf, but this book sounds like it should be a really interesting story about the human side of an entrepreneur experience in Kabul. And it's on the short side.
https://www.goodreads.com/book/show/8...