15 Books Every {CEO} Should Read (and Why): A blog about books for CEOs which are important for the CEO to read.

CEOs are the lifeblood of any organization. A lot rests on their shoulders as they need to manage and run the independent organization and keep a track of all the things that the company is doing. Many non-profit organizations also employ CEOs to run and manage their firms. So, being a CEO is a pretty stressful and tough job. It is certainly not easy to manage a whole workforce in one go. Sometimes employees from one or the other department may bring in their complaints and ask for solutions for the same. Thus, it is important to keep a cool head and be a good listener to the problems of the employees. But, even a CEO needs to relax from the routine humdrum of the organization and make out some self-time for himself/herself. They can do anything they like, even read some books related to their profession. In this blog, we are covering the top 5 books every CEO must read and why they should read them. 5 Books Every CEO must read and why

1. Nine Lies About Work: A Freethinking Leader’s Guide to the Real World by Marcus Buckingham and Ashley Goodall- This one is a good read for any CEO of today. This book clears the air on some of the misconceptions that CEOs usually face in the office environment. It has covered topics such as goal-setting, feedback, and team member loyalty. This is a must-read because this is one book that will give CEOs a clear perspective as to what happens in reality and what they think of doing in a company is merely a dream.

2. The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene-Although this book is more than 2 decades old, it is still regarded with high respect by many CEOs of today. The author has taken around 3000 years of human history and converted them into some valuable lessons for CEOs which can be very fruitful if followed properly. It has also taken some lessons from the great philosophers who have advised on what it takes to get to the top of the ladder or mountain. So, this is also a must-read for CEOs today.

3. A Promised Land by Barack Obama-This is former President Barack Obama’s memoir. He has talked about his life, struggles and what it took for him to become America’s 44th President. This book gives a lot of ideas on how to become a great leader. Though Obama’s insider access into his life, a person can come to know what it means to become the President or a leader in any other profession. This book will help many CEOs to form lasting legacies in the minds and hearts of their employees.

4. Braving the Wilderness: The Quest for True Belonging and the Courage to Stand Alone by Brene Brown - This is a great book that talks about how CEOs or leaders should be empathetic as well as honest and strong when they are facing adversity, criticism or even dissension. The reader through his/her self-reflection and spiritual exploration can gain a lot from this book about authentic leadership.

5. The 4 Disciplines of Execution: Achieving Your Wildly Important Goals by Chris McChesney, Sean Covey and Jim Huling- This book is very different from the normal books for CEOs. While general CEO books focus on using philosophy in the workplace, this book takes 4 principles which are actionable and can be applied easily in day-to-day life and have promising results as well. This should grace the stand of all CEOs today so that they can have another perspective on their work.

6. The Ride of A Lifetime: Lessons Learned from 15 Years as CEO of the Walt Disney Company by Robert Iger- This book is quite useful for CEOs as it is through the eyes of a former CEO himself. Robert Iger describes his time working as CEO of Disney for a decade and a half. He has given valuable business nuggets which can be applied to work such as betting on talent, and the power of respect, and if you don’t innovate you die. All of these have been described in detail by the author and his personal experiences. This makes it a must-read book for CEOs.

7. Thinking, Fast and Slow by Daniel Kahneman- This book has been written from a psychological perspective by Kahneman in which he has described two types of thinking which are the fast and slow forms of thinking. As the CEO is the main component of any organization, he/she needs to have both of these two types of thinking to strike a proper balance in their lives.

8. Invent And Wander: The Collected Writings of Jeff Bezos by Jeff Bezos and Walter Isaacson- This is an excellent book by Amazon head, Jeff Bezos in which he has given a thoroughly detailed description of his life wherein he tells of his journey starting from 1997 till the present. This book explores the various pieces of advice and guidance that Bezos received when he was about to start Amazon.

9. Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the creator of Nike by Phil Knight- This one is another memoir by Phil Knight, the owner of Nike where he talks about his humble beginnings to becoming a major business tycoon with Nike. This book has the approval of some of the biggest names in the business such as Warren Buffet and Bill Gates.

10. The First 90 Days: Proven Strategies for Getting Up to Speed Faster and Smarter by Michael D. Watkins- This book is for new CEOs who have just been promoted from worker to leader. Watkins explains all the concepts clearly and concisely as to how to shift to a leadership mindset, how to manage yourself and your various teams, and building relationships and organizational foundations. This is a must-have for all new CEOs.

11. The Biggest Bluff: How I Learned to Pay Attention, Master Myself, and Win by Maria Konnikova- This book solely focuses on human psychology and persuasion and the game of poker. The game is very popular in casinos where all you need to do is read the opponent’s mind and guess what cards he/she is holding. Konnikova has described the journey of a woman’s ascent in the world of professional gambling.

12. How I Built This: The Unexpected Paths to Success from the World’s Most Inspiring Entrepreneurs by Guy Raz- This book will be a great help to all the CEOs as it is a collection of interviews by Guy Raz with multiple entrepreneurs who have shared their secrets to gain success in the business industry and what are some of the obstacles that entrepreneurs face when they are building an empire.

13. No Filter: The Inside Story of Instagram by Sarah Frier- As we all know how big of an impact Instagram has created on our lives, so it is essential to know how this company came into being. Journalist Sarah Frier does just that by taking us inside the company where she tracks its journey from start to the present.

14. Principles for Dealing with The Changing World Order by Ray Dalio- In this book, Dalio has explained some of history’s most turbulent political and economic periods as well as explained why the future ahead will be radically different from the past.

15. Hot Seat: What I Learned Leading a Great American Company by Jeff Immelt- In this book, Jeff Immelt has described his life and times working at General Electric and how he had to run the company straight away after the incident of 9/11 and managing the company through the turbulent period of 2008-09 financial crisis. This book has many great leadership lessons for all CEOs. So, these are the top 15 books that every CEO must read in his or her lifetime. These books will help them in gaining valuable leadership lessons as they start reading these books. Happy reading!