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We bring you a list of ten books that is sure to inspire the entrepreneur in you to chase your dreams and turn your ideas into reality
The year 2014 has been another outstanding year for books about start-ups and innovation, reflecting a global interest in the entrepreneur ecosystem!
From the stacks of books received for review and picked up from overseas visits, here is my pick of the Top 10 books of 2014 for entrepreneurs.
The selection includes books with advice for start-ups, tips for aspiring entrepreneurs, assessments of Indian innovation, case studies of entrepreneurs, guidelines for investors, and insights on how to sustain a culture of innovation.
1. Startup Leadership, by Derek Lidow
An entrepreneur aims to turn his or her individual vision into a reality.
A leader, however, tries to integrate diverse needs and ideas into a winning team.
In Startup Leadership, entrepreneur and professor Derek Lidow explains how one can effectively strike a balance and become an entrepreneurial leader.
Just like the book promises, you can learn how to turn your ideas into successful enterprises.
2. Things a Little Bird Told Me: Confessions of the Creative Mind, by Biz Stone
In 224 pages and 18 chapters, the Twitter co-founder shares important stories from his own life and career and the lessons that shaped his journey to success.
For a quick glance into what the book offers, read this -- 20 life lessons from Twitter's co-founder
3. Startup Boards, by Brad Feld and Mahendra Ramsinghani
The key to a successful start-up lies in the strength of the team it builds.
In Startup Boards, Colorado-based entrepreneur and venture capitalist Brad Feld tells you exactly why it is important to have the right board members on your team and what you must do in order to nurture and manage them for your good.
4. Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future, by Peter Thiel
According to entrepreneur and investor Peter Thiel, if you are trying to excel at something that is already there, you are taking the value of its performance from 1 to n.
However, for those who of you, who are willing to experiment and try new waters, you are taking the value from zero to one.
In the book, Thiel tries to help you understand the importance of innovation and how it helps you find success in the most unusual ways.
5. First Time Leader, by George Bradt and Gillian Davis
Leaders are not born, they are made.
The First-Time Leader aims to guide young, aspiring, first-time leaders how to build skills that will help them lead a team of people.
The book includes many examples and stories of experienced leaders and experts that is sure to inspire you and lead the change.
6. BigData @ Work, by Tom Davenport
What makes BigData the sexiest job of the century?
Bestselling author Davenport presents his findings to you in the simplest manner -- what BigData means to you as a consumer, what it means to your organisation and what the future holds in terms of opportunities and business expansion.
Should you invest your time in it? Read the book to find out!
7. Launch! The Critical 90 Days from Idea to Market, by Scott Duffy
When a rocket is launched, it uses about 97 per cent of its fuel in the first few stages.
Similarly, when you set to launch a start-up, the first few steps or decisions you make will pretty much decide the course of your journey -- towards success and failure.
In the book, author Scott Duffy tells you how you can get optimum mileage for your start-up by simply focussing on the first three months -- from idea to launch stage.
If you are the among the ones still stuck at the idea stage, you know where to find the book!
8. The Code Halos, by Malcolm Frank, Paul Roehrig and Ben Pring
Digital information, we all know, is a valuable commodity.
Every time you click, swipe, like and comment, you add on to an invisible energy, also known as Code Halo.
This crucial digital information pretty much holds the key to how powerful businesses can be created, transformed and built in the future.
The book tries to tell you the true potential of the Code Halos and why it is crucial for future entrepreneurs.
9. A Never-Before World: Tracking the Evolution of Consumer India, by Rama Bijapurkar
It's the third decade post liberalisation.
What does the market spell for Indian consumers?
'Never before has there been a market so globally connected and so connected at the same time with its ancient past,' Bijapurkar observes in the book.
She urges businesses and entrepreneurs to focus not just on how much money people have, but on their aspirations, pain points, relevance for community and media usage, among other things.
The world is currently a happy place for entrepreneurs thanks to smart and sound angel investors.
The book Angel Investing... aims at educating readers how and why 'smart investors with the right strategy and a long–term perspective can achieve annual returns of 25 per cent or more from a well-designed angel portfolio.'
With stories from 90 plus enterprises, there's so much for you to learn from.
If you know more books like these, please share them in the messageboard below.
Here's wishing you a terrific year ahead in 2015 -- may a million successful start-ups bloom!
Lead image courtesy: Miguel Vidal/Reuters
