14 Books to Help You Grow: Ranking the Best Business Books I Read This Year
December 29, 2024
The time has come for my annual review of every book I've read in the year. This year, my reading was focused on enhancing my personal effectiveness.
Here's the list, from my least favorite to the absolute best. I hope you find a book or two to help you on your journey:
Best Book for Those Trying to Understand Success
14. Outliers
Outliers provides an interesting look at what truly causes success. Author Malcolm Gladwell argues that success isn't as due to talent or hard work as most people assume. Rather, it often stems from a set of specific circumstances. In other words, luck plays a larger part than we think.
"We make rules that frustrate achievement," he says. "We prematurely write off people as failures. We are too much in awe of those who succeed and far too dismissive of those who fail."
Gladwell points to numerous compelling examples like Bill Gates, who was born at an opportune time, had unusual access to his school's computer, and lived in a perfect location, among other factors, which all contributed to his incredible achievements.
I found Outliers to be an interesting read, although it didn't make my top 10 this year. There's a lot of truth to Gladwell's claims. Many factors contribute to people's success that we often forget about. I'd state it slightly differently than Galdwell: success comes from two places: hard work, which we do earn, and blessings, which we don't.
Regardless, the book got me thinking and may be a good read for you if we're interested in diving into the origin of success.
Grab a copy of Outliers
Best Book for Parents of Teenagers
13. Age of Opportunity
My 14 and 16-year-old boys are wonderful, but the teenage years can be challenging for everyone, so I picked up Age of Opportunity.
Author David Tripp provides solid guidance on raising teenagers and helped me think deeply about my role as a father. His core message is to look beyond the actions of your children and focus on understanding their heart.
"Don’t treat your teenagers as if their problems are an encroachment and hindrance to your quality of life – they are not here for your happiness," Tripp says, "You are here to grow and serve them."
That's easy to forget, and a welcome reminder. Consider grabbing this book if your kids are in or about to be in the teenage years. I think you'll find it very helpful.
Get a copy of Age of Opportunity
Best Book for Someone Interested in Thinking Differently
12. Moneyball
I love the subtitle of this book: "The Art of Winning an Unfair Game." Indeed, this is a book about thinking differently; about being bold enough to try something new when faced with a challenge.
I found Michael Lewis's account of Oakland A's General Manager Billy Beane inspiring. Fundamentally, it's a tale of defiance against a system. I admire Beane's audacity in venturing into the unknown. In recent years especially, we've seen how conformist people can be, following directives and not thinking for themselves.
As Lewis says, "People... operate with beliefs and biases. To the extent you can eliminate both and replace them with data, you gain a clear advantage."
The most significant benefit this book offers is the motivation to be courageous and experiment with new ideas.
While non-baseball fans can definitely get something out of this book, it does get in the weeds of baseball stats at times.
Side note: I really enjoy the Brad Pitt movie too - check this out if you're interested in the story (albeit a Hollywoodized version) but not the full book.
Grab the book, Moneyball
Best Book for Leaders Who Want a Quick Read
11. The Team Building Strategies of Steve Kerr
This year I read the book, The Leader's Mind, (number nine on my list) which featured a chapter on the leadership of Golden State Warrior's coach Steve Kerr. I was impressed with his emphasis on team culture so I decided to give this book a try.
This book is a concise, effective read for anyone interested in leadership insights. I especially resonate with Kerr's focus on core values which he uses to motivate his team to support one another, share the ball, give credit to each other and enjoy their time together.
“The role of the head coach is to get these players to go against their natural instincts of being selfish and to find a way to get everyone to come together as a team.” Indeed, every CEO, VP, manager and leader should focus on this as well.
Get a copy of The Team Building Strategies of Steve Kerr
Best Business Book for Leaders Who Want Godly Leadership Insights
10. Business for the Glory of God
Suggested to me by a friend, Wayne Grudem's book offers a fascinating look into the moral goodness of doing business.
Sadly, in today's world, many view business with skepticism. Certainly some businesses deserve this skepticism. Many large corporations, especially, put profits before people and think little of improving people's lives.
Yet, this book excels at illustrating the ethical virtues of running a good business. Serving others while earning a profit is actually an act that honors God.
It's a valuable lesson. Indeed, incredible blessings come from providing valuable products or services to people, hiring people, giving raises, creating opportunities for others, etc.
Get a copy of Business for the Glory of God
Best Book for Leaders in 2025
9. The Leader's Mind
Our Leadership Team at Blue Compass chose The Leader's Mind for our summer book club. It offered us a helpful look at many aspects of leadership by featuring a different leader in each chapter.
Spanning from coaches to business tycoons, athletes, and beyond, it provides different perspectives on the leadership qualities of various individuals.
This book is excellent for those seeking a broad range of successful leadership strategies. The numerous leadership examples makes for an engaging read. You'll find at least one leader whose approach resonates with you.
Get The Leader's Mind
Best Book for Building Discipline
8. Stay Sane in an Insane World
My two boys and I enjoyed reading this book together in a little family book club I put together during the summer (okay, at least I enjoyed it - my oldest seemed to like it while my youngest might not have appreciated it as much as I did).
It's an excellent read by Greg Harden, a Michigan sports psychologist and life coach. Harden is renowned for his work with champion quarterback Tom Brady, Super Bowl MVP Desmond Howard, and Olympic gold medalist swimmer Michael Phelps.
The book focuses on personal empowerment and controlling attitudes as the key to thriving amidst life's peaks and valleys. Harden illustrates how one can foster resilience, self-love, and a proactive approach to life's challenges.
It wasn't groundbreaking stuff for me, but it's definitely helpful for those looking to develop personally. Plus, it led to some great conversations with my boys.
Interestingly, as soon as we finished the book, Greg Harden passed away. I felt like I had gotten to know him as I read the book so I was greatly saddened to hear this. He made an incredible impact on many.
Get Stay Sane in an Insane World
Best Book for Leaders Looking to Understand Work Culture
7. The Culture Code
Company culture is something I've thought a lot about. I work on improving it every day. I give speeches about it. I wrote a book about it.
Yet, somehow I'd never read Daniel Coyle's, The Culture Code.
The book jumps into numerous stories that highlight the significance of company culture, emphasizing overarching concepts vs. specific action items. It's filled with fascinating anecdotes, like a competition between children and CEOs in a spaghetti tower challenge, and how a young company named Google developed AdWords due to their distinctive culture. I thoroughly enjoyed these insightful stories.
Check it out if you'd like to consider the ins-and-outs of how people work together.
Get The Culture Code
Best Book for Developing Mental Toughness
6. How to Own Your Mind
I'm a big fan of Napoleon Hill. The author of Think and Grow Rich and personal development pioneer had great wisdom and I've always benefitted from his writing.
In How to Own Your Mind, Napoleon Hill emphasizes the power of what he calls "Creative Vision" and "Obsessional Desire." He shares how recognizing opportunities and focusing intensely on goals can lead to success. Hill underscores the necessity of having the right thoughts and maintaining confidence in oneself to achieve significant accomplishments.
It's a longer book, but a good one. Grab a copy and strengthen your thoughts.
Get How to Own Your Mind
Best Book for Personal Growth
5. The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth
I love John Maxwell's books. The leadership expert is fantastic at breaking down the concepts of business, leadership and personal development.
Getting better is absolutely essential for anyone who desires success and significance in life. "Growth is the great separator between those who succeed and those who do not," says Maxwell. "When I see people who are struggling, I don't think, 'They're a loser.' I think, 'They just don't understand the value of growth.' Success is not determined by how much talent you have, but by how much you grow."
The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth offers numerous strategies for personal development, such as ideas for self-reflection, leveraging mentorship, and posing insightful questions to oneself.
Highly recommended.
Grab a copy of The 15 Invaluable Laws of Growth
Best Book to Help You Make Your Own Luck
4. The Luck Factor
Sales and success expert Brian Tracy's book will give you wonderful motivation to get out there and take control of your life.
Tracy's point is that luck is predictable. With hard work, it can be controlled. He discusses several "luck factors" that influence your future success and shares how you can increase your opportunity to succeed.
One of my takeaways is the incredible power of expectations. You don't get what you want in life, but what you expect.
Another great emphasis of this book is that every improvement in your life comes as a result of your mind colliding with a new idea. Your job is to expose your mind to as many new ideas as possible
Get a copy of The Luck Factor
Best Book to Explain What Makes Teams Successful
3. The Captain Class
My third favorite book I read this year, The Captain Class is a spectacular study of what makes teams successful.
Author Sam Walker did a huge, comprehensive study of nearly every sports team in history and identified the 16 most dominant teams. His goal was to answer one question: what was the one thing these teams had in common that sparked greatness?
In short: the captains make the difference. He describes the greatest captains and explains what makes them so incredible. It's a fascinating dive into sports history that provides valuable insights for anyone who seeks to improve his or her leadership.
If you're interested in more of my thoughts, I wrote a full blog article about this book.
Get a copy of The Captain Class
Best Book to Improve Your Thinking
2. As a Man Thinketh
As a Man Thinketh is my second favorite book for a good reason.
It explains that our thoughts significantly shape our lives. Author James Allen asserts, "A man is literally what he thinks, his character being the complete sum of all his thoughts."
The foundation of Allen's philosophy is rooted in Proverbs 23:7, which states, "As a man thinketh in his heart, so is he." This passage implies that our thoughts are not just transient but have the power to mold our character and destiny.
Allen advocates taking command of our thoughts to enhance our lives. He offers advice on how to manage our thought processes more effectively and stresses the significance of having a clear life purpose.
It's a very short book, but a wonderful one.
Get your copy here
Best Book for Answers to Life's Questions
1. The Bible
I read the Bible every morning and have been continually blessed because of it. The best way to I've found to gain inspiration, answers and hear from God.
It's actually a compilation of 66 different books penned by 40 different authors, yet it all points to one person: Jesus.
See a free, online version here