The Personal MBA Recommended Reading List: The 99 Best Business Books

“You wasted $150,000 on an education you coulda got for a buck fifty in late charges at the public library.”

Will Hunting (played by Matt Damon), Good Will Hunting

MBA programs don’t have a monopoly on advanced business knowledge: you can teach yourself everything you need to know to succeed in life and at work. The Personal MBA features the very best business books available, based on over ten years and thousands of hours of research. So skip business school and the $150,000 loan: you can get a world-class business education own your own at very low cost by reading the best business books.

This page lists all Personal MBA recommended books and resources for
easy printing, bookmarking, and reference. For more information about
the Personal MBA and book selection criteria, read the manifesto.

Here are the 99 business books The Personal MBA officially recommends…
click on the title of each book to read a detailed description of each book and why
it’s important, or the buttons to the right for additional reviews.

Books purchased through this website support The Personal MBA’s ongoing research.

Read This First For Best Results…

The Personal MBA: Master the Art of Business is a comprehensive overview of everything you’ll learn reading the books on this list. The book summarizes the most
important ideas in business, psychology, and systems theory in a single volume.

I strongly recommend reading this book first – you’ll get much
more from the books on this list if you learn the most important
concepts first.

Buy the Book:

Business Creation

Value-Creation & Testing

Marketing

Sales

Value-Delivery

Finance & Accounting

The Human Mind

Productivity & Effectiveness

Problem Solving

Behavioral Change

Decision-Making

Communication

Influence

Negotiation

Management

Leadership

Project Management

Systems

Analysis

Corporate Skills

Corporate Strategy

Creativity & Innovation

Design

Consulting

Personal Finance

Personal Growth

Some readers are curious about books that were featured on past editions of The Personal MBA recommended reading list. To view past recommendations, check out the Deprecated
page.

About Josh Kaufman

Josh Kaufman is an acclaimed business, learning, and skill acquisition expert. He is the author of two international bestsellers: The Personal MBA and The First 20 Hours. Josh’s research and writing have helped millions of people worldwide learn the fundamentals of modern business.

More about Josh Kaufman →