Stories of successful men and women have inspired hordes of young students to greater heights. One must learn from the people who have been successful and try to implement their methods. Some of my reader friends tell me that these biographies are nothing but a good read – please remember that it is what you start implementing in your own life that will matter not just what you read and forgot a few days later. It is often said that it you should do an activity for 21 days for it to become a habit. I usually stop after going to the gym for 2 weeks. So if you are going to follow even one piece of advice from each book stick with it for more than a month to reap any benefits in the long term. A piece of caution though: One should not stick to the advice blindly it may or may not work for you as each one of us has to write his own journey.

Now to the actual books – I often advise people to move over Steve Jobs and Warren Buffett. There are hundreds of successful entrepreneurs who have been written about and they all have something for everyone. I have excluded some of the more common ones and also ensured we have diverse background for reading. 

Losing My Virginity by Sir Richard Branson – The man knows how to have fun. He has a larger than life image and is not afraid to speak his mind. He is an eccentric and has made unconventional choices in business and in life. I like this book as it shows the human aspect and not just a corporate slave side of Richard Branson. This book is both motivating as well as entertaining. In a world of conformities dare you ride with this maverick?

Only The Paranoid Survive by Andrew Grove – Grove was one of the pioneers of Silicon Valley and this book is about his journey in Intel. The book is full of lessons for new age managers – my personal favorite is about strategic infection points. With the rapidly changing environment, the lesson becomes more important today to realize when the rules change suddenly and your industry is changed forever.  This book also gives some pointers to differentiate between noise and signals – though I found that these are easier to decipher when you have the benefit of hindsight.

Start Something That Matters by Blake Mycoskie – Blake created a company which helped others while making money. This man threw away conventional wisdom and started a for profit company to help children. His company is not charity but creates shoes worn by celebrities and is targeted towards high end fashion. I like this book as he talks about the business being something personal. Rather than cold impersonal advises – he talks of staying humble and keeping things simple. I am a big fan of keeping things simple - this is one secret in life which will help you in any situation.

iWoz by Steve Wozniak – Wozniak is the less popular amongst the Steve’s of Apple. He was the driving force behind Macintosh, which has not only changed the technological space but also, how we look at marketing of products. I like the book because Steve for me was an enigma – a hugely private person who opened up about his life – his mistakes, critical decisions and huge wins in his memorial. It also goes on about the plane crash which changed his life forever.

ELON MUSK by Ashlee Vance – The only non auto-biography is this list, this book is about a man who’s best the world is yet to see. I believe that by the rate Tesla and Musk is going he would be in the league of Thomas Edison and James Watt. This book gives you an insight into his life and how he treads where no one else dare go. I like this book as this gives a matter of fact account of Musk – an arrogant alpha male who does not go about pleasing people, but makes his own path. He has been ousted by the boards of two companies – ZIP2 and Paypal, but what doesn’t kill you makes you stronger.

These are some of my ramblings, what are your thoughts? What books should I add to the list? Have you read a biography which has made a lasting impact on you – please share it in the comments section below.