I’m a first-generation entrepreneur committed to learning as much about entrepreneurship as I can. The best way I’ve found to do that is to study entrepreneurs. So, every week, I read a book I’ve read about or heard about from an entrepreneur; they’re mostly biographies. I post my latest read every Sunday in the Library on this site.

In May, I watched an interview with Gary Hoover, founder of Hoover’s Inc., which went public in 1999 and was sold to Dun & Bradstreet for $117 million; BOOKSTOP, which was sold to Barnes & Nobles; and the American Business History Center. In that interview, Hoover discussed his personal library of 70,000 books and his approach to learning through reading. And he wrote a book on this topic, The Lifetime Learner’s Guide to Reading and Learning. I’m always looking for ways to improve my approach to learning, so I bought a copy.

The book is a practical framework for learning through reading. It reminds me of Mortimer Adler’s book How to Read a Book, except it’s for people who read to solve problems and generate ideas (e.g., entrepreneurs and investors). Here are my favorite sections of this book:

• Hoover’s list of the top 160 books you should know about
• How information flow (sharing what you learn) enhances your learning
• How you can compound what you learn on the internet with books
• How the key to success is seeing or understanding something others don’t, which often requires looking where others don’t look
• The five ways we learn
• How to leverage network thinking
• How breakthrough innovations come from combining two well-known ideas that no one considered putting together—connecting the seemingly unconnected is the secret of the genius

I enjoyed other sections of this book too, so this isn’t a comprehensive list.

Anyone interested in multidisciplinary learning or how to read and learn more effectively should consider this book. It’s a great complement to How to Read a Book.

In 2024, I challenged myself to accelerate my learning by reading a book (usually a biography) a week. To date, I’ve done it for 68 consecutive weeks. I wanted to share what I was reading and also keep track for myself, which was difficult (see here), so I created a Library section on this site. I added to it all the books I’ve read since my book-a-week habit began in March 2024, and I’ve committed to adding my latest read to the Library every Sunday (see the latest here).

That left the books I’d read before 2024 unshared and untracked. I set a goal to add my old reading to the Library over time. It began with a Memorial Day Challenge to add five books (see here) and continued with my challenging myself to add two books every weekend until my backlog is gone. This past weekend was my fourth weekend, and I added two more books:

• Where the Money Is: Value Investing in the Digital Age by Adam Seessel
• Investing for Growth: How to Make Money by Only Buying the Best Companies in the World by Terry Smith

That’s the latest update on my weekend goal. I hope that sharing these books will add value to others.

I’m a first-generation entrepreneur committed to learning as much about entrepreneurship as I can. The best way I’ve found to do that is to study entrepreneurs. So, every week, I share a book that I’ve read about an entrepreneur; most are biographies. I post my latest read every Sunday in the Library on this site.

Last month, I read A Short History of Financial Euphoria by John Kenneth Galbraith. It mentioned Ivar Kreuger and the scandal surrounding the loans he made to governments in exchange for national match monopolies. I was curious, so I read a biography about Kreuger, The Match King.

The biography is well-researched with a thorough bibliography and notes section. It’s somewhat dense because of the complexity of Kreuger’s empire, but the complexity is fascinating because it gave me context. It does a great job of detailing Krueger’s rise from working construction jobs to being one of the wealthiest men in the world to being one of the biggest manufacturers of matches (this was before most homes were wired for electricity), and also mastering finance and loaning money to foreign nations (with string attached).

I enjoyed learning more about how governments financed their deficits before central banks by borrowing from financiers like Kreuger, J. P. Morgan Jr. (Jack), and the Rothschild family. Learning about the massive debt of Germany and other nations after WWI, the boom of the stock market in the roaring 1920s, its bust in the 1930s, and the impact of all this was eye opening.

Kreuger’s story was pretty wild and full of cautionary tales. Anyone interested in Kreuger or the 1920s and 1930s might enjoy The Match King.

In 2024, I challenged myself to accelerate my learning by reading a book (usually a biography) a week. To date, I’ve done it for 67 consecutive weeks. I wanted to share what I was reading and also keep track for myself, which was difficult (see here), so I created a Library section on this site. I added to it all the books I’ve read since my book-a-week habit began, and I’ve committed to adding my latest read to the Library every Sunday (see the latest here).

That left the books I’d read before 2024 unshared and untracked. I set a goal to add my old reading to the Library over time. It began with a Memorial Day Challenge to add five books (see here) and continued with my challenging myself to add two books every weekend until my backlog is gone. This past weekend was my third weekend, and I added two more books:

• Common Stocks and Uncommon Profits and Other Writings by Philip A. Fisher
• Capital Returns by Edward Chancellor

That’s the latest update on my weekend goal. I hope that sharing these books will add value to others.

I’m a first-generation entrepreneur committed to learning as much about entrepreneurship as I can. The best way I’ve found to do this is to study other entrepreneurs. So, every week, I read a book about an entrepreneur, usually a biography. Then, every Sunday, I post my latest read in my Library on this site.

A few months ago, I read a biography about Albert Lasker, the entrepreneur who pioneered advertising techniques that helped usher in the era of American consumerism. I learned he teamed up with Adolph Ochs to help free a man charged with murder in Atlanta in 1913. They felt he was being wrongly accused because he was Jewish. Researching Ochs, I learned he acquired a failing New York Times (NYT) and turned the newspaper into an internationally respected paper.

I read a biography about Ochs, An Honorable Titan, in March, and I recently read a second biography about him, Printer's Devil to Publisher. The second one was written by Doris Faber, who worked at the NYT, albeit after Ochs had passed. It contains more of the details I craved—specifically, the early years of his life as an information entrepreneur selling directories of all the businesses in Chattanooga and the specifics of how he acquired his first newspaper, the Chattanooga Times, when he was broke and 20 years old. This book also details how speculating on land during a financial bubble ruined Ochs financially and led him to take the biggest gamble of his life: moving to New York City and buying majority ownership of the failing NYT with no money down.

This book isn't too long, but well researched. It gives readers a glimpse of the newspaper world of the early 1900s and explains how a high school dropout acquired one of the most prestigious media properties of that era and influenced the world.

If you’re interested in learning more about Ochs or the early days of the NYT, consider reading Printer’s Devil to Publisher.

In 2024, I committed to reading a book (usually a biography) every week, and to date, I’ve done it for 65 consecutive weeks. I wanted to share what I’m reading and also keep track for myself, which, surprisingly, was hard to do (see here). So, I created the Library section on this website. I added to the Library all the books I’ve read since I embarked on my book-a-week habit. And I’ve committed to adding my latest read to the Library every Sunday. It’s a weekend habit that helps me document and share my continuous learning journey in a fun way.

However, I also read books before 2024, and I want to capture and share those as well. My goal is to add them to the Library over time. During Memorial Day weekend, I added five (see here). That inspired me to experiment with adding two books every weekend until my backlog is cleared. Two weekends ago, I added two books (see here), and this past weekend I added two more:

• Capital Wars by Micheal Howell
• Seeking Wisdom by Peter Bevelin

That’s the latest on my weekend goal. I hope that sharing these books via my Library will add value to others.

I’m a first-generation entrepreneur who loves to learn, and I’m committed to learning as much as I can about entrepreneurship. The best way I’ve found to do it is to study other entrepreneurs and the frameworks they use. So, every week, I read a book, usually a biography. Then, every Sunday, I post my latest read in my Library on this site.

Several years ago, an entrepreneur friend mentioned Dale Carnegie and told me how useful his book was in helping him improve his interactions with his team. I was intrigued and bought Carnegie’s book How to Win Friends & Influence People, but I never made it a priority to read it . . . for seven years.

In the last six months, I’ve gotten more interested in human psychology and have been reading up on the topic. Several books and people have mentioned Carnegie’s book. I decided to dust off my copy and give it a read. The book was initially published in 1936 but has been updated several times. My paperback copy was published in 1998, but I plan to also read the 2022 edition.

Carnegie’s book focuses on his easy-to-understand framework and breaks it down into four parts:

• Techniques for Interacting with People
• Making People Like You
• How to Win People to Your Way of Thinking
• Leadership: How to Change People without Offending or Angering Them

For each part, he explains several principles that help you improve in that area. What I liked was that he connected each principle to examples that crystallize how it had been applied in real life. He didn’t leave it up to the reader to figure out the application of the principles.

I now understand why so many people like this book and why it’s been a bestseller for decades. It helps anyone easily understand how to improve their interactions and relationships with others. Who doesn’t want that?

An interesting fact is that Warren Buffett took Carnegie’s course on public speaking many years ago. He credits that course with improving his interactions with others and getting him past his fear of public speaking. The principles taught in that course are some of the principles in this book.

In 2024, I began reading a biography (usually) every week. I wanted to share what I’m reading and keep track for myself, which was hard to do (see here). So, I created a Library section in this website. Every Sunday, I add my latest read to the Library. And I’ve added all the books I’ve read since I started my book-a-week habit in early 2024.

However, I also read books before 2024, and I’d like to share those as well. My goal is to add them to the Library page on this site over time. During Memorial Day weekend I added five. See here.

Last week, I decided to test adding books weekly until my backlog is depleted (see here). So, I set a goal to add two books by Monday. I’m happy to say I checked that box. Here are those two books:

• Central Banking 101 by Joseph Wang
• You Can Be a Stock Market Genius by Joel Greenblatt

Adding two older books to the library wasn’t too bad. Felt like a more manageable pace than adding five, as I’d done the previous week. I reviewed my highlights in each book to refresh my understanding of the main concepts, which was useful.

Hopefully, sharing these books via my Library will add value to others.

As a first-generation entrepreneur, I’m committed to learning as much as I can about entrepreneurship. The best way I’ve found to do it is to study other entrepreneurs and their mental models, so I read a book every week, usually a biography. I share it in my Library on this site, and every Sunday, I post the latest book I read.

Earlier this year, I read the updated version of Poor Charlie’s Almanack, a collection of Charlie Munger’s speeches on mental models and psychology. Periodically, I listen to a condensed version of Munger’s “Psychology of Misjudgment” speech (see here). These resources piqued my interest in learning how people make decisions and are persuaded to make decisions or take action.  

Munger and others have recommended Influence: The Psychology of Persuasion by Robert B. Cialdini, so I gave it a read. The book is considered a classic, and I can see why. Cialdini updates it periodically. I read the 2006 edition because I already owned it, but now I plan to read the 2021 edition, too.

This book delves into the intricacies of the psychology of compliance (doing what people are asking you to do). It also dedicates a chapter to the big-six psychological triggers, including examples of how they’re used:

• Reciprocation
• Commitment and consistency
• Social proof
• Liking
• Authority
• Scarcity

This book was informative and equipped me to be better at recognizing when these triggers are being used against me. The case study–style examples effectively drove home the points and made them less theoretical.

An interesting observation was that Charlie Munger borrowed heavily from the concepts in this book for his “Misjudgment” speech, and the principles are prominent in Poor Charlie’s Almanack, too. Charlie was smart enough not to reinvent the wheel. Instead, he built on Cialdini’s principles and applied them to investing to create his billion-dollar fortune.

In 2024, I began reading a biography (usually) every week, and I’ve added all those books to the Library page of this website. But I read books before 2024 too, and I want to share those as well. I aim to add them to the Library page on this site over time. A few days ago, I said I’d set myself a Memorial Day Challenge to add five of them.

I’m happy to report that I checked that box. Here are the books I added:

• Limitless by Jim Kwik
• Unknown Market Wizards by Jack Schwager
• Broken Money by Lyn Alden
• The Dhandho Investor by Mohnish Pabrai
• The Little Book That Still Beats the Market by Joel Greenblatt

This was a fun challenge. It took longer than I expected, but it was worth it. I spent a decent chunk of time reading the highlights and notes in each book. It was a nice refresher and reminded me of concepts I hadn’t revisited in almost two years.

Hopefully, sharing these books via my Library will add value to someone else.