I put down more books than I can count this past month. That led to a February reading list of only high-quality books that I plan to re-read. Putting down books is one of my reading goals this year. In addition, I have a goal to read at least one book per month. The books included in my February reading list are Perennial Seller: The Art of Making and Marketing Work that Lasts, Poor Richard’s Almanack, The Tao of Warren Buffett: Warren Buffett’s Words of Wisdom: Quotations and Interpretations to Help Guide You to Billionaire Wealth and Enlightened Business Management, and For the Love of the Game – My Story. For all of the books I have read this year, including ones in my February reading list, check out my reading lists [HERE].
Re-reading books is becoming one of my recent favorite reading goals. I re-read Poor Richard’s Almanack and The Tao of Warren Buffett: Warren Buffett’s Words of Wisdom: Quotations and Interpretations to Help Guide You to Billionaire Wealth and Enlightened Business Management. Both are short books and I cannot wait to see what jumps out at me my second time reading the books. My favorite book in my February reading list was a tie. Poor Richard’s Almanack and The Tao of Warren Buffett: Warren Buffett’s Words of Wisdom: Quotations and Interpretations to Help Guide You to Billionaire Wealth and Enlightened Business Management were excellent. I do not have enough positive takeaways to say about both of these books.
Perennial Seller: The Art of Making and Marketing Work that Lasts
Perennial Seller: The Art of Making and Marketing Work that Lasts by Ryan Holiday explores how books, movies, songs, video games, and art thrive over time or disappear shortly after they are created. Holiday goes further into how to create and market creative projects that stand the test of time. The book explores Holiday work with businesses like Google and authors like Robert Greene on how companies and artists create enduring products. Examples of timeless creations include how musical artists like Adele ground their work in long-term thinking, writers like Tim Ferriss test every element of a new book project with his audience to see what generates the strongest responses, and comedians like Jerry Seinfeld create modern classic shows like Seinfeld. Holiday uncovers that the secret of the success of perennial sellers is that creators do not distinguish between the creation and the marketing of the product. Instead, the creator has the audience or customer in mind at the start of the project. Holiday argues that by thinking holistically about the relationship between the work of art and the audience, the creator can improve their chances of success.
Poor Richard’s Almanack
Poor Richard’s Almanack by Benjamin Franklin is a thought-provoking book covering Franklin’s insights from more than 200 years ago. The book is stocked with insightful quotes offering life advice on topics like money, relationships, ethics, psychology, and human nature. I would love to have been a close friend of Franklin back in his day. It is hard not to see the similarities between this book and two of my other favorite books The Tao of Warren Buffett and Tao of Charlie Munger.
The Tao of Warren Buffett: Warren Buffett’s Words of Wisdom: Quotations and Interpretations to Help Guide You to Billionaire Wealth and Enlightened Business Management
The Tao of Warren Buffett: Warren Buffett’s Words of Wisdom: Quotations and Interpretations to Help Guide You to Billionaire Wealth and Enlightened Business Management by Mary Buffett and David Clark is a short read offering a collection of Buffett’s words and wisdom throughout his life. Buffett’s wisdom is inanely simple making it powerful. The book highlights Buffett’s intelligence, the levity he brings to serious topics, and some of his most memorable quotes. Buffett and Clark created a book that masks itself as a philosophy book. Warren Buffett owes his success to hard work, high integrity, and using his common sense. I found countless practical strategies that I have already implemented. Quotes in the book were taken from Buffett’s conversations, Berkshire Hathaway reports, business profiles, and interviews. The book does a great job explaining what each Buffett quote means and how to interpret it for your life. Pair this book with All I Want To Know Is Where I’m Going To Die So I’ll Never Go There: Buffett & Munger – A Study in Simplicity and Uncommon, Common Sense, Poor Charlie’s Almanack: The Essential Wit and Wisdom of Charles T. Munger, Charlie Munger: The Complete Investor, and Tao of Charlie Munger: A Compilation of Quotes from Berkshire Hathaway’s Vice Chairman on Life, Business, and the Pursuit of Wealth.
For the Love of the Game – My Story
For the Love of the Game – My Story by Michael Jordan is a short read with beautiful photographs from Jordan’s playing career and life combined with personal stories. The book covers Jordan’s college and professional career, his father James’ murder, and the business side of basketball. For the Love of the Game dives into the 13 years Jordan played professionally in the US and abroad in the Olympics. It is safe to say Jordan transcended the game to become a global icon. Jordan’s ability to create a shoe market for Nike will likely never be eclipsed. The book shows that greatness comes from within. Jordan had a unique desire to improve every day. He looked for critics to fuel his drive to succeed. For example, when critics doubted his all-around basketball ability, he focused on becoming the best defender in the league. Jordan accomplished what neither Larry Bird nor Magic Johnson could accomplish, three straight championships twice. I loved how this book took me through Jordan’s career both on and off the court. His game-winning shot against Georgetown in the 1982 NCAA finals to his game-winning shot against the Utah Jazz in the 1998 finals are extraordinary. Other Jordan books to check out include Michael Jordan: The Life, Driven from Within, and Playing For Keeps.
