Over the last couple of years I read a pretty sizable amount of books, articles and other stuff. This is a list of things I am keeping for myself as a reminder of particularly good stuff I came accross (either for its content, or simply because it was especially entertaining to read). Remarkably, the list is still pretty small compared to the size of my bookshelf :) I hope this inspires your own reading. For you convenience I provided you with the Amazon links where relevant.
Books
- INSPIRED: How to create tech products customers love by Marty Cagan. This is my number one read on product management and organization setup in technology companies (summary).
- How to fly a horse: The secret history of creation, invention & discovery by Kevin Ashton. One of the really entertaining pieces that unwinds some of the mysteries that rank around innovation and creativity (summary).
- Sapiens: A brief history of humankind by Yuval Noah Harari. Not really tech or innovation book, but just such a great read that it needs to go on this list.
- Red notice: How I became Putin’s No. 1 Enemy by Bill Browder. Again, not really a tech book, but for everyone who is an entrepreneur, investor or just interested in doing business outside of their home turf: such an exiciting book. History lessons included. Must-read!
- How to measure anything: Finding the values of intangibles in business by Douglas W. Hubbard. Have you ever been part of an estimation exercise? Or ever heard excuses of why we cannot possible forecast anything? This book will give you a ton of new ideas to approach this topic.
- Nine lies about work - A freethinking leaders’ guide to the real world by Ashley Goodall. Challenges a lot of what we find to be “accepted truths” in todays thinking around leadership. Thought provoking but a bit lengthy at times, so that’s why it didn’t get further up in the list.
- A Philosopy of Software Design by John Ousterhout. A basic must-read for every software engineer.
- The Phoenix project by Gene Kim. I think it’s valid to say that this is just simply a classic that every person who deals with software and software engieering need to read.
- The subtle art of not giving a Fck: A counterintuitive approach to living a good life by Mark Manson. Some really interesting thoughts about life and its stuggles. Entertaining.
- Turn the ship around by David Marquet. Another classic on people management. Who would have thought we can learn something from military?
- Never split the difference: Negotiate as if your life depended on it by Chris Voss. I love this book as much for being entertaining as I love it for being practical in what it teaches.
