Best Business Books to Read in Lockdown

Learning is a never-ending process and one thing that is common in all great people is the passion and openness to read and learn. Frankly, we all try our best to acquire knowledge, but in this hyper-competitive era, we fail to manage time for reading books. The corona pandemic and the remedial social-distancing measures have given us enough free time to read quality business books. If you are looking for books that could be helpful in learning, unlearning, rewiring, and reorientation then here is the list of all-time great business books to read in the lockdown period.

All-Time Great Business Books

The COVID-19 crisis is already disrupting the socio-economic structure of the society and exposing fissures in systems. The world will overcome this crisis, but it will not be the same as before. In this time of physical, mental, and economic crisis, reading books is the best possible way to keep mind stable and prepare yourself for the bigger battle ahead. Here are some of your loyal friends, as Ernest Hemingway said there is no friend as loyal as a book.

1. Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg
   This international bestseller written by the Chief Operating Officer at Facebook, Sheryl Sandberg, is one of the best for lockdown reading. One can achieve whatever s/he wants without sacrificing the life-balance. Lean In takes you through the process of finding a mentor at the workplace, how to negotiate what you want, opinion building, leadership path, and most importantly the real meaning of equal partnership in the home. This book is like an executable blueprint of personal growth, especially for women.
2. Tools of Titans by Tim Ferriss
   If you love intensive reading with a plethora of real-life examples to correlate, then this masterpiece from the writer of iconic ‘The 4-Hour Workweek’ will keep you spell-bounded. This 650-page long beast is a gist of tactics, routines, and habits of over 200 most successful peoples of the world from all walks of life. Over 100 million downloads say it loudly that it is one of the most loved business books written in a very simple format covering business advice, productivity tips, life learning, and many more aspects of business life.
3. Outliers: The Story of Success by Malcolm Gladwell
   Feeling low and stressed in lockdown? Go and pick Malcolm Gladwell’s Outliers and continue reading. It will start recharging your mental space with new ideas and energy. The book talks about mastering any subject through deliberate practice and the famous 10,000 Hour Rule. This will help you identify the traits of successful people and what makes high-achievers different. It is a gold mine for all. Keep on digging and processing, you will be a different person by the time you reach the end of the book.
4. The Hard Thing About Hard Things: Building a Business When There Are No Easy Answers by Ben Horowitz
   If you are more than ready to go in serious business introspection, then grab this book by the co-founder of the venture capital firm Andreessen Horowitz. In this book, author Ben Horowitz shares his own experience of building multi-billion ventures and running startups. The incredible narrative and contextual examples of the book helps you learn the art of solving inevitable problems. The straight forward approach and relevant topic selection like business partnering, firing, poaching and most importantly building CEO mentality.
5. Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future Peter Thiel and Blake Masters
   If you are running a startup or planning to shape your ideas, then this business book is a must to read because you will learn about the power of disruptive innovation. Coming from none other than the visionary founder of PayPal and Facebook investor, Peter Thiel makes it a real practical learning experience. He talks about looking beyond normal with a passion to innovate and emphasizes on immense unexplored opportunities waiting to be built. He talks about the 0-1 journey and how the next-gen will redefine the business spectrum. You will learn to train yourself as an innovator.
6. 80/20 Sales and Marketing: The Definitive Guide to Working Less and Making More by Perry Marshall
   The lockdown is going to redefine productivity measurement. It is time to re-read the book ‘The 80/20 Principle’ written by Perry Marshall. He takes you through the natural principle of effort and outcome and how this could be applicable in all aspects of life. It is not just about theory, but the practical application of the principle. The author shares several examples of how 80% of efforts could be saved by focusing on relevant 20%. You will learn about sales and marketing maximization and create perfect competitive differentiators.

The list is endless as all books are great in one sense or the other. There is no biography or auto-biography in the list as the focus is on helping you learn business skills. Prioritization might not be an issue during the lockdown, but reading business books could keep you engaged and motivated.

You can share what you are reading in lockdown and what makes it the best.

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