Whether you’re preparing to study at university next year or you’re still exploring your potential interest in the subjects, we’ve got some Economics and Business book recommendations for you.Is there a secret to success? While not exclusively a business book, this bestseller aims to examine and identify the various factors that lead to success. Examples of the successful range from Bill Gates to sports players and musicians. Outliers discusses the impact of several factors on success, including cultural differences, intelligence and practice.
Below, we’ve narrowed down our favourite Business and Economics books to just ten titles, curated to offer a taste of the wide range of content these fields cover. We’ve included something for everyone, ranging from simple introductions to history, autobiography, self-help and even a novel. Books one to five focus on the business side of things, while six to ten are more economics-centric.We couldn’t come up with a list of business books without including this one. Written in 1936 by an expert in business, How to Win Friends and Influence People is one of the best-selling books of all time. While it is, in practice, a self-help book, it focuses on the interpersonal skills necessary to excel in business, especially leadership and persuasion.
Despite being a bit older than most books you will come across in business, it was pioneering in many ways and laid the groundwork for the modern business guide genre. This makes it a valuable and relevant read, no matter how much the business world has changed since the ‘30s. It was also written for a popular audience, not an academic one, making it an easy introduction to the world of business, and a good first step towards more complex reads.This business book focuses on the lives and achievements of George Eastman, Thomas Watson, Henry Ford, Charles Revson, Robert N. Noyce, Andrew Carnegie and Sam Walton. All of these businessmen were incredibly successful due to their innovation and use of modern technologies. The author delves into their stories and illustrates their path to business success.
This book is helpful as a tool for students to pick out the common features shared by these great innovators, to learn which tactics work, and to provide important background knowledge of the progress made in business throughout the 20th century. As it is written by a business historian, this text is a little more academic. However, being split into seven sections makes it easily readable, and you could even pick the two or three innovators that interest you the most and focus on them.Perfect as a follow-up to number two on this list, this business book offers Sam Walton’s journey to success from his own point of view. This autobiographical text follows Walton’s career from the owner of a single shop to the development of Wal-Mart as America knows it today.
Made in America describes the challenges Walton faced, including persuading people to trust in his vision. He doesn’t shy away from recognising both his achievements and his mistakes. The book also frames Walton’s success in terms of the pursuit of the American Dream, the distinctly American conception of independent economic achievement as the mark of a fulfilled life. This is written in a conversational and direct style, making it a relatively easy read. Walton’s use of anecdotes coupled with his impressive story mean that this book is anything but boring.
