Books on Business and Decisions

Five business books and where we use them

This article gathers, transparently, the popular business books cited in the test results of the Business and decisions category, and says which articles each one appears in.

They are books written by entrepreneurs or management authors, not academic research. In each article they serve as an example or illustration, while the underlying basis is research on decision-making and conflict: Kahneman and Tversky’s prospect theory, the DOSPERT scale of risk perception, Pruitt and Rubin’s dual concern theory, and the negotiation studies of De Dreu and other authors.

For each book we explain what it contributes, who it may be a good read for, and what to keep in mind.

Robert Kiyosaki, Rich Dad Poor Dad

The best-selling book on this list, and its reach is explained by its format: a semi-autobiographical narrative, easy to follow, rather than a technical manual.

Where we use it: in the four results of the investor profile quiz (analytical, risk-taker, conservative, and moderate), for its distinction between assets and liabilities and the idea of understanding your own numbers.

What to keep in mind: it is the least reliable source on this page. Several of its specific recommendations and some of its stories have been heavily criticized by economists and financial journalists, so only its general intuition is used here. For the underlying idea, research on financial literacy (Lusardi and Mitchell, 2014) is a much more solid basis.

Who it’s for: anyone looking for a very simple introduction to thinking about money as a flow, not an investment guide. This content does not constitute financial advice.

Phil Knight, Shoe Dog

Probably the best-written book on the list. Nike’s founder recounts, without dressing up the years the company spent on the brink of bankruptcy, what it feels like to hold a risky bet for almost two decades without knowing whether it will pay off.

Where we use it: in bold and calculated, from the risk tolerance quiz, and in proactive doer, from the entrepreneurial style quiz, as a narrative example of risk tolerance sustained over time.

What to keep in mind: it is a memoir, told from the vantage point of eventual success. It works as an illustration, not as proof that taking risks pays off: for every company that survived years like those, many did not, and never wrote a book.

Who it’s for: it reads at the pace of a novel, and it’s one of the few books in the category that readers with no interest in business also enjoy.

Peter Thiel, Zero to One

A book of arguments, not anecdotes: Thiel strings together counterintuitive ideas with little narrative filler.

Where we use it: in three results of the entrepreneurial style quiz: cautious strategist, innovator, and visionary connector, for its idea that the most valuable companies are born from a bet against consensus rather than from copying what already works.

What to keep in mind: some of his positions, especially his defense of monopoly over competition, are deliberately provocative and meant to be argued with rather than simply accepted.

Who it’s for: short and dense, for readers who enjoy underlining and arguing with the author.

Simon Sinek, Start with Why

It grew out of a TED talk that ranks among the most watched on the platform, and it shows: it has the same knack for synthesis as a good talk.

Where we use it: in visionary connector, where his “golden circle” (why, how, what) helps explain why that profile communicates purpose first and product second.

What to keep in mind: Sinek grounds the model in a very simplified account of the brain (the “why” supposedly speaks to the limbic system), which shouldn’t be taken literally. The central idea is clear within the first few pages, and the rest repeats it with different examples.

Who it’s for: anyone who has to present a project and wants to put the message in order.

Dale Carnegie, How to Win Friends and Influence People

The elder statesman of the list: published in 1936 and still in print ninety years later.

Where we use it: in the five results of the negotiation style quiz (accommodating, collaborative, competitive, compromising, and avoidant), with a different principle in each: admit mistakes quickly, take a genuine interest in the other person, don’t try to win arguments, start from points of agreement, and let the other person air their complaint in full.

What to keep in mind: it is popular writing based on anecdotes, not studies, and in those articles it appears as a brief complement to the research on negotiation. Some of its examples, drawn from 1930s America, sound dated today.

Who it’s for: anyone who wants an enjoyable read about dealing with people; its underlying principle, treating the other person as someone with their own interests rather than as an obstacle, has aged well.

A separate reference: Getting to Yes

Roger Fisher and William Ury’s book (1981), from the Harvard Negotiation Project, is not popular business writing in the usual sense but the reference work on principled negotiation. We use it in other articles: the one on BATNA, the results of the conflict style quiz, and the article on the Tao Te Ching, leadership, and negotiation.

Sources

• Carnegie, D. (1936). How to Win Friends and Influence People. Simon & Schuster.
• Fisher, R. and Ury, W. (1981). Getting to Yes: Negotiating Agreement Without Giving In. Houghton Mifflin.
• Kiyosaki, R. T. and Lechter, S. L. (1997). Rich Dad, Poor Dad.
• Knight, P. (2016). Shoe Dog: A Memoir by the Creator of Nike. Scribner.
• Lusardi, A. and Mitchell, O. (2014). The economic importance of financial literacy: Theory and evidence. Journal of Economic Literature, 52(1), 5-44. doi:10.1257/jel.52.1.5
• Sinek, S. (2009). Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action. Portfolio.
• Thiel, P. and Masters, B. (2014). Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future. Crown Business.