Ask HN: Any unusual book that helped you in entrepreneurship?

3 points·ironschool··2 comments

I am looking for any book which helped you living and being successful as entrepreneur but the topic/domain of the book is something else altogether.

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Not really. One realization is that doing and seeking gradual excellence can be a better teacher than reading (or other forms of un/intentional procrastination). If you happen to learn from someone else's mistakes, that's great. Make lots of survivable mistakes while try to get the fundamentals right... which means you're doing and learning. Learning is the most valuable.

Attitude and schlepping that translate into sales and delivering sh%t cures all. There's lots of annoying and mundane stuff to do, and some things you'll always forget, but it all adds up and you'll get better over time (especially by keeping searchable notes; I have a terrible memory).

Of the books by actual billionaires who have BTDTBTTS , I'd read Felix Dennis' ironically-named How to Get Rich for fun. It contains more of a meta autobiographical attitude insight through stories instead of cargo-cult practices, business theater or phony shortcuts. Supposedly, he claims he was Sir Richard Branson's roommate at one point. Too bad he passed from too hard a life from too much hookers and coke.

Have done a lot of mistakes already and learnt a lot too. But a mentor is the best if you wish to progress in the positive direction. Lack of it, obviously cannot be filled by books, and you try to seek advice in books hoping that someone in the same shoes happen to write how he/she got success can help you as well.

Finding a mentor is definitely not the easiest thing as well.

But I totally agree, any form of procrastination is bad (even reading).

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