For the past 15+ years, I’ve dedicated time most every week to leadership-based reading. I’ve kept track of the highest-quality books to compile “Roddy’s Recommended Reading,” a list I first shared publicly six years ago and have updated annually since then. The list has expanded to 210 books thanks to recommendations from many of my SMB executive friends and RSPA members.

Over the past 12 months, I’ve read 18 additional books, each new title identified on the list below with an asterisk (*). Roddy’s Recommended Reading is categorized by subject and then listed in alphabetical order. To help make this over 200-title list more digestible, my 31 most highly recommended books are marked with a number sign (#). While every title on this list is at least very good, the highly recommended books are head of the class.

Of the new books I added this year, one cracked the highly recommended list: Radical Trust: How Today’s Great Leaders Convert People to Partners by Joe Healey. I discovered that book not through Amazon, not through a colleague recommendation, and not as a gift. I found it in an abandoned desk while cleaning out files this summer at the former RSPA headquarters in Charlotte. (RSPA is now an all-virtual work environment with employees across five states.) I wish I could thank someone for turning me on to Radical Trust, but I’ll have to settle for tipping my cap to our old friend serendipity.

I want to call out two other special new list additions, both authored by RSPA members. Tom Bronson of Mastery Partners has added a second book to his Maximize Business Value franchise with Maximize Business Value Playbook: 65 Specific Actions to Dramatically Increase the Value of Your Business. (You might recognize the handsome devil who wrote the book’s foreword.) And RSPA Past Chair Chelsey Paulson of member Keystone Group International has co-authored with Jaime Taets The Culture Climb: How To Build a Work Culture That Maximizes Your Impact. The book is available for pre-order now (I was lucky to receive an advance copy) and will be published in 2023.

In another year, I’ll update this list again so you can see what else I’ve discovered. Best of luck on your journey to become a dedicated leader and reader!

* denotes new addition to this year’s list

# denotes highly recommended

Customer Service

1. Answering the Ultimate Question – Laura Brooks and Richard Owen
2. Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose – Tony Hsieh
3. *(The) Effortless Experience: Conquering the New Battleground for Customer Loyalty – Matthew Dixon, Nick Toman, and Rick Delisi
4. (The) Loyalty Effect – Fred Reichheld
5. Loyalty Rules: How Today’s Leaders Build Lasting Relationships – Fred Reichheld
6. #Raving Fans: A Revolutionary Approach to Customer Service – Ken Blanchard and Sheldon Bowles

General Business & Strategy

7. *3HAG Way: The Strategic Execution System that Ensures Your Strategy is Not a Wild-Ass Guess! – Shannon Byrne Susko
8. (The) Advantage: Why Organizational Health Trumps Everything Else in Business – Patrick Lencioni
9. (The) Art of War – Sun Tzu
10. (The) Automatic Customer: Creating a Subscription Business in Any Industry – John Warrillow
11. Blue Ocean Strategy – W. Chan Kim and Renee Mauborgne
12. Built To Last – Jim Collins and Jerry Porras
13. Built To Sell: Creating a Business That Can Thrive Without You – John Warrillow
14. Creating Competitive Advantage – Jaynie Smith and William Flanagan
15. (The) Creation of Wealth: The Tatas from the 19^th to the 21^st Century – R.M. Lala
16. Crushing It!: How Great Entrepreneurs Build Their Business and Influence – and How You Can, Too – Gary Vaynerchuk
17. *(The) Culture Climb: How To Build a Work Culture That Maximizes Your Impact – Jaime Taets with Chelsey Paulson
18. *(The) Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups – Daniel Coyle
19. *(The) Dip: A Little Book That Teaches You When to Quit (and When to Stick) – Seth Godin
20. Double Digit Growth: How Great Companies Achieve It No Matter What – Michael Treacy
21. Double Your Profits in 6 Months or Less – Bob Fifer
22. (The) Driving Force: Extraordinary Results with Ordinary People – Peter W. Schutz
23. Dual Transformation: How to Reposition Today’s Business While Creating the Future – Scott D. Anthony, Clark G. Gilbert and Mark W. Johnson
24. #(The) E-Myth Revisited – Michael Gerber
25. #Escape Velocity: Free Your Company’s Future from the Pull of the Past – Geoffrey A. Moore
26. Everybody Lies: Big Data, New Data, and What the Internet Can Tell Us About Who We Really Are – Seth Stephens-Davidowitz
27. From Impossible to Inevitable: How Hyper-Growth Companies Create Predictable Revenue – Aaron Ross and Jason Lemkin
28. #Getting To Plan B – John Mullins and Randy Komisar
29. (The) Goal: A Process of Ongoing Improvement – Eliyahu M. Goldratt and Jeff Cox
30. #Good To Great – Jim Collins
31. Great By Choice – Jim Collins and Moren Hansen
32. #(The) Great Game of Business – Jack Stack
33. Grow: How Ideals Power Growth and Profit at the World’s Greatest Companies – Jim Stengel
34. #How The Mighty Fall – Jim Collins
35. In Search of Excellence: Lessons from America’s Best Run Companies – Thomas J. Peters and Robert H. Waterman
36. Innovation Made Simple – Jeff Havens
37. *Inside the Magic Kingdom: 7 Keys to Disney’s Success – Tom Connellan
38. Made To Stick: Why Some Ideas Survive and Others Die – Chip Heath and Dan Heath
39. Maverick: The Success Story Behind the World’s Most Unusual Workplace – Ricardo Semler
40. Maximize Business Value: Begin with the Exit in Mind – Tom Bronson
41. *Maximize Business Value Playbook: 65 Specific Actions to Dramatically Increase the Value of Your Business – Tom Bronson
42. Nine Lies About Work: A Freethinking Leader’s Guide to the Real World – Marcus Buckingham and Ashley Goodall
43. Nuts!: Southwest Airlines’ Crazy Recipe for Business and Personal Success – Kevin and Jackie Frieberg
44. On The Edge with Jim Roddy: Practical Advice for High-Initiative, Growth-Oriented VARs and ISVs – Jim Roddy
45. Peak: How Great Companies Get Their Mojo from Maslow – Chip Conley
46. Pour Your Heart Into It: How Starbucks Built a Company One Cup at a Time – Howard Schultz and Dori Jones Yang
47. #(The) Power of Moments: Why Certain Experiences Have Extraordinary Impact – Chip and Dan Heath
48. Pre-Suasion: A Revolutionary Way to Influence and Persuade – Robert Cialdini
49. #Purple Cow: Transform Your Business by Being Remarkable – Seth Godin
50. Restauranteur: Protect Your Profits! Discover Restaurant Scams and Technology Solutions – Don Potter
51. Roadside MBA: Back Road Lessons for Entrepreneurs, Executives, and Small Business Owners – Michael Mazzeo, Paul Oyer, and Scott Schaefer
52. Scaling Up: How a Few Companies Make it … and Why the Rest Don’t – Verne Harnish
53. (The) Search: How Google and its Rivals Rewrote the Rules of Business – John Battelle
54. (The) SEI Way: Values and Practices of a Growing Company – Ron Alvesteffer, CEO, Service Express Inc.
55. Simplify – Richard Koch and Greg Lockwood
56. Small Giants: Companies That Choose to Be Great Instead of Big – Bo Burlingham
57. Switch: How to Change When Change is Hard – Chip Heath and Dan Heath
58. Technology-as-a-Service Playbook: How to Grow a Profitable Subscription Business – Thomas Lah and J.B. Wood
59. That Will Never Work: The Birth of Netflix and the Amazing Life of an Idea – Marc Randolph
60. (The) Third Wave: An Entrepreneur’s Vision of the Future – Steve Case
61. (The) Toilet Paper Entrepreneur – Mike Michalowicz
62. #Turning the Flywheel: Why Some Companies Build Momentum … and Others Don’t (A Monograph to Accompany Good to Great) – Jim Collins
63. #Upstream: The Quest to Solve Problems Before They Happen – Dan Heath
64. *Vivid Vision: A Remarkable Tool for Aligning Your Business Around a Shared Vision of the Future – Cameron Herold
65. Who Says Elephants Can’t Dance?: Inside IBM’s Historic Turnaround – Lou Gerstner
66. Your Stand Is Your Brand: How Deciding Who to Be (NOT What to Do) Will Revolutionize Your Business – Patrick Gentempo
67. Zone to Win: Organizing to Compete in an Age of Disruption – Geoffrey A. Moore

Hiring

68. #Hire Like You Just Beat Cancer – Jim Roddy :)
69. Hire With Your Head – Lou Adler
70. Hiring The Best: A Manager’s Guide to Effective Interviewing and Recruiting – Martin Yate
71. Who: The “A” Method for Hiring – Geoff Smart and Randy Street

Leadership

72. (The) 5 Dysfunctions of a Team – Patrick Lencioni
73. (The) 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership: Follow Them and People Will Follow You – John C. Maxwell
74. Authentic Leadership – Bill George
75. (The) CEO Next Door: The Four Behaviors that Transform Ordinary People into World-Class Leaders – Elena L. Botelho and Kim R. Powell
76. Great Leaders Ask Questions: A Fortune 100 List – Bob Tiede
77. Influence – Robert Cialdini, Ph.D.
78. Jack: Straight From The Gut – Jack Welch with John Byrne
79. Jack Welch and the 4Es of Leadership – Jeffrey Krames
80. Leaders Eat Last: Why Some Teams Pull Together and Others Don’t – Simon Sinek
81. Leadership And The One Minute Manager – Ken Blanchard, Patricia Zigami and Drea Zigami
82. (The) Leadership Handbook: 26 Critical Lessons Every Leader Needs – John Maxwell
83. #Leadership in Turbulent Times – Doris Kearns Goodwin
84. Leading From Anywhere: The Essential Guide to Managing Remote Teams – David Burkus
85. Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead – Sheryl Sandberg
86. Many Parts, One Body: Healthier Leaders, Healthier Teams, A Healthier You – Rubi Ho
87. (The) Motive: Why So Many Leaders Abdicate Their Most Important Responsibilities – Patrick Lencioni
88. #Multipliers: How the Best Leaders Make Everyone Smarter – Liz Wiseman
89. (The) Power of Thanks – Eric Mosley and Derek Irvine
90. (The) Power of Your Leadership: Making a Difference with Others – John C. Maxwell
91. #*Radical Trust: How Today’s Great Leaders Convert People to Partners – Joe Healey
92. (The) Servant: A Simple Story About the True Essence of Leadership – James C. Hunter
93. Servant Leadership: A Journey into the Nature of Legitimate Power & Greatness – Robert K. Greenleaf
94. Start With Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action – Simon Sinek
95. #Superbosses: How Exceptional Leaders Master the Flow of Talent – Sydney Finkelstein
96. #Then Darkness Fled: The Liberating Wisdom of Booker T. Washington – Stephen Mansfield
97. Think and Grow Rich – Napoleon Hill
98. Turn the Ship Around! A True Story of Turning Followers into Leaders – L. David Marquet
99. *(The) Vision Driven Leader: 10 Questions to Focus Your Efforts, Energize Your Team, and Scale Your Business – Michael Hyatt

Management

100. 2-Second Lean: How to Grow People and Build a Lean Culture – Paul A. Akers
101. 30 Reasons Employees Hate Their Managers – Bruce Katcher
102. Building Trust: How to Get it! How to Keep it! – Hyler Bracey
103. (The) Carrot Principle – Adrian Gostick and Chester Elton
104. (The) Checklist Manifesto: How to Get Things Right – Atul Gawande
105. Culture By Design: Eight Simple Steps to Drive Better Individual and Organizational Performance – David J. Friedman
106. (The) Daily Drucker: 365 Days of Insight and Motivation for Getting the Right Things Done – Peter Drucker with Joseph Maciariello
107. Excellence Wins: A No-Nonsense Guide to Becoming the Best in a World of Compromise – Horst Schulze
108. #Execution: The Discipline of Getting Things Done – Larry Bossidy and Ram Charan
109. Extreme Ownership: How U.S. Navy Seals Lead and Win – Jocko Willink and Leif Babin
110. First Break All The Rules: What the World’s Greatest Managers Do Differently – Marcus Buckingham and Curt Coffman
111. *Get A Grip: How to Get Everything You Want from Your Entrepreneurial Business – Gino Wickman and Mike Paton
112. How Did That Happen? Holding People Accountable for Results the Positive, Principled Way – Roger Connors and Tom Smith
113. How To Be A Great Boss – Gino Wickman and Rene Boer
114. #(The) Ideal Team Player: How to Recognize and Cultivate the Three Essential Virtues – Patrick Lencioni
115. I Quit But Forgot To Tell You – Terri Kabachnick
116. It’s Your Ship: Management Techniques from the Best Damn Ship in the Navy – Captain D. Michael Abrashoff
117. Manager Of Choice – Nancy Ahlrichs
118. #(The) One Minute Manager – Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson
119. Ownership Thinking – Brad Hams
120. (The) Oz Principle: Getting Results Through Individual and Organizational Accountability – Roger Connors, Tom Smith and Craig Hickman
121. Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World that Can’t Stop Talking – Susan Cain
122. ROE Powers ROI – R. Michael Rose
123. Talent Is Overrated: What Really Separates World-Class Performers From Everybody Else – Geoff Colvin
124. Telling Ain’t Training: How You and Your Learners Can Achieve Astonishing Results – Harold D. Stolovitch and Erica J. Keeps
125. Traction: Get a Grip on Your Business – Gino Wickman
126. What People Want: A Manager’s Guide to Building Relationships That Work – Terry Bacon
127. What the Heck is EOS?: A Complete Guide for Employees and Companies Running EOS – Gino Wickman and Tom Bouwer
128. Winning Well: A Manager’s Guide to Getting Results Without Losing Your Soul – Karin Hurt and David Dye

Personal Development

129. *(The) 4-Hour Workweek – Escape 9-5, Live Anywhere, and Join the New Rich – Tim Ferriss
130. (The) 5AM Miracle: Dominate Your Day Before Breakfast – Jeff Sanders
131. 5 Laws That Determine Life’s Outcomes – Brett Harward
132. (The) 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change – Stephen Covey
133. (The) Anatomy of Peace: Resolving the Heart of Conflict – The Arbinger Institute
134. *(The) Beauty of Discomfort: How What We Avoid is What We Need – Amanda Lang
135. Barking Up The Wrong Tree: The Surprising Science Behind Why Everything You Know About Success Is (Mostly) Wrong – Eric Barker
136. Chief Maker: The 5-Step Blueprint to Rising Above the Pack and Getting a Seat on the Executive Team – Greg Layton
137. Crazy Busy: A (Mercifully) Short Book About a (Really) Big Problem – Kevin DeYoung
138. #Crucial Conversations: Tools for Talking When Stakes Are High – Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, and Al Switzler
139. #Decisive: How to Make Better Choices in Life and Work – Chip Heath and Dan Heath
140. Difficult Conversations – Douglas Stone, Bruce Patton, and Shelia Heen
141. Disrupt You! Master Personal Transformation, Seize Opportunity, and Thrive in the Era of Endless Innovation – Jay Samit
142. #Do You Talk Funny? 7 Comedy Habits to Become a Better (and Funnier) Public Speaker by David Nihill
143. Ego is the Enemy – Ryan Holiday
144. (The) Energy Bus – Jon Gordon
145. *(The) Go-Giver: A Little Story About a Powerful Business Idea – Bob Burg and John David Mann
146. How To Get Control Of Your Time And Your Life – Alan Lakein
147. How To Win Friends and Influence People – Dale Carnegie
148. Make Your Bed: Little Things That Can Change Your Life … and Maybe Change the World – Admiral William H. McRaven
149. Mastering Executive Presence: Career-Advancing Communication and Presentation Skills – Jennifer Vautier and John J. Vautier
150. Mindset: The New Psychology of Success – Carol S. Dweck, Ph.D.
151. Nice Bike: Meaningful Connections on the Road of Life – Mark Scharenbroich
152. #(The) Obstacle Is The Way: The Timeless Art of Turning Trials into Triumph – Ryan Holiday
153. Read To Lead: The Simple Habit That Expands Your Influence and Boosts Your Career – Jeff Brown and Jesse Wisnewski
154. *(The) Real-Life MBA: Your No-BS Guide to Winning the Game, Building a Team, and Growing Your Career – Jack and Suzy Welch
155. #Speak As Well As You Think: An Executive’s Guide to Excellence in Public Speaking – John M. Vautier and John J. Vautier
156. StrengthsFinder 2.0 – Tom Rath
157. Twelve Pillars – Jim Rohn and Chris Widener
158. (The) Wisdom and Teachings of Stephen R. Covey
159. You²: A High Velocity Formula for Multiplying Your Personal Effectiveness in Quantum Leaps – Price Pritchett, Ph.D.
160. You Are a Badass: How to Stop Doubting Your Greatness and Start Living an Awesome Life – Jen Sincero

Sales & Marketing

161. (The) 22 Immutable Laws of Marketing – Al Ries and Jack Trout
162. (The) Challenger Customer: Selling to the Hidden Influencer Who Can Multiply Your Results – Brent Adamson, Matthew Dixon, Pat Spenner, and Nick Toman
163. #(The) Challenger Sale: Taking Control of the Customer Conversation – Matthew Dixon and Brent Adamson
164. Crossing the Chasm: Marketing and Selling Disruptive Products to Mainstream Customers – Geoffrey A. Moore
165. Let’s Get Real Or Let’s Not Play: Transforming the Buyer/Seller Relationship – Mahan Khalsa and Randy Illig
166. Marketing Your Dreams: Lessons in Business and Life from Bill Veeck, Baseball’s Marketing Genius – Pat Williams and Michael Weinreb
167. New Sales. Simplified.: The Essential Handbook for Prospecting and New Business Development – Mike Weinberg
168. *(The) Perennial Seller: The Art of Making and Marketing Work That Lasts – Ryan Holiday
169. #Permission Marketing: Turning Strangers into Friends and Friends into Customers – Seth Godin
170. (The) Serving Mindset: Stop Selling and Grow Your Business – Farnoosh Brock
171. Smart Prospecting That Works Every Time! – Michael Krause
172. #(The) Trusted Advisor – David Maister

Sports-Themed

173. *Anchor Up: Competitive Greatness the Grand Valley Way – Tim Selgo
174. (The) Carolina Way – Dean Smith, Gerald Bell, and John Kligo
175. Coach K’s Little Blue Book: Lessons from College Basketball’s Best Coach – Barry Jacobs
176. Coach Wooden’s Pyramid of Success – John Wooden and Jay Carty
177. (The) Essential Wooden: A Lifetime of Lessons on Leaders and Leadership – John Wooden and Steve Jamison
178. Everyone’s A Coach – Ken Blanchard and Don Shula
179. *Fear is a Choice – James Conner with Tiffany Yecke Brooks
180. Great Teams: 16 Things High-Performing Organizations Do Differently – Don Yeager
181. Hard Work – Roy Williams and Tim Crothers
182. How Lucky You Can Be: The Story of Coach Don Meyer – Buster Olney
183. How To Be Like Coach Wooden: Life Lessons from Basketball’s Greatest Leader – Pat Williams
184. (The) Last Amateurs: Playing for Glory and Honor in Division I College Basketball – John Feinstein
185. (The) Road to 138: The Inside Story of the Insanely Fast, Record-Breaking Grinnell Pioneers – Ross Preston
186. Run To The Roar: Coaching to Overcome Fear – Paul Assaiante and James Zug
187. Russell Rules: 11 Leadership Lessons from the 20^th Century’s Greatest Winner – Bill Russell with David Falkner
188. Unscripted: The Unpredictable Moments That Make Life Extraordinary – Ernie Johnson Jr.
189. Walk-On: Life From the End of the Bench – Alan Williams
190. #(The) Walk-On Method To Career & Business Success: 31 Underdogs Who Became Extraordinary (And So Can You!) – Jim Roddy :)
191. (The) Wisdom of Walk-Ons: 7 Winning Strategies for College, Business, and Life – Dr. Paul Corona
192. Wooden: A Coach’s Life – Seth Davis

Miscellaneous

193. (The) Audacity of Hope – Barack Obama
194. Before You Join a Board – John Balkom
195. Blink: The Power of Thinking Without Thinking – Malcom Gladwell
196. Dead On Arrival: How to Avoid the Legal Mistakes that Could Kill Your Startup – Roger Royse
197. Dreams from My Father: A Story of Race and Inheritance – Barack Obama
198. Drive: The Surprising Truth About What Motivates Us – Daniel Pink
199. Inspire Action: The Definitive Guide to Audience Management – David Wible
200. (The) Last Lecture – Randy Pausch with Jeffrey Zaslow
201. Little Book of Big “Leading with Questions” Quotes – Bob Tiede
202. (The) Millionaire Next Door – Thomas Stanley and William Danko
203. #Mother Teresa: Her Essential Wisdom – Carol Kelly-Gangi
204. Now That’s a Great Question – Bob Tiede
205. Powerful Panels: A step-by-step guide to moderating lively and informative panel discussions at meetings, conferences, and conventions – Kristin Arnold
206. Professor Wellstone Goes To Washington: The Inside Story of a Grassroots U.S. Senate Campaign – Dennis McGrath and Dane Smith
207. Race For Relevance: 5 Radical Changes for Associations – Harrison Coerver and Mary Byers
208. #Tao Te Ching: The Book of the Way and How it Manifests Itself in the World – new English version by Stephen Mitchell
209. (The) Tipping Point: How Little Things Can Make a Big Difference – Malcom Gladwell
210. Wherever Men Trade: The Romance of the Cash Register – Isaac Marcos