Read, Listen or Die!

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I’m back, home after spending the last week out of town and away from “the studio”. During that week I had a chance to catch up on my reading and listening list. While going through all of the vast array of articles, podcasts and books it struck me that I have not shared with you my Read, Listen or Die list. It’s not quite as serious as that, but in terms of the success of your business these blogs, podcasts and books should be considered mandatory.

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Blogs:

1. Master of 500 Hats - Dave is a  flat out stud. He has been involved in just about all of the noteworthy Silicon Valley Start-ups. He is a geek, angel investor and generally a really smart guy. He does not update the blog very often, but when he does the insights he provides are, well valuable.
2. Danny Asling- A fairly new blog, but has already made two top 100 lists, Danny focuses on Social Media.
   
3. An Extension of the Net- This is a community blog for developers, but I have found it extraordinarily valuable in keeping tabs on emerging trends. They consider themselves an online design magazine focused on all things Web Design.
4. Entreprenuer.com’s Blog - A wide range of contributors and a diverse array of topics all relevant to entrepreneurs, this site is one of my daily stops. They cover pretty much everything.
5. Ben Horowitz’s Blog - Ben Horowitz is the co-founder of the VC firm, Andreesen Horowitz and co founder of LoudCloud. He has some great insights from both the entrepreneur and the investor point of view. I read his posts as often as he provides them.
6. Joel on Software – Explaining development

43 Folders - Merlin Mann’s website devoted to setting your priorities and arranging your time and life to fit. He has several great video podcasts and always makes great poignant points.

Podcasts:

1. Business Innovators – Adrian Bye interviews CEO’s from top Internet businesses. These podcasts offer great insight into the minds of some of the hottest companies.
2. Success U - How could I not mention my podcasts, I really do try to make it a valuable tool for the entrepreneur, and I honestly, regularly send customers to listen to old podcasts…
3. Marketing Over Coffee - Recorded in a local coffee shop, John Wall and Christopher Penn cover both classic and new media marketing in this weekly podcast. They have done some great interviews with people like Seth Godin and James Connor.
4. The Passionate Entrepreneur- Kenneth Brown hosts this podcast where he covers everything from best practices for sales to becoming more productive, efficient and profitable.
5. The Small Business Brain- Every week David Wolf interviews a small business leaders to bring you their insights and unique perspectives.

Books:

1. 4 Hour Work Week - I cannot recommend this book highly enough. Every successful entrepreneur I know has read this book, and we all talk about it quite often. Many great tips on leveraging outside vendors to increase your small teams productivity and profit, cheap.
2. Crush It! - Why Now is the time to cash in on your passion. Gary Vaynerchuk shows how anyone can build a career around the things they are passionate about.
3. Rework - How to break the rules and make a fortune, this book made me uncomfortable, and challenged my assumptions. This turned out to be a good thing. Short, and direct, you NEED to read this book.
4. Getting Things Done - The Art of Stress Free Productivity. This book is a kind-of whole life organizing self help book, without the annoying preachy nature of most in the genre. Great book for helping you organize your life.
5. Social Media Marketing: An Hour A Day- This book is a fantastic introduction into the use of Social Media to market your product or service. This should be considered a must read for anyone planning on using online media.
6. The E-Myth Revisited - Anyone who is looking to start a new business should read this book. Voted #1 by the Inc 500 CEO’s. You should read this first.
7. Change Your Brain Change Your Life – Question your assumptions and challenge your comfort zones.

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Tags: Angel investor, business, Christopher Penn, Crush It!: Why NOW Is the Time to Cash In on Your Passion, Entrepreneur, Gary Vaynerchuk, John Wall, Marketing and Advertising, Marketing Over Coffee, Seth Godin, social media