If you're looking for a blueprint on starting or running a small business mixed with a heavy dose of motivation then Rework (affiliate link) by Jason Fried and David Heinemeier Hansson of 37Signals is the book you need to get your hands on.
The following is an excerpt from my new book, Facebook Marketing. If you haven't picked up your copy yet, you can check out this excerpt, read a few reviews and then decide if you think it will be helpful to you.
Have you had a chance to pick up your copy of Facebook Marketing yet? If you're still deciding whether or not it is worth your $20-ish, you might wander over to a few of the reviews so far of Facebook Marketing to see if that helps to convince you.
Imagine if you had been a fly on the wall during the inception of Google straight through to today when they're one of the most powerful brands in the world. That is exactly what Inside Larry & Sergey's Brain (affiliate link) by Richard L. Brandt does. From the back cover:
Facebook Marketing is a deep dive into how Facebook can be leveraged by your company starting TODAY. This book is not just a Facebook-is-cool-and-you-should-join type book. This book provides you with actionable information that you can begin implementing into your business. It gives you the ammunition you need to convince your boss, your board, your IT team, or your employees why they should be investing time and money on "just another social network."
Over the past year or so there have been several books written about President Obama, his historic presidential race and exploring how his presidency. As someone who is extremely interested in government and politics, I have read several of them. None of them have gotten as close as Jonathan Alter has with his book The Promise: President Obama, Year One (affiliate link).
Most of the business books that are published focus on teaching you what you can do to improve your sales, marketing, customer retention, productivity or a number of other business-related goals. The case studies in these books typically highlight role models of the concepts being described and then have actionable tips that you can follow to achieve similar results.
Don't you wish you knew what the magic trick was to going viral? Wish you could get your video viewed by more than your mother, best friend, and dog? While there is definitely more advanced advice available, it does all start with the basics. Matthew Liu, the YouTube Product Manager over at Google, explains some of the quick and easy steps you can take to optimize your videos to give them a greater likelihood of getting more views.
Were you as amazed as most of the rest of the country when Barack Obama seemingly came out nowhere to take the 2008 Presidential election by storm? Have you sat back and scratched your head wondering how the Obama campaign did it? Are you amongst the group that wants to understand how they built such a strong community, both online and offline? Need a break from the regular onslaught of business, marketing, and self-help books? If you're whipping your head up and down, first, stop. We wouldn't want you to get whip-lash. Now, don't even bother watching the video below and go buy 5 copies of The Audacity to Win: The Inside Story and Lessons of Barack Obama's Historic Victory
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9mGi5kagOrI[/youtube]