Books on Business Leadership are not hard to find. Many CEOs of very profitable companies have written at least one leadership book, for example, Steve Jobs, Lee Iacocca and many more. The shelves, both virtual and brick-and-mortar, are full of offerings. This list was compiled using books in the leadership book category that have stood the test of time but that is not to say that the newer books will not fit the need. There are many very good newer ones, some of the older ones get right to the core of being a good leader.

  1. The Power of Positive Leadership by Jon Gordon (2017) published by Wiley. “Positive leadership, it is the real stuff that makes great leaders great.” Gordon believes that a positive leadership style is essential for positive teams and positive organizations. He has coached politicians, sports figures, celebrities, and more with his words of a positive attitude.

His website http://www.jongordon.com offers tools to help leaders become more productive and positive.

  1. The Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey (2012) published by Simon & Schuster. This book, and others he has written, focus on fairness as well as honesty among other things. He provides many different types of tools to assist with meeting leadership goals.

During the 1980s, there was a movement within businesses that took a simple planner, the Franklin Planner, and revolutionized the business world by making it more efficient and more workable. This system still works today but is mainly electronic. Many of the principles are still useful today.

His website http://www.franklincovey.com supplies those tools as needed to assist leaders.

  1. How to Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie (1936) published by Simon & Schuster. This book is very “old school” but many of the principles are still effective today and it cuts through the pop verbiage to get right to the point. Over 30 million copies of this book have been sold over the years and it is still available today.

This book covers such topics as how to gain a new customer base, using enthusiasm to assist associates, how to be a better public speaker and other key processes to assist you in your leadership goals. Some of the concepts are a bit dated, but it still shines a light through the business jungles. For example, he uses a simple technique to help you remember people’s names. Remembering a person’s name is a tool that can help leaders connect with associates as well as clients or customers.

  1. Develop the Leader Within You by John Maxwell (2018) published by HarperCollins. John Maxwell is well known in the world of leadership and has written many books on the subject. This one in particular covers such topics as creating positive change, personal growth, and vision. He advocates being humble while leading, as the process is ever-changing, and no one knows everything.

John Maxwell is a true guru in the industry. Through his books and his seminars, thousands (probably more) people have gone onto learning key processes to make work more efficient, more productive and generally a more gratifying experience for all those involved.

  1. The One Minute Manager (1982) by Ken Blanchard and Spencer Johnson published by William Morrow & Co. This is another “old school” primer for leadership in which the ideas included represent praise, reprimands, goals and how to be a better manager. For many years this was the primer which business personnel used.

Some of these techniques may be a bit dated, but they were extremely revolutionary at the time it was published.