The 5 Books That Built My Business (and why most people read them wrong)

Dear Andre, (3.2 min read)

The question hit me at 2:47 AM.

I was lying in bed, scrolling through Chris Do’s Essential book list. I realized many of these books had changed me. but there was a problem.

Everyone talks about what to read.

No one talks about how books actually change you.

Chapter 1: The Conversation That Started Everything

It was a live training call in 2014. I was 18, three months into my first business.

The mentor on the call drew two circles on her whiteboard.

"Learning," she said, pointing to the first circle. "Action," pointing to the second.

Then she drew them overlapping.

"If all you do is learn, you go in circles. If all you do is take action without learning, you go in circles. But when you combine both..."

she pointed to the overlap.

"Now you make progress."

That's when someone asked: "What should we read?"

her answer changed everything:

"Reading isn't about collecting information. It's about transformation."

Then she gave us five books. Not a list of fifty. Not the "top business books of all time."

Five books. With a rule:

Don't move to the next one until the current one changes how you act.

Sidenote: if you want more than just these 5 I’ve put together a list of others that have influenced me. This is still a work in progress. It will be updated more over the next few weeks. But I want you to have it now even though it isn’t perfect: https://docs.google.com/document/d/12X94I89vzHsI2wQxApu1UpeCG6s8okPOfV2zbQ2QF6Q/edit?usp=sharing

The Five Books (And Why They Actually Matter)

Book 1: How to Win Friends and Influence People - Dale Carnegie

This wasn't a book recommendation. It helped me understand people for the first time.

At 18, I thought business was about having the best product. The smartest strategy. The most clever marketing.

I was wrong.

Business is about people.

Carnegie had been teaching classes for 15 years. Fifteen years of watching adults struggle with the same problem: How do you get along with people?

The book breaks down into simple frameworks:

Techniques in Handling People

1. Don't criticize, condemn, or complain.

2. Give honest and sincere appreciation.

3. Arouse in the other person an eager want.

Six Ways to Make People Like You

1. Become genuinely interested in other people.

2. Smile.

3. Remember that a person's name is to that person the sweetest and most important sound in any language.

4. Be a good listener. Encourage others to talk about themselves.

5. Talk in terms of the other person's interests.

6. Make the other person feel important – and do it sincerely.

One idea changed everything: In two months of being genuinely interested in others, you'll have more friendships than spending two years trying to get people interested in you.

I tested it. Started asking better questions. Actually listening to answers. Smiling more.

It took time, but these ideas worked on me. I started getting invited to opportunities I never would have found on my own.

Book 2: Never Split the Difference - Chris Voss

Twenty-five years as an FBI hostage negotiator condensed into one book.

But here's what most people miss: This isn't about negotiation.

It's about tactical empathy. Understanding someone's perspective not just because you agree with them, but because it's the most effective tool for understanding people and getting things done.

I use "no-oriented questions," mirrors, and labels daily. Instead of asking "Is now a good time to talk?" I ask "Is now a bad time to talk?"

It changes everything.

Book 3: $100M Offers - Alex Hormozi

If you're starting a business, read this first.

Not because it's about making millions. Because it's about making offers so good that people feel stupid saying no.

The framework is simple: Increase the likelihood they get results. Decrease their risk. Increase the speed they see outcomes.

I've read this book three times. It works.

Book 4: $100M Leads - Alex Hormozi

After you know how to make offers, you need to know how to tell people about them.

Four ways: Content. Cold outreach. Warm outreach. Paid ads.

Pick one. Go all in.

Most people try to do all four poorly instead of one exceptionally.

Book 5: Unreasonable Hospitality - Will Guidara

This book gave me a spiritual experience.

Not kidding.

I listened to it driving back from Southern California, and something clicked about creating "legends"—moments so remarkable that people tell stories about them for years.

The "Dream Weaver" concept alone changed how I think about relationships. Listen closely to what people say they want. Write it down. Act on it.

Most people don't do this. So when you do, you stand out completely.

The Real Secret: How to Actually Change

Here's what I learned after years of chasing the next book:

It's better to master a few books and go back to them again and again, letting them change you at your core. I still listen to many new books. And love learning new things. But I have a core group that I come back to at least once a year.

I don't read for information. I read to change who I am at a core level.

Don't collect books. Collect transformations.

After each book, ask yourself: What's different about how I act now?

If the answer is "nothing," you read it wrong.

Start With Curiosity, Not Discipline

You want to know which book to read first?

The one you're most curious about. Right now.

A frog isn't interested in a rock because it's boring. But it's fascinated by a fly because it's food.

Find your fly. Start there.

What's Next?

These five books will give you a foundation that most people spend decades trying to figure out:

• How to connect with people

• How to create value

• How to tell people about it

• How to make it remarkable

But only if you let them change you.

Don't just read them. Live them.

Then write me back and tell me which one hit for you.

I'm curious what clicks for you.

P.S. - I've listened to "How to Win Friends and Influence People" every year for the last 12 years. Still haven't read the physical book. Sometimes the medium doesn't matter as much as the message.

What matters is that you just start. (like my book)

—Daniel

Forward this to someone who's been asking what they should read. They'll thank you later.