Finding Knowledge You can Use

Ask yourself: What do you really want? Be brutally honest. Once you've figured it out...wouldn't it be nice if somebody far wiser and more experienced than you--who's accomplished what you want to do--put all their knowledge, insights, stories and emotions at your fingertips?

It took me 20 years to fully realize it but that's exactly what a book is. What I really want is to be at the forefront of the privatization of space, whenever that may happen. To do this, I need to be able to effectively manage people, my network, time, and money. Since the industry doesn't technically exist the way I want it, I need to be able to envision and actualize goals and desires of mine. So I've been reading up, and I've got some books to recommend to anybody who wants to make something of themselves.

I Will Teach You to be Rich is a witty, funny introduction on how to effectively manage your money and the options available to you as a 20-something college student. If you've ever worried about what to do with or how to manage your money, get this book and follow it--your worries will be a thing of the past.

The Wealthy Barber was recommended to me by a CPA in Canada. Where I Will Teach You to be Rich leaves off this book picks up: what/when/why you need certain types of insurance, how to get them, wills, investment strategy and a myriad of other specific tips and insights. This is a book I'll be reading once a year the rest of my life.

Never Eat Alone is about networking. How to effectively manage the thousands of contacts you will get during your life. How exactly to help you and your friends get what you really want professionally and personally. I constantly reread passages from this book.

The Practice of Management is by Peter Drucker. Drucker created the entire field of management theory. If you read one book on management, ever, this is that book. If you don't read anything else on this list, read this book.

Good to Great is about what, specifically & empirically, separates average companies from great ones. At some point in my life, I want to lead a large company. This book is the how-to guide to that. Did you know Walgreens used to be in the restaurant industry? I didn't. This book follows how they've consistently and dramatically outperformed the market for years.

All together these books cost me way under $50. The wisdom, inspiration and insights I've gained from them which I will use the rest of my life are worth far more than that. For a little snippet from one of these books, check out the middle of this post.