by Josh Kaufman
Kaufman argues you don't need an MBA to understand how business works. He breaks every company into five core processes - value creation, marketing, sales, delivery, and finance - and teaches each from first principles.
In this collection, The Personal MBA references 6 other books.
It draws on Getting Things Done, Rework and The Design of Everyday Things.
Scroll down to read the exact passages where other authors reference this book and what they say about it.
The Personal MBA occupies an unusual position in this network: it is heavily outward-citing, recommending dozens of foundational business books, but receives few incoming citations from other authors. Kaufman positions the book as a curated self-education program, pointing readers to Cialdini's Influence for persuasion, Allen's Getting Things Done for productivity, Meadows's Thinking in Systems for complexity, and Norman's Design of Everyday Things for user-centreed thinking.
Readers tend to value it as an efficient survey and reading roadmap rather than a source of original ideas -- it is the book you read to figure out which books to read next. Those looking for deep expertise in any single domain will need to follow Kaufman's own recommendations, but as an accessible entry point to business fundamentals, it is consistently well-regarded.
The books Kaufman references and why each one mattered to the argument.
Kaufman recommends Allen's productivity system as essential for manageing the complexity of running a business without letting tasks fall through the cracks.
Kaufman includes Rework in his reading list as a counterpoint to traditional business advice, sharing its philosophy that simplicity and focus beat complex business plans.
Kaufman recommends Norman's design thinking as essential business knowledge, arguing that understanding how users interact with products is fundamental to creating value.
Kaufman includes Meadows' systems thinking as essential for understanding business complexity, where cause and effect are rarely linear and unintended consequences are common.
Kaufman recommends Blue Ocean Strategy for its framework on creating uncontested market space rather than competing in crowded markets with diminishing returns.
Kaufman includes Carnegie's classic as foundational business reading, arguing that relationship skills are the most undervalued asset in business.
No books citing this title yet.
How ideas flow through the citation network. Ancestors are books this title builds on; descendants are books that build on it.
Books from completely different categories that share citation overlap with this one. These are the reads you would not find by browsing a single shelf.
Atomic Habits
James Clear
168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think
Laura Vanderkam
The Organized Mind
Daniel Levitin
Quiet
Susan Cain
Four Thousand Weeks
Oliver Burkeman
The Pragmatic Programmer
David Thomas
Books with the highest citation overlap within the same categories.
Atomic Habits
James Clear
2 shared citations168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think
Laura Vanderkam
2 shared citations
Essentialism
Greg McKeown
1 shared citationThe Organized Mind
Daniel Levitin
1 shared citation
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People
Stephen Covey
1 shared citationQuiet
Susan Cain
1 shared citationThis book and its direct connections. Hover a node to see its title, click to visit.
Hover a node to highlight its connections. Click to open the book page. Node size reflects total citation links.
