2023 Book List
The theme of this year’s book list was “Secure the bag as a Product Manager”. If you google “must-read books for product managers”, The Lean Startup and Hooked will be on at least 97% of the lists. They held up their end of the bargain because I’m proud to say I can officially call myself a Product Manager after interning at Nike as a Digital Product Manager this past summer! Those who know me well know that was my dream company and role. Several of these reads helped me to get there and provided me with the tools to get started.
Favorite Book of the Year : My favorite read this year was Wizenard Series: Season One (2nd book in the series). It’s one of the few fiction books I got to read this year and it was the perfect way to close out the year. I finished it up in Georgia at my moms house over Christmas break where my only goal was to relax. I highly recommend to all Kobe fans as he’s the creator and because The “Wizard Proverbs” have Kobe Bryant’s Mamba Mentality written all over them. I think anyone who has played organized sports especially with a mixed bunch will relate to this story.
Most Insightful Read of the Year : I definitely credit the 10% Entrepreneur and The start-up of You with spurring my start-up/VC bug. I think when people think of the word “entrepreneur”, they instantly think of the word “founder”. These books introduced me to other ways to be entrepreneurial while still possibly having a 9-5 or by not necessarily starting off being entrepreneurial as a founder.
Books in Order :
The Lean Startup - Eric Ries
Deacon King Kong - James McBride
The Fire Next Time - James Baldwin
The Energy Bus - Jon Gordon
Hooked - Nir Eyal
10% Entrepreneur - Patrick J. McGinnis
The Start-up of You - Reid Hoffman and Ben Casnocha
The Necessary Journey: Making Real Progress on Equity and Inclusion - Dr. Ella F. Washington
Change by Design - Tim Brown
User Story Mapping - Jeff Patton
Wizenard Series: Season One (2nd book in the series) - Created by Kobe Bryant and written by Wesley King
Upcoming Reads for 2024: I kicked off the year with Wisdom of Titans: Secrets of Success from Entrepreneurs Who Rose to the Top by William J. Ferguson. I technically started it in December, but I didn’t finish before the year was up so I didn’t count it. Yes, I missed my goal by one book. Some time this year, I also want to read Black Cake by Charmaine Wilkerson so that I can check out the series on Hulu as well as the 12-Week Year and American Sirens.