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You are in the right place if you are wondering what’s on Tech company CEO Elon Musk’s Reading List. Elon Musk points out reading books as the reason for his success.
In almost all of his interviews, he recommends book titles he thinks everyone should read.
Musk even said that he was raised more by books than by his parents.
During Musk’s early years, books sparked his imagination to dream big about his future.
The entrepreneur sees himself as an introvert thinker.
He would rather read books than go to a party.
His idea of fun is immersing himself in a world painted by his books.
We’re sure you’ve read excerpts from his interviews.
In most of these interviews, he would casually mention a title or two.
We combed through his every interview and listed seven business and leadership books you might find inspiration from.
Elon Musk’s Reading List
Benjamin Franklin: An American Life by Walter Isaacson.
Musk noted in an interview how Benjamin Franklin started from nothing.
His dreams started when he ran away from his parents.
Musk sees Franklin as his personal hero owing to the fact that the latter is a scientist, inventor, author, and diplomat.
It is not surprising that this book is on Elon Musk’s Reading List.
The book presents Franklin as an accessible and relatable hero.
It’s as if you are there while he struggled until his efforts are finally met with success.
Isaacson’s work highlights Franklin’s belief in self-reliance.
Get this book from Amazon by clicking on the link above.
Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, and Strategies by Nick Bostrom.
Musk has been a firm believer in potential.
He invested so much in the future.
Much of this inclination towards technology started from his habit of reading science fiction.
Even though he sees himself as a futurist, Musk expresses his worries about the ethical dilemma that comes with the technological revolution.
It is not surprising that this book is on Elon Musk’s Reading List.
In a 2014 tweet, Musk referenced Bostrom’s book and how it dealt with challenges posed by the dangers of technological independence out-competing human intelligence.
If you are a tech entrepreneur, this is a Musk “must-read”.
Know the paths, dangers, and strategies on the road to success by buying this book from Amazon using the image link above
Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future by Peter Thiel.
The author, Peter Thiel, was one of the co-founders of Paypal.
Musk said that Thiel’s book explored the recipe for building successful organizations.
This book will encourage you to focus on creative thinking when managing your business.
Thiel will take you to the process of how small businesses become an empire.
Learn how you can build the future by buying this book from Amazon using the image link above
Merchants of Doubt by Erik M. Conway and Naomi Oreskes.
Success without responsibility is an empty feat.
In his 2013 tweet, Musk recommended this book because he believes in social responsibility as a key success indicator.
“Merchants of Doubt” is about how scientists obscured the facts about the quality of life because of corporate and political bidding.
The book will open your eyes to the social reality of how big businesses muddle facts for corporate survival.
You can learn more about corporate survival when you this book from Amazon using the image link above.
The Foundation by Isaac Asimov.
This book is perhaps one of the most influential books that Musk has ever encountered.
In his 2013 interview, Musk talked about how Asimov inspired him to pursue deep-seated ambitions.
The foundation of every great business endeavor it seems is to operate on the short window of opportunity available to you.
In the same interview, Musk reveals that the book taught him to act on the interest of the survival of human civilization by dismantling the possibility of a possible dark age.
Buy this book from Amazon by clicking on the image link above.
Our Final Invention by James Barrat.
Musk understands that the future of tech companies is developing Artificial Intelligence.
When Musk read Barrat’s book, he realized how close we are at the edge of computational intelligence surpassing human intelligence.
Musk praised how the book explored the advantages and disadvantages of artificial intelligence and its likelihood of being our final invention.
You can buy this book to learn more by clicking on the image link above.
Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson.
Everyone knows the genius that is Albert Einstein.
He is a man whose name left a lasting impression on the world of science.
What sets Isaacson’s biographical work of the great scientist is its very humanistic approach.
The book explores how Einstein began as a humble patent officer to the most famous scientist on earth.
You can get learn more lessons from this book by buying from Amazon using the image link above.
Musk is a believer in hard work.
Isaacson’s Einstein is a story that talks about the struggle before Einstein finally made his mark and eventually won the Nobel Prize.
If tech billionaire Elon Musk finds time to read despite his responsibilities, so should you.
The seven books from Elon Musk’s Reading List we listed above are just some of the many books Musk feels he owes his successes from.
If you wish to replicate the success of Musk, consider emulating his habit of reading books in his spare time.
