100 Books Like Million Dollar Consulting

By now, you might have noticed a theme: if I don’t enjoy reading a book, I don’t trudge through it for the deep insights or how-to information. The storytelling needs to be as strong as the concepts are useful.

Just like The Copy Workshop Workbook, I read an earlier edition of this book when I was just starting out – and it formed the basis for some of my thinking around how to influence – i.e., persuade – consumers and the role psychology and behavioral economics play in crafting effective marketing and brand development programs.

I also recommend this book if you are a consumer, too (who isn’t), because it will help keep you from falling into many of the traps that Cialdini identified.

This was the book that really got me thinking about consultancy, professional services and that broad category of work that you get paid to help people because of what you know. The central topic of this book is trust. Now we all understand what trust is – or at least we think we do. But when faced with the challenge of building trust many of us stumble. This book breaks trust down into its component parts and explores how you can use this understanding to build trust. Trust building is essential whenever you offer service to someone else, especially when it is an intangible service like consultancy. Every consultant and every freelancer should read this book.

Over a number of decades, Schein has been one of the guiding thinkers in professional services and consultancy. His books are always worth reading as the advice is sounds and practical. In this book he talks about how it is better, and more productive, to help people by the practice of asking questions rather than giving answers. The model in the book goes completely against the stereotype of the consultant as a brash and overconfident individual pretending to be an expert who can tell anyone the answer to any question. Instead, Schein proposes a model that would be more familiar to those with a coaching background. It is brilliant advice.

The part about consulting many people hate is the selling bit. Well what better way to go into a conversation in which you are trying to sell your services than with an understanding of the process clients go through to buy? This book provides a useful understanding of the client’s viewpoint of consulting. Although I think it is of best use to those in sales roles in larger consultants and professional services firms, there is also advice, or perhaps a way of thinking, that is useful to everyone from the biggest firm to that single freelance consultant.

This is the “playbook” for commercial real estate. Even though Robert Ringer wrote this book in 1973 he absolutely hit the nail on the head.

He teaches you “straightforward, easy-to-understand terms, how to defend yourself against the intimidators of the world.” Robert Ringer even identifies the “intimidators” and in a humorous and entertaining way.

The most amazing part is that once you have read the book, you will instantly recognize the characters from the book in your daily life.

Early in my career, I found myself mentored by several of the world’s top cartoonists from Playboy and The New Yorker, including the amazing Gahan Wilson. His cartoons were works of wonder, with intricate cross-hatching, quirky details, and trademark macabre stylings. By sheer luck, I’d stumbled into a backstage pass with one of the greatest cartooning talents ever, so observing his process was a privilege. Humor is about revealing the truth with a twist, which is why I treasure this particular book by Gahan. It’s a collection of his work, but also a statement of entire purpose for all of cartooning—to capture truth.

This is perhaps the best-known book on innovation inside large companies. When discussing technological change, people have mentioned it to me more than any other book—by a large margin! It includes examples from industries ranging from hard disks to excavators and even offers an earlier look at the prospects for electric vehicles.

It is especially interesting to see how past success can lead to complacency that hinders sustained growth and financial health. In the process, Christensen underscores how important it is for companies to continue innovating within—even when business is going well and even when acquisitions seem alluring and less difficult. This is a must-read because it establishes foundational knowledge on the importance of continued investment to sustain success.

The stuff in this book is so good that I used his very techniques to end up co-writing a book with the author!

This book helped me to recognize that my success in show business (and indeed, in any field) was not going to be due to my talent (of which I have in excess supply!) but because of how well I could market that talent, and share it with the world.

Guerrilla Marketing was my trusted friend when I was starting out, and its lessons ring true 20 years later as I continue acting, producing, coding, speaking, and more. In fact, the lessons in this book helped me to book my first TEDx talk just this year (2024).

Meeting new people at an event is one thing. Being able to follow up and follow through consistently gives you a huge edge for turning prospects into clients. Yet, most people, including entrepreneurs, consultants, and employees, struggle with this.  

In Follow Up Sales Strategies, author Wanda Allen simplifies the process. She shares how to develop a proper mindset and effective habits, as well as her proven follow-up systems, designed to increase sales pipelines, improve performance, and strengthen relationships.

Get organized, so you can get the most out of the relationships you develop through conferences.

What I loved about this book was that it blended real-world past experiences into a thrilling fiction narrative. Written by a Marine Iraqi War veteran, he does not shy away from the psychological horrors of combat and addresses how one would deal with those issues head-on.

The main character is written as fragile and sometimes broken by what he’s witnessed in the past. I loved how the book breaks the mold of the stereotypical hero, bringing a new sense of realism to the story.