Reading is one of my all-time favorite activities. In 2020 I read a total of 44 books, and I thought I would share my favorite non-fiction books from last year, in no particular order. I’d love to hear your thoughts on these books and your recommendations for new books I should read. Please send me a message on Instagram (@honorandequity) or send me an email at doug@honorandequity.com!
Phil Knight, Nike’s founder, goes back to Nike’s beginnings in Oregon before Nike was the world’s leading fitness apparel company. Autobiographies are one of my favorite book genres. Especially about successful entrepreneurs, and this one delivers. It’s comforting to hear about how difficult his journey was and how many obstacles he overcame to find success. The book focuses on his upbringing, ups and downs as a collegiate athlete, and Nike’s early years. I would love for Mr. Knight to write a second installment covering Nike from the 1990s to the present day. This book is a must-read for any entrepreneur.
I’ve read many books in the ‘personal development’ genre, and I’ve found that most of them are just two or three concepts spread out over 300 pages. Atomic Habits is not one of those books. James Clear provides some excellent insight into how habits work and he provides actionable steps you can implement immediately to get more done and improve your life. If you have big goals for 2021, start with this one so you can implement some healthy habits right off the bat.
Total Recall by Arnold Schwarzenegger
Did you know that Arnold was a millionaire from real estate investing before he became a famous actor? Did you know that he was a tank operator for the Austrian Army before moving to America? I didn’t either! Total Recall is one of the best autobiographies I’ve ever read, mostly because Arnold has lived an extraordinary life thanks to his super-human ambition and persistence. This book is a case study in setting enormous, crazy goals and working extremely hard to achieve them.
Wealth Can’t Wait by David Osborn
David Osborn is a badass. He’s made a gazillion dollars from real estate, and he’s a co-founder of Gobundance – an organization of dudes who “grab life big” and are obsessed with improving all aspects of their lives. David does a great job of stressing the importance of getting your personal finances squared away, putting your money in places that will make you more money, and focusing on passive investments so you can live your life. He spoke to our mastermind group via Zoom earlier this year. When he dialed into the call, he was playing golf in Steamboat Springs, Colorado, with his wife, just dropping insightful pearls of wisdom on life and business while teeing off and driving around in a golf cart. It was inspiring! He wasn’t sitting at his desk grinding out 80 hour work weeks – his life is set up to make a ton of money passively so he could do whatever the hell he wanted. Wealth Can’t Wait is a must-read book for anyone who doesn’t want to be an employee their entire life.
I’m not a big tennis guy at all, but when I researched “best autobiographies,” this one was on nearly every list – and for a good reason! Andre Agassi is an extremely accomplished professional tennis player who retired only a few years ago. Open is the story of how a regular kid from middle-class Las Vegas became one of the world’s best players. It goes into great detail about growing up on the junior tennis tournament circuit and all the struggles of being a professional athlete. If you’re a tennis fan, you’ll especially love it, because he describes many of his tennis matches in great detail, how he prepared for them, his emotions during the game, and how he dealt with both success and failure afterward.
Buy, Rehab, Rent, Refinance, Repeat by David Greene
I have recommended David Greene’s first book Long-Distance Real Estate Investing, more often than any other real estate book, and his second book blew me away even more than the first. Multiple times during the book, I thought to myself, “why isn’t everyone doing this strategy?!” If you have spent any time in the Bigger Pockets universe, you will probably be familiar with this real estate strategy. If you’re not familiar with it, and you have any interest at all in real estate, you must pick up this book today. It’s a phenomenal strategy for long-term wealth generation that I am currently using to grow my portfolio. Here’s the gist: buy a property that needs some work for well below market value, fix it up, rent it out, do a cash-out refinance to a long-term mortgage, repeat!
The Millionaire Real Estate Investor by Gary Keller
“Anyone can do it. Not everyone will.” If I could only recommend a single real estate book, it would be this one. Gary Keller (founder of Keller Williams Realty) has had enormous success in real estate, so he has a lot of wisdom to impart to the reader. In this book, he hits many important macro concepts and addresses many different strategies people have used to become wealthy. He also talks about how crucial it is to have a great team, build systems, continually strive to improve yourself, always do the right thing and many other vital concepts for wealth creation via real estate. One of my favorite takeaways from this book is from the section on building your network. He recommends asking two questions when you chat with real estate professionals: “Who do you know that I should know?” and “What would you do if you were me?” I try to ask these questions whenever I’m chatting with someone who knows more than I do about real estate – which is almost all the time!
I hope you enjoyed this article. Make sure you follow me on Instagram @honorandequity, and if you would like to connect, you can email me at doug@honorandequity.com!