What I read

For many things in this world you don't need a teacher. Just open the book.

I wish I could proudly claim that I have read many books in my life but I haven't. Reading books is time consuming and I carefully select those I am going to spend more than 3 hours on. Those that I recommend I select with even more care.

Here is the collection of books that had a serious impact on my life and career. With a few exceptions, I have read them through multiple times and gifted to people on various occasions.

I wish I could proudly claim that I have read many books in my life but I haven't. Reading books is time consuming and I carefully select those I am going to spend more than 3 hours on. Those that I recommend I select with even more care.

Here is the collection of books that had a serious impact on my life and career. With a few exceptions, I have read them through multiple times and gifted to people on various occasions.

Product Management

Steve Blank The Four Steps to the Epiphany book cover

The Four Steps to the Epiphany
Steve Blank

My most gifted book. I cannot count how many times I gave it to young CEOs, product managers, programmers with the 'ultimate facebook killer' ideas and many other people working on software and hardware products.

This is absolutely a MUST-read before you invest a single hour of your (or anyone else's) time into a new venture.

Geoffrey Moore Crossing the Chasm book cover

Crossing the Chasm
Geoffrey A. Moore

If you liked The Four Steps to the Epiphany (and you really should if you want to become a good product manager), this book is a perfect addition to it. Every young CEO is strongly advised to read it at the very beginning of their entrepreneurial journey to prevent burning out their team and cash.

Eric Ries The Lean Startup book cover

The Lean Startup
Eric Ries

This is the first book on product management I have ever read and I am really glad it was this one. It helps to form the right mindset and philosophy for those who happen to work on any kind of software and hardware products. You will get the very basics of how to set the deadlines, manage requirements and deal with stakeholders.

Jef Raskin The Humane Interface book cover

The Humane Interface
Jef Raskin

Even though I entered product management with a technical background, I believe that every successful product is an alloy of technical and visual excellence. Many techies really suck when it comes to their sense of beauty and as result they launch functional yet ugly products. If you are a product manager with a background of a hardcore backend developer - start with this book.

Alan Cooper The Inmates Are Running the Asylum book cover

The Inmates Are Running the Asylum
Alan Cooper

Unlike the other books in this collection, this one does not offer a particular method to become a successful product manager. And yet this is imho one of the best books on forming the right mindset for those who wish to create successful products.

Ford and Wiedermann App and Mobile Case Study Book cover

The App & Mobile Case Study Book
Ed. Rob Ford and Julius Wiedemann

A great collection of success stories from app developers. Even the book by itself is a great product due to its outstanding visual experience. I love re-reading it on Sunday mornings.

Kotler and Keller Marketing Management book cover

Marketing Management
Philip T. Kotler and Kevin L. Keller

Marketing is not really the job of a product manager and yet you need to have a basic understanding of how it works.

This book has everything you need to know about it. Not more, not less.

Programming

Charles Petzold Code book cover

Code
Charles Petzold

My second most gifted book. I believe that like a surgeon has to do a basic anatomy course (and much more in fact) before operating on a real human body, every programmer should start coding only once he or she understands the basics of how computers work. Unfortunately, for the vast majority of today's coders this is not the case.

Chad Fowler The Passionate Programmer book cover

The Passionate Programmer
Chad Fowler

I have heard once that "programming is a desperate losing battle against the unconquerable complexity of code". This is absolutely true, coding is a job that is full of frustration and results are often far from perfection.

This book is a great guidance to protect yourself from burning out on your way to conquering the world.

Jacques Arsac Jeux et casse-tete a programmer book cover

Jeux et casse-tête à programmer
Jacques Arsac

Amazing book for developing passion towards technology in the youngest ones. If you don't want your kids end up lubricating and servicing robots in 2030, give them this book.

Russell and Norvig Artificial Intelligence book cover

Artificial Intelligence: A Modern Approach
Stuart J. Russell and Peter Norvig

If you think AI is something you would like to devote your life to - start here. Just like Code by Petzold, it will give you the most important foundations on how neural networks work. I am glad that was one of my text books at uni.

Aho Lam Sethi Ullman Compilers Dragon Book cover

Compilers: Principles, Techniques and Tools
Alfred V. Aho, Monica S. Lam, Ravi Sethi, and Jeffrey D. Ullman

This was my text book for the M.Sc. compilers course and I will be honest with you: I have never finished it. Moreover, this book has become the major decision making factor for me to drop this course and choose something that I am more passionate about. And yet, I believe this is the best book you can find if you are into machine code.

Business

Jim Camp Start With No book cover

Start With No
Jim Camp

I believe that saying no to unimportant things is a much more crucial skill for becoming successful than saying yes to the right ones. Just like many people in this world, I had troubles rejecting offers to do something for someone because I was afraid to hurt them or to simply miss a (not necessarily) great opportunity. Very often that's not true so stop wasting your time now.
The book is generally great for any life situation but especially for CEOs who risk time and money which is not only theirs.

Malcolm Gladwell The Tipping Point book cover

The Tipping Point
Malcolm Gladwell

I love this book for its unique perspective on product successes and failures by looking at them through the prism of customer social behaviour. Very often, our own accomplishments as well as prosperity of our business depends on nothing but the primitive instincts of the crowd. Learn how human psychology works and you will triumph. After all, we are all animals down to the gut.

Bo Burlingham Small Giants book cover

Small Giants
Bo Burlingham

I have always thought that The Four Steps to the Epiphany is the most important business book one can ever read but I would put this one right next to it. After more than 10 years in product management I can say with certainty: a good product can only be created by people that love their job and the place they work in.

Clayton Christensen The Innovators Dilemma book cover

The Innovators Dilemma
Clayton M. Christensen

Company's impotency towards sustainable innovation was the main reason why I left Buhler. This book covers the topic very well and helps to overcome the trap when selfish ambitions of c-level managers pull industry giants into the draining race of setting up accelerators, innovation challenges etc with zero result. Sounds familiar? Open the book and learn from others' experience first.

General Life Knowledge

Marcus Aurelius Meditations book cover

Meditations
Marcus Aurelius

The gold mine of ancient knowledge on how to be a decent person. Not only your friends and family will find it easier to interact with you once you read it. Your own life will become much simpler as you will refocus your attention on things that really matter instead of thinking over and over again how to take revenge on that asshole that pissed you off in the morning.

Jean Baudrilard Simulacra and Simulation Matrix book cover

Simulacra and Simulation
Jean Baudrilard

A great philosophical reading on the culture in the world of media and IT. Your imagination will be challenged by the concept of hyperreality and tbh some of my projects have been inspired by ideas described in this book.

Plotinus Cosmology book cover

Cosmology
Plotinus

This is the first Philosophy book that I have read to the end. It's pretty hardcore in a sense that one's IQ level should be certainly above certain threshold to be able to understand its concepts. Sometimes it took me 5 minutes of reading the same sentence over and over again to get its meaning so this book certainly isn't something for your next bus ride.

However, this book has become my own door into the world of Philosophy that had the most serious influence on my life and career.

Nassim Taleb Fooled by Randomness book cover

Fooled by Randomness
Nassim Nicholas Taleb

Amazing book for those who deal with tasks that require scientific approach but did not study university-level Math or Physics. Absolute MUST-read for traders who do not know anything about statistics and random processes but believe they have just discovered the ultimate winning strategy.

Gippenreiter Introduction To General Psychology book cover

Introduction To General Psychology
Y. Gippenreiter

Best book on psychology that I have come across so far. In a simple manner, it helps to understand both adults and children better.

Barbara Demick Nothing to Envy book cover

Nothing to Envy
Barbara Demick

Heavy reading that everyone should go through. Great remedy against any kind of depression because your problems are nothing compared to what some people have to deal with on a daily basis. One of the best anti-militarist books imho.

Ruth Benedict The Chrysanthemum and the Sword book cover

The Chrysanthemum and the Sword
Ruth Benedict

Best book I know to understand Asian cultural phenomena. Great for anyone dealing with Eastern mindset, whether you are entrepreneur trying to sign an important deal or simply dating a Japanese girl.