The Best Business Books & Blogs for Small Business Owners

Kat WhiteBusiness Planning2 Comments

The Best Business Books & Blogs for Small Business Owners

When asked what the secret was to his success, business magnate Warren Buffet said: “Read 500 pages a day. That’s how knowledge works. It builds up like compound interest.”

Similarly, Bill Gates says he reads around 50 books a year. And a whole host of other big business minds, from Richard Branson to Oprah Winfrey, say they owe much of their success to reading.

Of course, what you read makes a difference, but only to a certain extent. You may think reading a pile of your favourite fictional author doesn’t directly correlate to the success of your business, but in fact, studies have shown that reading fiction expands your levels of empathy, creativity, critical thinking and the ability to exercise better judgement. As with all things, it’s about striking the right balance.

In this new year, we’ll all need to find alternative perspectives and new approaches to help us navigate the ever-changing, ever-challenging landscape. Reading is one of the best ways you can expose yourself to new ways of thinking without committing a lot of time or money. Find wisdom in history and philosophy (ancient or modern), expand your creativity with fiction, gen up on the latest articles and blogs for insights into the future, and indulge in autobiographies for leadership inspiration. Ready to open your mind? From SME-focused blogs to 20th-century classics and the latest best-sellers, dive into our guide on the best business books and blogs you should read in 2025.

BOOKS

The Employee Advantage: How Putting Workers First Helps Business Thrive

Stephan Meier

Behavioural economist Stephan Meier explains why organisations must value their employees as much as - if not more than - their customers. Businesses that adopt an employee-centric model will be more profitable, innovative, and appealing to top talent. Meier shares valuable insight into what two mindset shifts are essential to creating an employee-centric culture, and how your business and your bottom line will benefit from improving the workplace experience for your team.

The Employee Advantage by Stephan Meier

Rebel Ideas: The Power of Thinking Differently

Matthew Syed

Do you ever wish you could switch your brain's default mode to be able to think differently? Former Olympian and best-selling author, Matthew Syed, shows you how in this engaging, impossible-to-put-down book.

Rebel Ideas by Matthew Syed

Hype Yourself: A No-nonsense PR Toolkit for Small Businesses

Lucy Werner

PR can appear to be something of a dark art to outsiders. If you need to raise the profile of your business and get featured in the media, whether that's newspapers, magazines, radio or TV, Lucy Werner's brilliant guide tells you how. Crammed with insider advice on strategy and execution, it includes top tips from journalists and points you in the direction of lots of online resources. A must-read for any business owner looking to get noticed. 

Hype Yourself by Lucy Werner

Change Makers: A Woman’s Guide to Stepping Up Without Burning Out at Work

Katy Murray

Expert leadership coach, Katy Murray, presents an actionable plan to leverage your influence, step up and make a difference at work. She shares powerful habits that will help shift your thinking and adjust your behaviour. Learn how to clearly define your purpose, increase your joy, and boost your energy, while also staying on top of overwhelm and preventing the burnout that so many women experience.

Change Makers by Katy Murray

Atomic Habits

James Clear

One of the best-selling business books of recent times. To make changes in your business or your life, you don't need to make them on a grand, sweeping scale. In this enlightening manual for life, James Clear explains that real change comes from the compound effect of making hundreds of small changes and positive steps on a daily basis: doing two push-ups a day instead of none, picking up the phone for five minutes instead of spending twenty minutes going back and forth on email, waking up five minutes early. This is a must-read for anyone and everyone.

Atomic Habits by James Clear

Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap and Others Don't

Jim Collins

Jim Collins shares his insights on the variables that can make one business amble along while another triples in size. For business owners who are curious about improving performance. (Who isn't?)

Book cover of Good To Great: Why Some Companies Make the Leap... and Others Don't. © Jim Collins

Out of Office: Ditch the 9-5 and Be Your Own Boss 

Fiona Thomas

Whether you’re a budding freelancer or already in the thick of it, this no-nonsense guide answers all the questions about working for yourself. Packed with practical tips to survive and all the pep talks you need to thrive in the world of self-employment.

Book cover of Out of Office ©Fiona Thomas

Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before?

Dr Julie Smith

The No. 1 Sunday Times Bestseller for 2022 will guide you not only in business but also in your personal life. With years of experience as a clinical psychologist, Dr Julie Smith shows us how to deal with anxiety, find motivation, build self-confidence, and much more. Written in easy-to-read, bite-sized entries, you can quickly find the section you need for whatever challenge you’re facing. This brilliant book offers practical solutions for everyday issues, and it may just change your life.

Book cover: Why Has Nobody Told Me This Before? © Dr Julie Smith

The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People 

Stephen R. Covey

This personal development classic focuses on motivation, leadership, conflict resolution, and so much more. It may have been written over 30 years ago, but it was revised and updated in 2020, and the principles within it remain relevant today. It’s sold 25 million copies worldwide, and for good reason.

Book cover of The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People ©Stephen R. Covey

How to Win Friends & Influence People 

Dale Carnegie

Another classic guide that still belongs on the bookshelf of any modern business owner. Dale Carnegie’s principles are designed to enhance your skills in persuading and selling – whether it’s your product or yourself. The anecdotes and techniques may sound a little dated now, but when applied with sincerity and authenticity for today’s environment, the fundamental principles remain just as relevant.

Book cover of How to Win Friends & Influence People. ©Dale Carnegie

Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World 

Cal Newport

Small business owners frequently feel they lack time to focus on specific issues within their business, often because they’re too busy running the day-to-day. Sound familiar? This Amazon best-seller shows you how you can sharpen your mind, ignore distractions, and vastly improve your productivity.

Book cover: Deep Work: Rules for Focused Success in a Distracted World © Cal Newport

Investable Entrepreneur: How to Convince Investors Your Business is the One to Back  

James Church

Looking for investors? This is the book for you. Clarity in communication is paramount when talking to potential investors, and James Church takes the reader through the six principles of the perfect pitch. Church is the COO and co-founder of one of the UK’s leading pitch agencies, Robot Mascot, and he runs masterclass courses for the Chartered Institute of Marketing.

Book cover of Investable Entrepreneur ©James Church

Grit: Why Passion and Resilience are the Secrets to Success

Angela Duckworth

This New York Times best-seller shows you how to cultivate the persistence you need to run a successful business and how to inspire those around you to improve every single day.

Book cover of Grit ©Angela Duckworth

BLOGS

Startups

Established in 2000, the Startups blog is an online font of knowledge and a trusted, comprehensive resource for founders and would-be entrepreneurs, featuring the latest small business advice for the UK.

Startup blog

Jim's Marketing Blog

Jim Connolly is a marketing mentor and consultant who produces one of the world's most popular marketing blogs. Based in the UK, he has worked with some of the world's biggest brands and now offers consultancy to small businesses. Jim’s Marketing Blog delivers modern marketing thinking in a brilliantly refreshing, logical and conversational way. He’s also very proactive on social media, often responding to questions he's tagged on.

kat.w@businessinfopoint.co.uk

Small Biz Survival

Becky McCray

What insights could a small-town entrepreneur based in Kansas possibly offer you? You would be surprised. Becky McCray launched her Small Biz Survival blog to cater specifically to rural entrepreneurs and business owners. Over the years, she has attracted a global following thanks to her pragmatic approach. Her blog delves into everything a rural entrepreneur might need help with – from how to hire people, how to compete with big city businesses, and how to delegate without freaking out your clients.

Image

Shopify Blog

Shopify is one of the biggest e-commerce platforms in the world, but you don’t have to use Shopify for your business to tap into the wealth of information on the blog. From beginners' guides to more advanced masterclasses, the Shopify Blog covers a vast range of topics, including e-commerce marketing, SEO, online business strategies, finance management and more. And their guest interviews provide fascinating insights into how small business founders created and grew their companies.

Shopify blog

MasterClass

MasterClass is an online platform with over 200 in-depth classes teaching a broad range of categories from business & entrepreneurship to public speaking, writing, digital media, science, arts, health and more. Classes are video-based, but you can also access audio-only versions so you can learn while you're on the go. Your online mentors include renowned business moguls, leading experts, former CIA agents and even US presidents. You need to sign up for a subscription, but it could prove value for money if you're going to access a number of classes.

MasterClass

HubSpot Blog

Another digital platform writing about what it does best, the HubSpot Blog covers a broad range of marketing, sales, customer service and technology topics. Beyond the blog, HubSpot also offers videos, podcasts, free guides and online courses on various related subjects.

HubSpot blog

Time to read

Fitting in time to read during your busy schedule might feel like a challenge, but there are ways and means for even the busiest people. Schedule in half an hour in the morning, evening or at lunchtime. Listen to an audiobook or podcast while you’re packing deliveries. Or dedicate some of that time you spend browsing social media to a little productive reading instead. Start the year as you mean to go on – by being inspired!

Small business owner looking at laptop and smiling
Access free small business support

We've been helping small businesses in the south west for over 30 years. Whatever challenge your facing - whether it's strategic planning, finances, marketing, pricing, HR, sustainability or something else - we can help. Take a look at our Business Support page to see the current fully-funded programmes we have on offer.

The titles and blogs in this list have not been sponsored, and we do not have any affiliate links to the authors, publishers, stockists or suppliers.

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