40 books like How I Raised Myself from Failure to Success in Selling

By Frank Bettger,

Here are 40 books that How I Raised Myself from Failure to Success in Selling fans have personally recommended if you like How I Raised Myself from Failure to Success in Selling. Shepherd is a community of 10,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of How to Win Friends and Influence People

Alex Edmans Author Of Grow the Pie: How Great Companies Deliver Both Purpose and Profit

From my list on living with purpose.

Why am I passionate about this?

I'm a Professor of Finance who specialises in purposeful business and purposeful living. My work on the former shows how companies driven by purpose are ultimately more successful than those driven by profit alone. My interest in the latter stems partly from the former, but also from 20 years of teaching MBA students at MIT, Wharton, and London Business School. While my day job is to teach finance equations, often even more important to my students’ career success and life happiness is living with purpose. There are many self-proclaimed gurus on this topic who shoot from the hip, so I am particularly interested in books based on scientific research.

Alex's book list on living with purpose

Alex Edmans Why did Alex love this book?

Originally published in 1937, this was the original self-improvement book. Carnegie described it as a “practical, working handbook on human relations”.

After reading it, you might think that none of his tips are earth-shatteringly surprising, but you may not have thought of them before reading the book. This is indeed the mark of a great book – something that makes lots of sense after you read it (and so you’re most likely to put it into practice) but you wouldn’t have guessed yourself; and certainly would not have framed it in as clear and convincing manner as Carnegie.

By Dale Carnegie,

Why should I read it?

17 authors picked How to Win Friends and Influence People as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Millions of people around the world have - and continue to - improve their lives based on the teachings of Dale Carnegie. In How to Win Friends and Influence People Carnegie offers practical advice and techniques, in his exuberant and conversational style, for how to get out of a mental rut and make life more rewarding.

His advice has stood the test of time and will teach you how to:
- make friends quickly and easily
- increase your popularity
- win people to your way of thinking
- enable you to win new clients and customers
- become a…


Book cover of Gap Selling: Getting the Customer to Yes: How Problem-Centric Selling Increases Sales by Changing Everything You Know About Relationships, Overcoming Objections, Closing and Price

Dave Kurlan Author Of Baseline Selling: How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball

From my list on to become a sales superstar.

Why am I passionate about this?

I've been selling professionally since 1973, and in the sales training and development business for more than 36 years. I founded Objective Management Group, the world’s leading provider of sales force evaluations and sales candidate assessments, and we have data on 2.2 million salespeople. OMG measures 21 Sales Core Competencies, so that’s around 250 findings on 2.2 million salespeople or close to 500 million data points! I've personally trained and coached tens of thousands of salespeople, sales managers, and sales leaders and I have published nearly 2,000 articles on my multi-award-winning blog, Understanding the Sales Force. I was installed in the Sales & Marketing Hall of Fame in 2013. 

Dave's book list on to become a sales superstar

Dave Kurlan Why did Dave love this book?

Gap Selling is the best book written about selling in the past ten years. Keenan comes out swinging, keeps swinging, and swings hard. He pulls no punches, hits you with the truth, and you’d better be strong enough to handle what he dishes out. Keenan’s approach is modern, consultative, and it is the right book for these challenging times.

By Keenan,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Gap Selling as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

People don't buy from people they like. No! Your buyer doesn't care about you or your product or service. It's not your job to overcome objections, it's your buyer's. Closing isn't a skill of good salespeople; it's the skill of weak salespeople. Price isn't the main reason salespeople lose the sale. Gap Selling shreds traditional and closely held sales beliefs that have been hurting salespeople for decades.

For years, salespeople have embraced a myriad of sales tactics and belief systems that have unknowingly created many of the issues they have been trying to avoid such as: long sales cycles, price…


Book cover of Selling From The Heart: How Your Authentic Self Sells You!

Dave Kurlan Author Of Baseline Selling: How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball

From my list on to become a sales superstar.

Why am I passionate about this?

I've been selling professionally since 1973, and in the sales training and development business for more than 36 years. I founded Objective Management Group, the world’s leading provider of sales force evaluations and sales candidate assessments, and we have data on 2.2 million salespeople. OMG measures 21 Sales Core Competencies, so that’s around 250 findings on 2.2 million salespeople or close to 500 million data points! I've personally trained and coached tens of thousands of salespeople, sales managers, and sales leaders and I have published nearly 2,000 articles on my multi-award-winning blog, Understanding the Sales Force. I was installed in the Sales & Marketing Hall of Fame in 2013. 

Dave's book list on to become a sales superstar

Dave Kurlan Why did Dave love this book?

Larry Levine has written one of the only sales books on how to be authentic when selling and his book resonates with people who don’t want to sound like a salesperson. But there is so much more to Larry’s book than permission and instructions on being true to yourself. Larry’s personal experiences are a big part of the book and you’ll want to read the stories that Larry shares because they truly resonate!

By Larry Levine,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Selling From The Heart as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Sales have changed in the last 30 years. Gone are the days of manipulative and pushy salespeople who rely on charm to get sales. Selling From The Heart is the new economy where relationships matter and old-school techniques just don’t work anymore. Relationships are what will fuel your sales funnel and allow you to reach your sales goals. Social media is a great place to develop those relationships that lead to sales and Larry teaches you how to do in a natural way. Let Larry Levine show you how not to only be yourself, but your best self and succeed!…


Book cover of New Sales. Simplified.: The Essential Handbook for Prospecting and New Business Development

Dave Kurlan Author Of Baseline Selling: How to Become a Sales Superstar by Using What You Already Know about the Game of Baseball

From my list on to become a sales superstar.

Why am I passionate about this?

I've been selling professionally since 1973, and in the sales training and development business for more than 36 years. I founded Objective Management Group, the world’s leading provider of sales force evaluations and sales candidate assessments, and we have data on 2.2 million salespeople. OMG measures 21 Sales Core Competencies, so that’s around 250 findings on 2.2 million salespeople or close to 500 million data points! I've personally trained and coached tens of thousands of salespeople, sales managers, and sales leaders and I have published nearly 2,000 articles on my multi-award-winning blog, Understanding the Sales Force. I was installed in the Sales & Marketing Hall of Fame in 2013. 

Dave's book list on to become a sales superstar

Dave Kurlan Why did Dave love this book?

Everyone needs a handbook and New Sales. Simplified. is a good choice! I like Mike Weinberg’s book for several reasons, the first being his emphasis on Prospecting. While most sales experts have caved to the mob that runs the online marketing platforms that promised to replace salespeople, Mike flies in the face of the “prospecting is dead” crowd and shows you how to do it and how to get results. A must-have in any salesperson’s library!

By Mike Weinberg,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked New Sales. Simplified. as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

No matter how much repeat business you get from loyal customers, the lifeblood of your business is a constant flow of new accounts. Packed with tested strategies and anecdotes, New Sales. Simplified. offers a proven formula for prospecting, developing, and closing deals.

With refreshing honesty and some much-needed humor, sales expert Mike Weinberg examines the critical mistakes made by most salespeople and executives, then provides tips to help you achieve the opposite results.

In New Sales. Simplified., you will learn how to:

Identify a strategic list of genuine prospects Draft a compelling, customer focused "sales story" Perfect the proactive telephone…


Book cover of Work Less, Make More: The counter-intuitive approach to building a profitable business, and a life you actually love

John Lamerton Author Of Big Ideas... For Small Businesses: Simple, Practical Tools and Tactics to Help Your Small Business Grow

From my list on ambitious, lifestyle business owners.

Why am I passionate about this?

I used to hate lifestyle businesses, looking down my nose at them, saying (as many others do!) that they weren’t real businesses. After a “lightbulb moment,” I now proudly describe myself as an ambitious lifestyle business owner – someone who designs their business around their lifestyle, rather than the other way around. Work to live, not live to work! As well as Big Ideas... for Small Businesses, a bestselling book about how to build a lifestyle business, I also host the Ambitious Lifestyle Business podcast, where I interview other lifestyle business owners, discovering how what an ambitious, lifestyle business looks like for them.

John's book list on ambitious, lifestyle business owners

John Lamerton Why did John love this book?

Who wouldn't want to work less and make more?

James Schramko feels like an Australian version of me: he's started, built and sold multiple successful businesses over a couple of decades. He's been there, done that, and sold the T-shirt – but prefers to spend his days surfing rather than working.

This book shows you how he achieves that work/life balance – by working less and making more.

By James Schramko,

Why should I read it?

2 authors picked Work Less, Make More as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Work Less, Make More is a dense delivery of solid systems and sane advice. It's not 80/20, it's 80/20 squared. Every few pages, James punches you in the face with an instantly actionable hack.
~ Perry Marshall, Author of 80/20 Sales & Marketing, Ultimate Guide to Google AdWords, and Evolution 2.0

James gives massive value in a fun and easy-to-read book. Real, actionable ways to cut your hours while increasing your income. Want to know how to do it in your own business? Get this and find out!
~ Jonathan Mizel

In Work Less, Make More, James proves that keeping…


Book cover of The Only Sales Guide You'll Ever Need

Rob Walling Author Of Start Small, Stay Small: A Developer's Guide to Launching a Startup

From my list on building and growing a startup.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m a serial entrepreneur who’s built and sold several startups. I’ve been helping non-venture-backed startup founders since 2005 and now I run the first startup accelerator for bootstrappers, called TinySeed. I’ve invested in 57 startups, but I don’t believe the only way to start a SaaS company is to raise money. I host the most popular podcast for bootstrappers, called Startups for the Rest of Us. I also run the most well-known conference and online community for non-venture-track SaaS founders, called MicroConf.

Rob's book list on building and growing a startup

Rob Walling Why did Rob love this book?

Selling is and always has been about the personal relationship between the buyer and the seller. People buy from people they know and trust. Iannarino does a fantastic job outlining the essential behaviors (self-discipline, accountability, competitiveness, resourcefulness, storytelling, diagnosing) for effective sales and these principles will be requisite for all startup founders.

By Anthony Iannarino,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Only Sales Guide You'll Ever Need as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The USA Today bestseller by the star sales speaker and author of The Sales Blog that reveals how all salespeople can attain huge sales success through strategies backed by extensive research and experience.
 
Anthony Iannarino never set out to become a salesman, let alone a sales manager, speaker, coach, or writer of the most prominent blog about the art and science of great selling. He fell into his profession by accident, as a day job while pursuing rock-and-roll stardom.
 
Once he realized he'd never become the next Mick Jagger, Iannarino turned his focus to a question that's been debated for…


Book cover of The Yes Syndrome: A Complete Guide to Selling Professionally

Wayne Moloney Author Of The Wentworth Prospect: A novel guide to success in B2B sales

From my list on B2B salespeople to stay relevant and successful.

Why am I passionate about this?

Everyone survives by selling something whether we wear the title or not. Selling has been my career, even before I was a salesperson. I started my career in engineering but quickly realised my passion was in developing business, not designing industrial ventilation systems. Helped by a boss who also saw I was better suited to roles other than engineering (he wasn’t so polite) I went on to enjoy a successful career spanning 4 decades working in Australian, Asian, and European markets that embraced all facets of sales and business development. Helped by great mentors and learning from the experience of others, I have endeavoured to give back by mentoring business owners, salespeople, and writing.

Wayne's book list on B2B salespeople to stay relevant and successful

Wayne Moloney Why did Wayne love this book?

The YES Syndrome could have been written yesterday.

But it was first published in 1982. Proof that the basics of good selling are not new, but have been the foundation of successful, ethical selling for decades, if not longer.

Combine the timeless customer-focused sales skills that Beveridge shares with the emerging technologies of the 21st century and salespeople will not only remain relevant, but indispensable and invaluable to buyers.

By Don Beveridge,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked The Yes Syndrome as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

'The YES Syndrome' is much more than simplistic selling techniques or more "HOW-TO." It is a unique, complete system, from the initial "customer needs analysis" through to the sophisticated 'customer focused proposal.' These systems work. They have been proven and Don Beveridge's concepts have been embraced by corporated America.


Book cover of Spin Selling

Why am I passionate about this?

I have always tried to be "the best that I can be'' at anything. These books helped me be the best that I could be at commercial investment real estate sales...without hype...just good solid advice.

Adam's book list on books for anyone looking to begin a career in commercial investment real estate by authors who "have been there and done that"

Adam Von Romer Why did Adam love this book?

By Neil Rackham,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Spin Selling as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The international bestseller that revolutionized high-end selling!

Written by Neil Rackham, former president and founder of Huthwaite corporation, SPIN Selling is essential reading for anyone involved in selling or managing a sales force. Unquestionably the best-documented account of sales success ever collected and the result of the Huthwaite corporation's massive 12-year, $1-million dollar research into effective sales performance, this groundbreaking resource details the revolutionary SPIN (Situation, Problem, Implication, Need-payoff) strategy.

In SPIN Selling, Rackham, who has advised leading companies such as IBM and Honeywell delivers the first book to specifically examine selling high-value product and services. By following the simple,…


Book cover of Hacking Sales: The Playbook for Building a High-Velocity Sales Machine

Ryan Buckley Author Of The Parallel Entrepreneur: How to start and run B2B businesses while keeping your day job

From my list on how to start a side hustle.

Why am I passionate about this?

I studied economics and environmental policy but landed in entrepreneurship. I wrote The Parallel Entrepreneur after I sold my first company and continued to work on Rbucks, my blog, after I joined the next company. Outside of work I volunteer frequently in my community. I’m an Associate Professor in the Business Department at Diablo Valley College, where I teach marketing and sit on the advisory boards for both the Business and Computer Science departments. I also lead the Diablo Valley Tech Initiative (DVTI), an economic development organization incubated at DVC. Related to DVTI, I run Lamorinda Entrepreneurs, a community group that promotes and supports local entrepreneurship. I have a Master’s in Public Policy from the Harvard Kennedy School and a MBA from the MIT Sloan School of Management.

Ryan's book list on how to start a side hustle

Ryan Buckley Why did Ryan love this book?

Max is one of the thought leaders in modern sales development and acceleration. His book is full of actionable advice for the modern sales rep – and entrepreneur – to blast through the building and closing of a sales pipeline. Since entrepreneurship requires selling, I highly recommend this book.

By Max Altschuler,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Hacking Sales as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Stay ahead of the sales evolution with a more efficient approach to everything

Hacking Sales helps you transform your sales process using the next generation of tools, tactics and strategies. Author Max Altschuler has dedicated his business to helping companies build modern, efficient, high tech sales processes that generate more revenue while using fewer resources. In this book, he shows you the most effective changes you can make, starting today, to evolve your sales and continually raise the bar. You'll walk through the entire sales process from start to finish, learning critical hacks every step of the way. Find and…


Book cover of Negotiating with Backbone: Eight Sales Strategies to Defend Your Price and Value

Jeet Mukherjee Author Of Pricing with Confidence: Ten Rules for Increasing Profits and Staying Ahead of Inflation

From my list on make an impact in your organization through pricing.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’ve been working in value-based pricing for over 20 years and I’ve seen firsthand how it can transform a company’s profits when done right and executed properly through sales. While the specific strategies and tactics vary across industries, company size, and product offerings, many of the foundations and logic behind those strategies can be learned, and must be understood in order to grow a company’s revenue and profit growth in today’s markets. I’d love to connect about any of these topics – feel free to reach out on LinkedIn!

Jeet's book list on make an impact in your organization through pricing

Jeet Mukherjee Why did Jeet love this book?

This is the logical next step in value-based building blocks.

Learning simple negotiation approaches is essential for go-to-market capability building so teams can defend their prices and get paid for the value they deliver. In order for us to sell the price we came up with, we need to understand the various types of people we’re selling to.

The book discusses how to frame value and price appropriately in order to get the most out of realized price, training customers to realize price over time and negotiating more effectively in both the short- and long-term scenarios of customer relationships.

By Reed Holden,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Negotiating with Backbone as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Sales professionals now confront the most serious threat to their success. Regardless of their size, industry, country, customer type, nature of the relationship or amount of value they provide, sales professionals are finding that purchasing decisions are increasingly being limited by procurement. The modern procurement function is purchasing on steroids. Where traditional purchasing managers negotiated, procurement officials attempt to dictate. Procurement deploys a variety of tactics designed to do one thing: gain unprecedented discounts and concessions out of even the most sophisticated sales professionals. This book is a strategy guide for salespeople to help them level the procurement playing field…


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