27 books like Principles

By Ray Dalio,

Here are 27 books that Principles fans have personally recommended if you like Principles. Shepherd is a community of 11,000+ authors and super readers sharing their favorite books with the world.

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Book cover of No Rules Rules: Netflix and the Culture of Reinvention

Tom Gilb Author Of Competitive Engineering: A Handbook For Systems Engineering, Requirements Engineering, and Software Engineering Using Planguage

From my list on learning successful invention and business methods.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a self-taught guy, having started in my first job at IBM Oslo, when I was 18 years old, as punched card machine operator, and plug-board ‘programmer'. I did night studies in sociology/philosophy for 10 years at University of Oslo. I read about 30 books a year, and I’m 82 in 2023. I have spent most of my career as an independent international consultant to corporations and governments, while building up my ideas of useful methods to solve problems. In retirement, I love to spread my ideas, and learn more. I also write about 5 new books a year, when at my Oslofjord Summer cabin. They're all digital and free or free samples. 

Tom's book list on learning successful invention and business methods

Tom Gilb Why did Tom love this book?

From my notes after I read it, “Great content and organization. Triggered me to write and plan a 2022 Book.”

There was specific practical content like removing vacation policy, removing travel and expenses policy. An opening the books, which showed the practices behind the no rules idea, and their consequent results in the business. As a consultant, these give me a tool for discussion with clients. What if you did the same?

Again a great leader, and successful businessperson, using persistence and imagination to deal with the forces against change.

By Reed Hastings, Erin Meyer,

Why should I read it?

5 authors picked No Rules Rules as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

Hard work is irrelevant. Be radically honest. Adequate performance gets a generous severance. And never, ever try to please your boss.

These are some of the ground rules if you work at Netflix. They are part of a unique cultural experiment that explains how the company has transformed itself at lightning speed from a DVD mail order service into a streaming superpower - with 125 million fervent subscribers and a market capitalisation bigger than Disney.

Finally Reed Hastings, Netflix Chairman and CEO, is sharing the secrets that have revolutionised the entertainment and tech industries. With INSEAD business school professor Erin…


Book cover of Life 3.0: Being Human in the Age of Artificial Intelligence

Darren McKee Author Of Uncontrollable: The Threat of Artificial Superintelligence and the Race to Save the World

From my list on understanding how AI will shape our lives.

Why am I passionate about this?

I'm an author, advisor, speaker, podcaster, and citizen concerned about humanity’s relationship with advanced artificial intelligence. After following developments in AI for many years, I noticed a disconnect between the rapid rate of progress in AI and the public’s understanding of what was happening. The AI issue affects everyone, so I want everyone to be empowered to learn more about how AI will have a large impact on their lives. As a senior policy advisor and a member of the Board of Advisors for Canada's leading safety and governance network, books such as these help me stay informed about the latest developments in advanced artificial intelligence. I hope my recommendations will help you to critically consider how humans should co-exist with this revolutionary technology.

Darren's book list on understanding how AI will shape our lives

Darren McKee Why did Darren love this book?

AI will dramatically affect our lives in diverse ways, and this book is a superb guide to the key issues and ways that this might occur.

A main strength of the book is the exploration of a diverse range of possible futures without being unreasonably committed to one particular possibility. No one knows exactly what the future holds, so it is wise to consider different scenarios to open up our imaginations and challenge hidden assumptions.

Having depth as well as breadth, it’s a great, wide-ranging analysis of how AI will affect humanity. 

By Max Tegmark,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Life 3.0 as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

'This is the most important conversation of our time, and Tegmark's thought-provoking book will help you join it' Stephen Hawking

THE INTERNATIONAL BESTSELLER. DAILY TELEGRAPH AND THE TIMES BOOKS OF THE YEAR
SELECTED AS ONE OF BARACK OBAMA'S FAVOURITE BOOKS OF 2018

AI is the future - but what will that future look like? Will superhuman intelligence be our slave, or become our god?

Taking us to the heart of the latest thinking about AI, Max Tegmark, the MIT professor whose work has helped mainstream research on how to keep AI beneficial, separates myths from reality, utopias from dystopias, to…


Book cover of Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies

Jakub Growiec Author Of Accelerating Economic Growth: Lessons From 200,000 Years of Technological Progress and Human Development

From my list on the past and future of our civilization.

Why am I passionate about this?

I’m a professor of economics based in Warsaw, Poland. As a researcher I was always drawn to most fundamental questions about the long run and the big picture. I study long-run economic growth at the global scale, concentrating in particular on the role of technological progress, technology choice and the accumulation of productive factors such as physical and human capital. Recently I have put forward a novel hardware-software framework, based on first principles from physics and generalizing previous economic frameworks to include any era in the human history, from simple hunting and gathering to automated multi-step production processes of the digital era. 

Jakub's book list on the past and future of our civilization

Jakub Growiec Why did Jakub love this book?

With recent advances in large language models such as GPT-4, it is predicted that AI capabilities in terms of general decision making and problem solving may exceed that of humans even in less than a decade. Is this good or bad news?

This book is a must-read for anyone who wants to understand and navigate this difficult topic. Of particular interest are Bostrom’s two groundbreaking observations: the orthogonality thesis (any level of intelligence can be combined with any final goal) and the instrumental convergence thesis (any sufficiently non-trivial final goal will also create instrumental goals of self-preservation, efficiency, creativity, and unbounded resource acquisition).

A top pick for anyone who wants to figure out the prospects for the human civilization in the face of superhuman artificial general intelligence.

By Nick Bostrom,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Superintelligence as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

The human brain has some capabilities that the brains of other animals lack. It is to these distinctive capabilities that our species owes its dominant position. Other animals have stronger muscles or sharper claws, but we have cleverer brains.

If machine brains one day come to surpass human brains in general intelligence, then this new superintelligence could become very powerful. As the fate of the gorillas now depends more on us humans than on the gorillas themselves, so the fate of our species then would come to depend on the actions of the machine superintelligence.

But we have one advantage:…


Book cover of Invention: A Life

Tom Gilb Author Of Competitive Engineering: A Handbook For Systems Engineering, Requirements Engineering, and Software Engineering Using Planguage

From my list on learning successful invention and business methods.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a self-taught guy, having started in my first job at IBM Oslo, when I was 18 years old, as punched card machine operator, and plug-board ‘programmer'. I did night studies in sociology/philosophy for 10 years at University of Oslo. I read about 30 books a year, and I’m 82 in 2023. I have spent most of my career as an independent international consultant to corporations and governments, while building up my ideas of useful methods to solve problems. In retirement, I love to spread my ideas, and learn more. I also write about 5 new books a year, when at my Oslofjord Summer cabin. They're all digital and free or free samples. 

Tom's book list on learning successful invention and business methods

Tom Gilb Why did Tom love this book?

My father was an inventor. That is what is says on his tombstone. Over 100 patents.

His products today in building supply shops and in real buildings. And some crazy inventions that did not make him famous, but he had fun with.

So I guess I have a born sympathy for the lone inventor, who against many odds, manages to do interesting useful work and industrialise it successfully. This is not about Dyson, but written by himHopefully he will inspire the next generation of inventors.

By James Dyson,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

Dyson has become a byword for great design, brilliant invention and global success. Now, James Dyson, the entrepreneur who made it all happen, tells his remarkable and inspirational story in Invention: A Life of Learning through Failure.

'By continually challenging ourselves, investing in the future and experimenting, we can continue to make the future. We must never stop. Never, for one second become comfortable.' James Dyson

In this spirited autobiography, James Dyson interweaves his own life story with a wider exploration of the importance of invention. On the way, the reader encounters challenging and inspirational characters, radical inventions, adventurous engineering,…


Book cover of Invent and Wander: The Collected Writings of Jeff Bezos

Tom Gilb Author Of Competitive Engineering: A Handbook For Systems Engineering, Requirements Engineering, and Software Engineering Using Planguage

From my list on learning successful invention and business methods.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a self-taught guy, having started in my first job at IBM Oslo, when I was 18 years old, as punched card machine operator, and plug-board ‘programmer'. I did night studies in sociology/philosophy for 10 years at University of Oslo. I read about 30 books a year, and I’m 82 in 2023. I have spent most of my career as an independent international consultant to corporations and governments, while building up my ideas of useful methods to solve problems. In retirement, I love to spread my ideas, and learn more. I also write about 5 new books a year, when at my Oslofjord Summer cabin. They're all digital and free or free samples. 

Tom's book list on learning successful invention and business methods

Tom Gilb Why did Tom love this book?

No surprises. Self-made businessperson, with persistence and imagination.

This book is unusual. It is literally written by Bezos over decades of developing Amazon. It is mainly his annual reports to the shareholders! So it gives a continuous picture of the growth of the empire.

My favourite practical tip, is his executive meeting process. Meeting begins with a 6-page (with a 1-page summary) briefing, to reread for the first 20 minutes of as meeting in silence, then discussed. No presentation with slides and pretty pictures, and soothing ambiguous words.

The briefing is the result of hard work, in advance, crafting it to be useful. Wow! 

By Jeff Bezos,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

In Jeff Bezos's own words, the core principles and philosophy that have guided him in creating, building, and leading Amazon and Blue Origin.

In this collection of Jeff Bezos's writings&#8212his unique and strikingly original annual shareholder letters, plus numerous speeches and interviews that provide insight into his background, his work, and the evolution of his ideas&#8212you'll gain an insider's view of the why and how of his success. Spanning a range of topics across business and public policy, from innovation and customer obsession to climate change and outer space, this book provides a rare glimpse into how Bezos thinks about…


Book cover of Liftoff: Elon Musk and the Desperate Early Days That Launched SpaceX

Tom Gilb Author Of Competitive Engineering: A Handbook For Systems Engineering, Requirements Engineering, and Software Engineering Using Planguage

From my list on learning successful invention and business methods.

Why am I passionate about this?

I am a self-taught guy, having started in my first job at IBM Oslo, when I was 18 years old, as punched card machine operator, and plug-board ‘programmer'. I did night studies in sociology/philosophy for 10 years at University of Oslo. I read about 30 books a year, and I’m 82 in 2023. I have spent most of my career as an independent international consultant to corporations and governments, while building up my ideas of useful methods to solve problems. In retirement, I love to spread my ideas, and learn more. I also write about 5 new books a year, when at my Oslofjord Summer cabin. They're all digital and free or free samples. 

Tom's book list on learning successful invention and business methods

Tom Gilb Why did Tom love this book?

I have read many Musk books, and seen many Musk videos. So this is just one of many.

I have extracted the methods, Musk uses, in a collection. I have to admit, one reason I like them, is that they are essentially the same as my own, in Competitive Engineering! Just great engineering and management.

But, Musk, as yet, has not written his own methods book, or even articles or slides. So we have these biographical books, and videos, as the only evidence of his methods.

But his methods are clear enough in essence. “Fanatic on metrics” (source March 1, 2023 Investors video). Frequent, early, automated, measurement of results. Empowerment to increment towards a super-competitive product, service, and organizational results. Visions of the very best qualities, by far (example Safety).

Three Tesla models are top 3 of the 50 safest cars currently rated for safety! I value my family’s lives.…

By Eric Berger,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

The dramatic inside story of the first four historic flights that launched SpaceX-and Elon Musk-from a shaky startup into the world's leading edge rocket company.

In 2006, SpaceX-a brand-new venture with fewer than 200 employees-rolled its first, single-engine rocket onto a launch pad at Kwajalein Atoll. After a groundbreaking launch from the middle of the Pacific Ocean, the Falcon 1 rocket designed by Elon Musk's engineers rose in the air for approximately thirty seconds. Then, its engine flamed out, and the rocket crashed back into the ocean.

In 2007, SpaceX undertook a second launch. This time, the rocket rose far…


Book cover of Homo Deus: A Brief History of Tomorrow

Somi Arian Author Of Career Fear (and how to beat it): Get the Perspective, Mindset and Skills You Need to Futureproof your Work Life

From my list on preparing you for the digital era.

Why am I passionate about this?

I'm Somi Arian, a tech philosopher, award-winning filmmaker, author, LinkedIn-Top-Voice, and the founder of InPeak, a Web3 education and professional networking platform. My background in Philosophy of Science and Technology informs my role in society as a 'Transition Architect.' My documentary, The Millennial Disruption, featuring industry leaders, won three international awards. My book, Career Fear (and how to beat it), addresses the future of work and the skills we all need to survive and thrive in the age of Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain. As a speaker, I give talks and workshops internationally on the impact of technology on society, the business landscape, the future of work, Web3, NFTs, the Metaverse, and blockchain technology.

Somi's book list on preparing you for the digital era

Somi Arian Why did Somi love this book?

Homo Deus: A History of Tomorrow is a thought-provoking and insightful book that takes a deep dive into the future of humanity.

Harari's approach to the subject matter is engaging and his arguments are presented with clarity and precision, making it a valuable read for anyone interested in exploring the potential paths of human evolution. The book provides a compelling analysis of how science, technology, and human progress intersect, while also offering ideas and predictions about the future.

The author challenges readers to think about the state of current trends and how we can better shape our future touching on a wide range of topics, from artificial life to overcoming death, and raising important questions about the future of humanity.

I highly recommend this book for its ability to inspire readers to think critically and imaginatively about the future of humanity. Harari's engaging style and accessible language make the book…

By Yuval Noah Harari,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

**THE MILLION COPY BESTSELLER**

Sapiens showed us where we came from. In our increasingly uncertain times, Homo Deus shows us where we're going.

'Spellbinding' Guardian

The world-renowned historian and intellectual Yuval Noah Harari envisions a near future in which we face a new set of challenges. Homo Deus explores the projects, dreams and nightmares that will shape the twenty-first century and beyond - from overcoming death to creating artificial life.

It asks the fundamental questions: how can we protect this fragile world from our own destructive power? And what does our future hold?

'Even more readable, even more important, than…


Book cover of The Sovereign Individual: Mastering the Transition to the Information Age

Somi Arian Author Of Career Fear (and how to beat it): Get the Perspective, Mindset and Skills You Need to Futureproof your Work Life

From my list on preparing you for the digital era.

Why am I passionate about this?

I'm Somi Arian, a tech philosopher, award-winning filmmaker, author, LinkedIn-Top-Voice, and the founder of InPeak, a Web3 education and professional networking platform. My background in Philosophy of Science and Technology informs my role in society as a 'Transition Architect.' My documentary, The Millennial Disruption, featuring industry leaders, won three international awards. My book, Career Fear (and how to beat it), addresses the future of work and the skills we all need to survive and thrive in the age of Artificial Intelligence and Blockchain. As a speaker, I give talks and workshops internationally on the impact of technology on society, the business landscape, the future of work, Web3, NFTs, the Metaverse, and blockchain technology.

Somi's book list on preparing you for the digital era

Somi Arian Why did Somi love this book?

This book is a prescient and compelling analysis of the challenges and opportunities presented by the transition from an industrial to an information-based society.

The authors, who have a track record of accurately predicting global political and economic trends, explore the shift towards a new era of individualized power, as governments lose their grip on commerce and society becomes more democratized.

They offer practical strategies for adapting financially to this new reality, emphasizing the importance of cultivating two skillsets in depth and becoming the best in your field to capitalize on the growing trend of personalized, online work.

The book covers a range of topics, including the mega political transformations in historic perspective, the sophistication of violence in the agricultural revolution, and the emergence of the cyber economy. It also delves into the impact of the information age on the global economy, government, and society, and explores the potential for…

By James Dale Davidson, William Rees-Mogg,

Why should I read it?

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

What is this book about?

Two renowned investment advisors and authors of the bestseller The Great Reckoning bring to light both currents of disaster and the potential for prosperity and renewal in the face of radical changes in human history as we move into the next century.

The Sovereign Individual details strategies necessary for adapting financially to the next phase of Western civilization.

Few observers of the late twentieth century have their fingers so presciently on the pulse of the global political and economic realignment ushering in the new millennium as do James Dale Davidson and Lord William Rees-Mogg. Their bold prediction of disaster on…


Book cover of Principles: Life and Work

Alex Shahidi Author Of Risk Parity: How to Invest for All Market Environments

From my list on commonly overlooked investing core principles.

Why am I passionate about this?

As a student of the markets and investing for 3 decades and a professional investment advisor overseeing billions of dollars for over 2 decades, I have discovered that most investment books and information lack real insight. Much of what I read and see is not thoughtful or deeply researched and merely a regurgitation of what everyone else is saying. I’ve learned that most of what is thought to be conventional thinking is remarkably poorly supported by independent, unbiased research. The books on my recommended list go beyond what you’d read in the average investment book to uncover truly insightful knowledge that I believe can help readers take their investment understanding to the next level. 

Alex's book list on commonly overlooked investing core principles

Alex Shahidi Why did Alex love this book?

I love this book because Ray is a master at building, evaluating, and improving systems and has taken the time to share his insights to help others do the same.

The principles he’s identified and described can simultaneously assist any investor to construct a better portfolio and any person to live a more successful and fulfilling life. This book offers a unique opportunity to learn from one of the most insightful people in history. 

By Ray Dalio,

Why should I read it?

4 authors picked Principles as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

#1 New York Times Bestseller

"Significant...The book is both instructive and surprisingly moving." -The New York Times

Ray Dalio, one of the world's most successful investors and entrepreneurs, shares the unconventional principles that he's developed, refined, and used over the past forty years to create unique results in both life and business-and which any person or organization can adopt to help achieve their goals.

In 1975, Ray Dalio founded an investment firm, Bridgewater Associates, out of his two-bedroom apartment in New York City. Forty years later, Bridgewater has made more money for its clients than any other hedge fund in…


Book cover of Principles for Dealing with the Changing World Order: Why Nations Succeed and Fail

William J. Poorvu Author Of The Real Estate Game: The Intelligent Guide to Decisionmaking and Investment

From my list on real estate and wealth-building.

Why am I passionate about this?

Bill Poorvu is a successful real estate investor and developer who for 35 years headed the real estate program at Harvard Business School, where he taught several generations of students, many of whom went on to become industry leaders. He is also one of the founders of the Baupost Group, a Boston-based investment firm that is considered one of the savviest hedge funds in the world, with some $30 billion in assets under management.

William's book list on real estate and wealth-building

William J. Poorvu Why did William love this book?

Successful real estate investment and development is in part the result of understanding an economic context and taking the long view. Toward those ends, there’s no better jumping-off point than Ray Dalio's historical review of the economic “Big Cycle” that has determined the success and failure of nations and economic systems over the past several centuries. And by the way, Ray knows what he’s talking about: his Bridgewater Associates is the world’s largest hedge fund.

By Ray Dalio,

Why should I read it?

1 author picked Principles for Dealing with the Changing World Order as one of their favorite books, and they share why you should read it.

What is this book about?

NEW YORK TIMES BESTSELLER

“A provocative read...There are few tomes that coherently map such broad economic histories as well as Mr. Dalio’s. Perhaps more unusually, Mr. Dalio has managed to identify metrics from that history that can be applied to understand today.” —Andrew Ross Sorkin, The New York Times

From legendary investor Ray Dalio, author of the #1 New York Times bestseller Principles, who has spent half a century studying global economies and markets, Principles for Dealing with the Changing World Order examines history’s most turbulent economic and political periods to reveal why the times ahead will likely be radically…


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