Howard County Business Leaders Recommend

Whether you are an established business leader, wanting to advance your career, or nursing an entrepreneurial hope, HCLS has books for you. We asked business people in our community for book recommendations. These reads, all available to borrow, will take you to your next level!

An upper body photo of the author in lacy black top and long earrings.

Laura Bacon
Founder/CEO, The 3rd

We Should All Be Millionaires
by Rachel Rodgers
This book really helped me to undo some hard conditioning around pricing, wealth, and your own direct ability to affect it. The book feels like a great girlfriend giving you all of her hard learned lessons about building and sustaining.
Available in print, as e-book and e-audiobook

David Woodruff
CEO, APL Federal Credit Union

The Bonds That Make Us Free
by C. Terry Warner
This book was a therapeutic journey for me to build new habits of taking responsibility in my relationships — both professional and personal. While not a traditional “business book,” my experience grappling with these ideas has had significant impact on my effectiveness as a leader and co-worker.
Available in print and as e-book

The title with scripted capitals appears above a floral pattern.

Jennifer Jones
CEO, Howard County Economic Development Authority

Fall in Love with the Problem, Not the Solution by Uri Levine
This book advises teams to remain fixed on the problem you are solving for your customers rather than a particular solution. Problems last for a long time, but the solutions that come along can change depending on new technologies and other factors. Focusing on the problem allows you to roll out new concepts and solutions to serve your customers. The book encourages you to be open to change and innovation.

A bright yellow color with black tiype with white arrows emphasizing and underlining individual words.

Author Works with Kathryn Finney

Thursday, Jan 19
6:30 – 7:30 pm
online  
Registration and more information at bit.ly/hclsfinney

Turn your passion into profit! If you have ever dreamed about starting a business, you need to know about Kathryn Finney. She encourages you to not wait for the system to let you in. Her new book, Build the D*mn Thing, is the essential guide to knowing, breaking, remaking, and building your own rules of entrepreneurship.

She explains how to build a business from the ground up, from developing a business plan to finding investors, growing a team, and refining a product.  

Finney, an investor and startup champion, is the founder and managing general partner of Genius Guild, a Chicago-based venture fund that invests in scalable businesses led by Black founders using innovation to build and promote healthy communities. Build The D*mn Thing: How to Start a Successful Business if You’re Not a Rich White Guy made the Wall Street Journal bestsellers list in its first week of release.

In partnership with Columbia Inspired magazine and The 3rd, a 501(c)3 nonprofit, co-created, community of Women of Color entrepreneurs.