Tyler Omoth 
No need to pay for classes to invest in professional growth, just grab one of these great career development books!
Whether you are just starting out in your career or you're a veteran of 20 years, one of the most helpful things you can do for your career is to stop and get a fresh perspective. Classes, conferences, and keynote speakers can really help to provide new insight and to recharge your enthusiasm for work. However, if you're looking for a simple, affordable way to continue your professional growth and maximize your success, grab one of these great career development books.
Anyone could find inspiring nuggets of inspiration from any of these career development books, but they really hit the mark for certain groups. Find the category that best suits you and get reading!
The classics
Who Moved My Cheese?: An Amazing Way to Deal with Change in Your Work and in Your Life by Spencer Johnson
This book is listed first simply because every person should read it. It doesn't matter if you are a CEO, waiter, teacher, or mechanic. It is a short, simple book with a powerful lesson that will help you succeed and be much happier in life.
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People: Powerful Lessons in Personal Change by Stephen R. Covey
Are you looking to become more efficient in both your personal and your professional life? This book is a tried and true guide to help you formulate the mindset and the habits you need to do just that.
How to Win Friends & Influence People by Dale Carnegie
Originally published in 1937, this book isn't about teaching you how to manipulate people and bend them to your will. Sorry. Still relevant today, this career development book will teach you how to express ideas and inspire people on an everyday basis. Warren Buffett swears by it.
Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill
Looking for a motivational kick in the pants? This is it. Hill's book looks at some of the most inspiring leaders in modern history and helps you tap into the mindset that made them successful (and rich).
For millennials
What Color Is Your Parachute? 2016: A Practical Manual for Job-Hunters and Career-Changers by Richard N. Bolles
Another classic, 'Parachute' continues to get yearly revisions and is the first book people should grab if they're looking to start a career or find a new one. With tips on how to find a job, which careers are hot right now, and how to discover what really matters to you, it is especially effective for those who are just starting out in their professional lives. The perfect graduation gift for the soon-to-be grad in your life.
StrengthsFinder 2.0 by Tom Rath
You may think you know what you want to do professionally, but do you really know what your true strengths are? This career development book (with an online assessment test) can help you uncover the skills you might not even realize that you have.
The Power of Habit: Why We Do What We Do in Life and Business by Charles Duhigg
We all have habits that, when we're really honest with ourselves, we know are detrimental to our personal and professional growth. This books helps you recognize, and take small steps that help you change the mindset that leads to these habits. Like most disciplines, you stand the most to gain by reading this book and implementing these strategies while you're still young.
Quiet: The Power of Introverts in a World That Can't Stop Talking by Susan Cain
Do you find yourself on the introverted side of the spectrum? Cain's career development book can help you understand your own tendencies and how to make little changes that can help out big time in social situations and help you land the interview of your dreams.
For women
Lean In: Women, Work, and the Will to Lead by Sheryl Sandberg
Sandberg, the COO of Facebook, tells you why women have not competed successfully in top-level professions with men over the last half-decade and how to take charge and change that. Tired of the status quo? This is your playbook for change.
Nice Girls Don't Get the Corner Office: Unconscious Mistakes Women Make That Sabotage Their Careers by Lois P. Frankel
If you're a woman, you may not even realize how many things you were taught as a child that have thrived in your subconscious. This career development book helps you identify, and change, those little tendencies that could be holding you back.
The Confidence Code: The Science and Art of Self-Assurance---What Women Should Know by Katty Kay
You probably know that confidence leads to success. But that doesn't mean it's easy to do. 'The Confidence Code' gives insight with anecdotes and scientific studies that can teach you how to break out of your shell and present yourself with confidence on a daily basis.
For the sports fan
Leading with the Heart: Coach K's Successful Strategies for Basketball, Business, and Life by Mike Krzyzewski
Coach K is one of college basketball's most loved and most successful coaches. In his book, he reaches beyond personal development to the basic principles of leadership that can help your career, and your business, thrive. You won't have to be a sports fan to love this one.
I Can't Accept Not Trying: Michael Jordan on the Pursuit of Excellence by Michael Jordan
Michael Jordan may be the best basketball player to ever step on the court and the king of personal branding. After being left off the varsity team as a high-school sophomore, he pledged to himself that he would chase his dreams with everything he had. His career development book details how he pursued all of his dreams, both on and off the hardwood, and how you can too.
What It Takes to Be #1: Vince Lombardi on Leadership by Vince Lombardi Jr.
Vince Lombardi is football. His strategies to create a winning atmosphere in Green Bay went far beyond the players on the field. Get valuable insights on how to create success personally, and for your organization, from arguably the greatest coach in NFL history.
Developing yourself personally and professionally is a lifelong endeavor. Discover some of your favorite career development books that teach, motivate, and focus your life and keep that bookshelf handy at all times. These are just a few of the many titles out there.
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