ShELF Recommendations: The Best Business Books Of 2022

2022 saw a lot of amazing books get published, several business books among them. But with so many great titles sitting atop so many end-of-year lists, it can be confusing for curious readers looking to find their first reads of 2023. That's why our team of passionate book lovers have curated a special selection of books to help get you started.

From business concepts and tactics to leadership, self-help, and entrepreneurial advice, this trio of recommendations has everything you might need to make 2023 the year you progress further in your career.

Thinking Better: The Art of the Shortcut by Marcus Du Sautoy

How do you remember more and forget less? Can you increase your earnings and creativity just by moving house? How do you pack a car boot most efficiently? This brilliant book by Oxford mathematician Marcus du Sautoy shows us how mathematical shortcuts have enabled so much human progress — all while displaying outside-the-box thinking, highlighting the power of math, and how harnessing it allows us to do more with less. Learn the art of the shortcut, and how you can think better and make your life more rewarding.

Bet on Yourself by Ann Hiatt

Whether you’re just stepping onto the career ladder for the first time, stuck in the middle at a current job, or hoping to reach the top by finally getting recognised for a promotion or a leadership role, strategist and consultant Ann Hiatt shows us how to create something extraordinary from ordinary opportunities. In Bet on Yourself, she unveils the secrets of Silicon Valley success and shares her personal experiences, along with strategies from some of her mentors (and tech's biggest CEOs), such as Google's Eric Schmidt, Yahoo's Marissa Mayer, and Amazon's Jeff Bezos.

Read My Lips: What It Takes to Build a World-class Homegrown Brand by Rissa Mananquil-Trillo

In today's world, the concept of "entrepreneurship" has become highly glamorised. However, there are a lot of hard truths about starting your own business that are hardly talked about — whether it's the wear and tear of working 24/7, the things you wished you'd have known from the start, the challenges that test your integrity, or even the constant questioning of your life path from both others and yourself. In this part-memoir, part-business guide, self-made "beautypreneur" Rissa Mananquil-Trillo shares her own experiences along the journey of co-founding her highly successful beauty brand Happy Skin. It's a first-hand look at the lowest moments and brightest triumphs that come with paving your own path, from someone who's already walked down it.

Already read these books? Have questions or need MORE advice? Then check out all three of these authors' sessions at the 2023 Emirates LitFest for a chance to get the extra advice or answers you're looking for.