There are over a million business books listed on Amazon.com and a few of them are actually worth reading! Among those few are 30 books that build the foundation for success, whether you're working for yourself or somebody else.

Note: After much thought, I excluded the following three genres from this list:

1. Biographies. Delving into the personal lives of celebrated businessfolk (e.g., Steve Jobs) is usually just gossip writ large.
2. Case Studies. Books that spotlight individual companies (e.g., Jack Welch and the G.E. Way) are so specific that not much useful can be gleaned from them.
3. Business Strategy. Unless you're planning to run a Fortune 500 company by the time you're 30, such books (e.g., Good to Great) are a waste of your time.

Regular readers of this column will see many books below that I've recommended in the past. That's because I truly believe that they're fundamental to success. So with no further ado, here are the must-reads:

PERSONAL GROWTH

The most important person in your business life is yourself. These books teach you how to manage your thoughts and emotions to create the potential for success.