CEO Q&A: What Are the Last Two Books You've Read?

In each issue of Franchise Update magazine, we profile franchise CEOs and presidents, asking each the same set of questions. Throughout the year, we'll be selecting one of those questions - and providing answers from those profiles. If you want to learn more about these franchise leaders and their thoughts on other topics, click the links with their responses to read their full profile.

This week we asked them: What are the last two books you've read?

Interestingly, among 9 CEOs, only one book was named twice: Grit by Angela Duckworth.

Bette Fetter, CEO and Founder, Young Rembrandts
Big Magic by Elizabeth Gilbert, and The Aviator's Wife by Melanie Benjamin. Read the full profile here.

Rob Price, CEO and President, School of Rock
The Undoing Project by Michael Lewis, and Man's Search for Meaning by Viktor Frankl. Read the full profile here.

Tammy Whitworth, Chair and CEO, Window World
Leading Women by Nancy D. O'Reilly that a co-worker lent to me, which I'm really enjoying. Three of my favorite authors are Paulo Coelho, John C. Maxwell, and Brené Brown. I absolutely love Brené Brown! Read the full profile here.

Brian Petranick, CEO and President, RiseMark Brands
Grit by Angela Duckworth, and currently re-reading Thriving on Chaos by Tom Peters. Read the full profile here.

Jon Nobis, CEO, Two Men and a Truck
The Way of the Shepherd by Kevin Leman and William Pentak, and Crucial Conversations by Kerry Patterson, Joseph Grenny, Ron McMillan, and Al Switzler. Read the full profile here.

Shannon Hudson, CEO and Co-Founder, 9Round Franchising
The 1-Page Marketing Plan by Allan Dib, and a biography of Bruce Lee. I'm a big Bruce Lee fan. Read the full profile here.

Nicole Ossenfort, CEO and President, Liberty Tax
iCompete: How My Extraordinary Strategy for Winning Can Be Yours by John T. Hewitt. Read the full profile here.

Larry Oberly, CEO and President, SpeedPro Imaging
I really connect with Simon Sinek. He's my hero from a leadership perspective. I like that he's young too. That adds to the difference in how he and I look at business, which I think is very healthy. I mix reading books with reading periodicals, listening to podcasts, and watching inspiring YouTube videos. My favorite magazines are Entrepreneur and Success. I listen to "Freakonomics" and TED podcasts when I run or am waiting for a flight. They've been educational and entertaining. I always get interesting new ideas from those and would recommend them to any economists or entrepreneurs. Several of the books I read come from listening to TED speakers. For pure entertainment, I listen to the "Stuff You Should Know" podcasts. Monday through Friday I watch a video series called "Daily Mentoring" by Darren Hardy, who usually has some excellent ideas and tips in a compact 2- to 6-minute format. Books that have helped me be who I am include Think and Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill, the Steve Jobs biography, a few biographies of Walt Disney, John Wooden's Wooden on Leadership, and Grit by Angela Duckworth. For fun, I've really enjoyed Traffic by Tom Vanderbilt and Ten Men You Meet in the Huddle by former NFL lineman Bill Curry. My new favorite topic of study is behavioral economics, which I was introduced to by the TED podcasts. I really enjoyed the book Predictably Irrational by Dan Ariely. Read the full profile here.