Corcoran, Barbara with Bruce Littlefield; Use What You’ve Got, 2003.

Barbara Corcoran, who has been called “the Queen of New York Real Estate,” started her empire at age 23 with a $1000 loan from a boyfriend. She didn’t have education or contacts, but she relied on charm and shear grit to market herself and create a firm that brought in $2 billion a year in revenue.

This book is part lighthearted memoir and part insightful business guide. It’s organized around a series of life lessons, like “if you don’t have big breasts put ribbons on your pigtails.”

Despite the snappy text, the book includes plain speaking about important aspects of business. For example, Corcoran makes a strong case for improving your business process under the heading, “if there’s more than one kid to wash, set up a bathtime routine.”

At the end of the book, there’s a “bonus manual” entitled, “What I Wish Every Salesperson Knew.” The manual says that “great salespeople get knocked down like everyone else, but take a lot less time getting up.”