Diana, author of the motivational book #88 Love Life, said reading had taught her a lot in life, “It taught me that effort is needed in life. If you want to reach a certain level in life, you can’t just dream. You have to work really, really hard.” Below she reveals five of her favorite books.

The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century (2005)

Author: Thomas L. Friedman

In The World is Flat, Friedman portraits the world as a place of commercial competition, where all business players have equal opportunities to succeed.(Book Depository/-)

The World Is Flat: A Brief History of the Twenty-First Century shares Friedman's views of the world as a place of commercial competition, where all business players have equal opportunities to succeed. As to why she likes the book, Diana stated, “This book teaches us to think globally. When we do business, we can’t only think about selling our products in the country. Our mindset has to be global.”

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Brains on Fire: Igniting Powerful, Sustainable, Word of Mouth Movements (2010)

Authors: Robbin Phillips, Greg Cordell, Geno Church and Spike Jones

In Brains on Fire, a marketing and identity company shares its views on how marketers should run their business: by focusing on their customers.(Book Depository/-)

Brains on Fire, a word-of-mouth marketing and identity company, shares its views on how marketers should run their business: by focusing on their customers. “I like it, because it teaches me that if you do business, don’t think of your customers only as customers, but think of them as a part of your family,” said Diana.

What I Know For Sure (2014)

Author: Oprah Winfrey

What I Know For Sure is a collection of life lessons that talk show host/media mogul Oprah Winfrey has learned through her years of experience.(Book Depository/-)

What I Know For Sure is a collection of life lessons that talk show queen/media mogul Oprah Winfrey has learned through her years of experience. This book is important to Diana for teaching her to appreciate the little things in life, or as Diana puts it, "We often forget to be grateful for the little things."

(Read also: Six books you can actually finish)

#GIRLBOSS (2014)

Author: Sophia Amoruso

Sophia Amoruso, CEO of fashion online retailer Nasty Gal, explains how she lived her life from her dumpster-diving days to the day when her business earned more than US$100 million.(Book Depository/-)

Sophia Amoruso, CEO of fashion online retailer Nasty Gal, gives insight into her life from her dumpster-diving days to the day when her business earned more than US$100 million. She stressed in her book, “A #GIRLBOSS is in charge of her own life. She gets what she wants because she works for it.” Diana dubs Sophia’s way of creating her business very inspiring.

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Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion, and Purpose (2010)

Author: Tony Hsieh

Zappos.com CEO Tony Hsieh owned an e-commerce website for shoes and clothing that was acquired by Amazon for $1.2 billion in 2009.(Book Depository/-)

Zappos.com CEO Tony Hsieh manages a shoe and clothing online shop that was acquired by Amazon for $1.2 billion in 2009. In Delivering Happiness: A Path to Profits, Passion and Purpose, Hsieh shares the lesson he has learned from his business. Aside of recommending the book for its detailed way of writing, Diana also said, “It reminds me, whenever I think it is very hard to run my business, that he had it harder than me. It’s a reminder that we have to work hard.” (asw)

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