10 overrated business books (and what to read instead)

If you're like most professionals, you've got a stack of business books sitting somewhere near your desk -- many of the so-called classics that every smart manager supposedly needs to read. However, some of these classics probably became popular not because they were particularly insightful, but because they reinforced conventional business wisdom.

Here's our list of overrated classics, broken up by genre. As an alternative to these over-hyped tomes, we've included a suggested reading list that might provide some insights you didn't already know.