Why Read

The fact of the matter is that most Americans, just don’t read. When was the last time you picked up a book and just sat down and flipped through the pages, can you even remember that far back? Most people stop reading when it ceases to be required, i.e. after they finish school. Because of this 25% of people have not read a single book in the last year. And 46% of adults score in the lowest 2 levels of literacy.

What to Read

You can read anything, read books, e-books, newsletters, scholarly articles, journals, magazines, you name it. Naturally, the more you read the faster you will become, but the real purpose is to gain knowledge. That’s why it doesn’t matter whether you read books or e-books, the more important thing is if you’re reading quality content.

Read 500 books a Decade

Let that sink in. Right now, could you even name 500 books? Reading an hour a day equates to about 1 book per week which translates to just under 50 books a year, a decade later you will have read 500 books. That’s a lot of knowledge on a specific topic.

How to Read 1 Book per Week

The average commute time in America is just under 30 minutes each way. If you spent your commute listening to an audio book instead of the morning recap of celebrity gossip, how much smarter do you think you would be after 2 months?

According to the Wall Street Journal, the average American spends over 5 hours a day on “leisure” activities which include watching TV, working out, socializing, spending time browsing your smartphone. What if you spent your lunch hour reading a book to better your career? You would probably be less self-conscience since you’re not spending that hour looking at photoshopped images of unrealistic expectations. But how much faster do you think you would get a promotion?

Be Exceptional

The average American reads 5 books a year. That’s less than a book every 2 months. If you start by reading 1 book every month you will be an exceptional minority. In fact, reading correlates to wealth, just look at how many books Warren Buffett, Bill Gates, and Mark Zuckerberg read every year.

Get Started Now

Get started now, go to your local library, or check out Amazon’s great Kindle selection (which offers affordable and often free eBooks), pick up a nonfiction book of interest and read. Take an hour out of your busy day to just sit and read. As with anything new, the practice will likely be difficult to begin. However, after the first month or two, it will probably become second nature and you will begin reading faster which means absorbing more knowledge.