Do you really need to read 52 books this year? And other media consumption.

[The Irish Guy]

52 business books a year? Hell no, I don't think there are 52 good business books in existence let alone in one year but I do try to read 52 books a year, any good book will give you some new perspectives and help you become a more rounded person which will in turn help indirectly with your business... This video sums up pretty succinctly how I feel about reading books

 

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[MVProduct]

I've read about 70 books this year.

Honestly, I suffered from a bit of information overload. Thoughts in my mind spinning in every direction, too many neuron connections being formed, mind brimming with new ideas, etc. Every time I read the news, saw something in the media, or went through some real-life experience, my mind would link back to a passage/idea I read from a book. "HEY! It's just like how it was explained in that book!" It's kind of a hard sensation to explain, TBH- but it definitely left me confused.

Now I focus purely on summaries and concrete, actionable advice. I often skip through pages of books if I'm not gaining anything out of it. I'm convinced that this is a much more effective way to learn than consuming an entire book, word-for-word, and trying to remember all its details.

Anyhow, I did take comprehensive notes on each. I can go back to any book and retrieve its best parts, lessons, and other essentials. It's so important to do this.

You might want to read a similar thread I created many months ago about this. MJ made a good quote and it's essentially how I approach reading nowadays:

"just-in-time" information

This is how I read/learn. I take action and when I discover I lack a particualar skill/knowledge/awareness, I'll pursue the reading. The process of problem solving is Action > Assess > Adjust. The "Adjust" is where books can play a role. In the end, excessive book reading can definitely be action-faking.

For writers, you can never read too many books. You start to recognize great writing vs good writing vs bad writing.

Great top, thanks for the discussion.

I initially discovered this concept from good ol' Tim Ferriss.

Just-in-time information > just-in-case information.

 

[daivey]

waste of time.

but if youre going to sit at home and jerk off, at least mental masturbation from a book is better.

 

[FeaRxUnLeAsHeD]

I personally find myself having phases of 'learning' - especially if i'm getting into a new phase for something.

If I'm getting into ad words, for instance, i'll probably read a book or 2. But only IF i have a specific reason to be reading that topic.

If i'm just going to read books for sake of reading books, it's useless. I used to do this. I probably read 20-30 books over the past 365 days. It's a waste of time if you don't have a plan of action. Right now i'm in a business building stage and don't see myself having time to read another book for quite some time unless it's SUPER specific to what i'm doing. For example i'll probably read a short 30-40 pager on using Google Adwords soon, but that's really it.. compared to 3 months ago, I read about 6 books in 3 weeks.

 

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[Sanj Modha]

No, I think it's BS. Quality over quantity any day of the week.

I'm on track to read 12 this year (onto book #6 tomorrow). It would have been #7 this year but I moved continents back in April so lost a lot of weeks in between.

I would rather be engrossed with amazing books at a slower pace, understanding what I'm reading vs drinking green smoothies and "skim reading". There is zero point otherwise.

My 2 cents.

 

[Sanj Modha]

I only read for 30 minutes a day, Monday-Friday. That's all you need to break up the working day.

 

[Madhu]

I'd love to read 52 books a year, but I've found such goals to be stressful. They take out all the fun of learning.

Plus, a lot of books contain simple messages which strangely enough can be quite hard to absorb. When my brain comes across a simple message it goes "That's so simple!" and then glosses over the whole thing.

Now I only read for 20 minutes a day and my focus is on absorption. I take notes while reading, which slows down the reading process but aids absorption.

After reading, I turn my notes into an Anki flash card deck, which helps to be reminded of the wisdom long after I have finished reading it.

Although my process is slow, I find it to be way more beneficial!

 

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[TonyStark]

The books you're reading might have an effect on your motivation. I like to read technical books that teach me new skills or give me a new insight into a market I'm interested. In that, there are never enough books.

 

[nradam123]

Funny, I will briefly talk about this on Friday during my presentation at the Fastlane Summit... at least, the fundamental gist of your rant.

What did MJ talk in the presentation about this?

I just started my book a week (I am at 2 books now) and I like reading. It does not take more than a hour a day and it easily adds up. I personally think one book might put me in a direction that will be super useful for me, and every book will make me a little bit more smarter.

And I get it, its all in the application of books. Not reading.