There are 7 books within arm’s reach of me right now, and 58 more
within six feet.
That’s not all of my books, either, or even close. Just the ones that
drift around the periphery of my desk. I haven’t read all of them.
Maybe I’ve read half. That might be generous, or it might be low. It
gets hard to keep track.
I know people with hundreds more books than me, and I’m fascinated by
it. Some of the best conversations I’ve ever had came from shared
knowledge of books, or through exploring ideas one of us learned from
reading.
Books are incredible, and I’m going to convince you why.
It's Important to Unwind
Reading will, over time, help you turn off the overthinking parts of
your brain and relearn how to focus on long-form content.
When you start your reading journey, it’s likely you’ll have a hard
time staying focused. Single pages can feel exhausting if you’re not
used to it. You might have to reread paragraphs to remember what they
say.
That’s partially because we’re trained now to enjoy short-form,
immediate, gratifying content. It releases dopamine. It keeps us on
social media.
I understand, it’s hard. There were large stretches of my own
life where I didn’t read, couldn’t focus, or made excuses to avoid the
books I owned. It’s human, and it happens. I’m not saying you should
become an absolute reading savant. Just, give it a try. Buy a few
books with interesting topics. Give them a chance.
Even if you thumb through them only on occasion, having them
around your house is a great start.
Books help us short-circuit the nonsense we’re being fed, and remember
how to stay focused on the bigger picture. This is even true when we
don’t constantly read them.
Imagine the internet goes out. I don’t have to, personally, because
that’s a battle I’ve been having with my ISP for weeks.
What do you do? If you own books, you can relax on the
couch and read a few pages. It might not keep you engaged right away,
especially not if you’re used to tv and social media and all sorts of
high-dopamine, addictive activities. But it’s so, so much better than
pacing your house wishing you had something to do, and you might be
surprised how fun it is once you get over the frustration of feeling
disconnected from the web.
It can actually feel like a breath of fresh air.
Once you get used to reading, you can spend an afternoon in relative
peace, learn something new, and feel rejuvenated instead of exhausted.
The Value of Aspiring For More
Collecting books helps encourage you to keep learning.
If you don’t already know, continuous learning is basically the thing
I love the most about being an adult and a business owner. It’s what
keeps life interesting, and what keeps me inspired to explore and
grow as a person.
Books are basically a fast track to continuous learning. Even at their
least helpful, they provide an excellent break from screens, media,
and other hazards of modern life. They’re an amazing tool available
to all of us.
Reading fiction is a fantastic alternative to watching Netflix,
browsing social media, or laying around your house. It’s mentally
stimulating enough that you can get inspired and passionate, and
unplugged enough it doesn’t feel like work.
I love reading fiction when I need a break from learning, had a long
day, or want to relax without spending another hour burning my
retinas with all the devices and computers in my life I use for work
and other hobbies.
Then, I read nonfiction to learn the ideas of people I admire, people
with more expertise than me, who have lived a life I aspire to live,
or have accomplished things I’d love to accomplish.
Reading, and collecting, nonfiction makes sure you stay humble. The
existence of unknown knowledge around you is a guaranteed way to
remind yourself you don’t know everything and that other people are
wise in ways you aren’t yet.
Learning from an accomplished writer is a great way to realize there
are brilliant people outside your immediate circle and that everyone
has something to offer.
Having unread books around you keeps you grounded in what you
don’t know.
Either one of those benefits has a massive impact on life, let alone
both in tandem. Especially when you begin to succeed in your career,
and your business takes off, it’s easy to think you know enough and
that you’re complete as a person. That’s a dangerous fallacy.
Building a personal library is like an anchor to reality: you’re never
complete, never too smart to learn something new, and always aware of
how much more is still out there.
Some of the most successful busines people of all time, like
Charlie Munger, spoke often about reading and how it enriched their
lives.
A Life Full of Learning
When you read a book by someone, you’re essentially getting the
distilled version of everything they’ve learned and thought about a
subject in a clear, digestible form. That’s pretty amazing.
There are tons of ways to learn something, and while not all of them
relate to books, those who take the time to write books are often
giving us a shortcut to a better future.
It takes an incredible amount of work to write a book. Even ignoring
the actual process of writing, painstakingly, each chapter and weaving
together the information, the research and intention alone is
awe-inspiring. Writing nonfiction means you have to research your
topics, fact-check yourself, and make sure you’re accurate.
It’s hard work. Unbelievably hard. Meaning when a great nonfiction
book comes out of someone with a genuine expertise or passion for a
subject, the content within is invaluable. It’s an opportunity to
dive into something you want to learn at a level you haven’t felt yet.
Books are Beautiful
There are a lot of reasons to love books. I’ll even include that I
think books make beautiful decorations, and that a well-stocked
bookshelf (or, even better, a library) is a great way to organize
not only knowledge, but also your home.
Reading doesn't have to be for everyone. I understand. If you’ve given
it a real shot, and you don’t enjoy it, then by all means go out into
the world and live through actions or whatever it is that connects
with you better.
That said, I really think it’s worth an exploration.
I can’t honestly overstate how meaningful it is to have books in your
life, and in your vicinity. It’s a subtle shift in mentality that
will slowly overtake you and improve you as time goes on.
Books are beautiful. Knowledge is beautiful.
There’s nothing quite like it.