How to read more than 30 books a year without wasting a lot of time on it

2024 Author: Malcolm Clapton | [email protected]. Last modified: 2023-12-17 03:44

Popular author James Clear shared a simple secret.

Warren Buffett, the man commonly referred to as the greatest investor of the twentieth century, once spoke to students at Columbia University. One asked how best to prepare for a career in the investment business. After thinking for a while, Warren pulled out a stack of documents and trade reports that he had brought with him and said:

“Read 500 of these pages every day. Knowledge accumulates like compound interest. Each of you is capable of doing this, but I guarantee that few really will."

Buffett himself spends about 80% of his working time reading and thinking. This made me wonder if I read enough books myself. I realized that there are several reasons why this number is not as large as I would like.

Why We Read Little

For a person who has mastered the process itself, reading books, in fact, should not cause difficulties. You just need to find time for this. Of course, in words it is easier than in practice.

As I considered my habits, I realized that I usually acted reactively rather than proactively. If I saw a link to an interesting article on Facebook or Twitter, I read it. But I didn’t set aside a separate time for books. I just read what caught my eye.

As a result, I almost always read online. Of course, there are many great articles on the internet, but the quality of the books is usually higher. They are better written and more thoroughly edited, with better quality, verified information. So if you want to learn something, read books rather than articles online.

How to fix it

I have developed an uncomplicated system that now helps me to read more, despite the usual things.

Read 20 pages at the start of the day

Usually I wake up, drink a glass of water, write down three things for which I am grateful, and then read 20 pages of a book. I have been in this habit for 10 weeks now. Today I have reached the hundredth page of the seventh book. At this rate (seven books in 10 weeks) I will read about 36 of them in a year. Not bad at all.

I think this approach works because 20 pages is not much, so much text is not intimidating. Most will read that much in half an hour. Do this early in the day, before urgent matters have time to distract you. Plus 20 pages is a great average speed. You seem to be reading a little bit, but progress is fast.

If possible, I devote more time to books. After writing an article on how to get the best sleep, I added reading to my evening ritual. But, no matter what I plan for the day, I always read 20 pages in the morning.

Spend Your First Morning Hour Properly

What do you do in the first hour after waking up? Most spend it in chores and getting to work. But why not spend it on getting better? Why not wake up an hour earlier every day and take care of yourself? Imagine how this will affect your results at work, relationships, and in general for you as a person.

Reading in the morning will help you with this. Invest your morning time into self-improvement before moving on to your daily chores. Read books that will make you better. Like most life-changing habits, this doesn't seem urgent, but it's very important.

20 pages a day. That's all you need to do.