By Adam Smith
Why I Love Reading
Up until 23 I never read a book on my own from start to finish. Now at 30, I have read 34. That’s just under 5 books a year. My 18-year-old self would be shocked. In my family home, there was no bookshelf or bedtime reading. The only reading material I read was mainly football. (I loved the weekly Match magazine)
What led me to read my first book Think And Grow Rich was my mentor at the time had a great book collection and read all the time to better himself. I thought I will give this a go. For me, it’s one of my fondest memories reading that book and the sense of achievement actually finishing it. The amount of knowledge my brain soaked up was imminence. I came out of it with a better understanding of life and a full review of my own thinking and what I had to improve.
Also when I’m studying any successful person they seem to always have some sought of a library in their home. Two of the richest men on the planet Bill Gates and Warren Buffet consume books all year round.
The Positive factor
Now I knew why and I was hooked. I continued my journey up until I finished my latest book This Is Marketing and not only do I get lots of new information I can apply. Reading a physical book has become like meditation for me to not only focus my brain but it also fuels it to think more positively about life and myself.
Reading has become a part of my life that I will never stop consuming and below I will show you the main benefits you can get from reading. If you were like me who never read any books, this is definitely for you.
The 4 Benefits Of Reading
Unlocks The Imagination
What’s great about reading personal growth books is that it unlocks your imagination to tons of new ideas of how to apply and better your own life. Some of the ideas I have developed from reading have made me a better human being but have financially moved me forward in life. It’s like a dot to dot game where these new ideas connect with olds one to create the idea that can change how you think about everything. Just like with fantasy and Sci-Fi books you can gain a whole new world of ideas from personal growth books.
Makes You An Expert
Through reading, you become an expert on certain topics. I now know more about finance, leaderships and mindset more than school or a university lecture could teach me. I have found the best examples in any chosen field and absorbed all their information to know what they know. It shows university, for example, is not the only path you should take to do well in life and the information you seek to start your own business can be found just as easily in books rather than paying a fortune for a vast amount of degrees that are useless upon leaving university.
Move Your Life Forward
Reading is the fuel that moves you forward in life. Every book I have read has given me a source of information that’s benefited myself and others around me. It can allow you to forge a pathway you never thought possible. A new mentality to life than the one you have been taught all your life.
You should look at reading as building a skyscraper for your life. It helps you forge a strong foundation that you can build upon over time. As an adult, I had to build a brand new skyscraper and use only the good information I was taught growing up to facilitate my foundations. Build your foundations today with what you learn from books. The stronger you can make the foundation the easier your life will become to overcome challneges.
Only Through Action Will You See It’s Benefits
I could easily sit and read book after book but if I don’t apply any of the information I have read. It was just a wasted experience. The only success you can get from reading a book on personal growth is if you apply it and make it work for you. That’s when reading is beneficial to you. Don’t just read for the sake of reading. Read like your making a jigsaw puzzle. You have to find all the pieces from the book to put all the ideas together into action.
Conclusion
For me, reading has changed my life for the better. These benefits are from my own personal experience. There is a reason why people are the best in their particular field and it’s because they read regularly. It’s because reading is a major part of our growth strategy.
Of course, I gather information from all sorts of places like podcasts, online and in-person but for me there nothing like holding a book and turning the pages as you gather all those new ideas.
Do you read regularly? What’s your favourite personal growth book? Were you like me, not an avid reader?
I would love to hear from you in the comments.
