Why Is Reading Important To Success?

 

In this article I will attempt to answer Why Is Reading Important To Success? Did you know the one single trait that highly successful people have in common is…

…that they ALL read. In fact they make it a priority to read – every single day.

I’m even talking about the super successful and wealthy people like:

• Warren Buffet – read between 600 – 1000 pages/day when he was getting started
• Mark Cuban – reads 3 hours/day
• Bill Gates – reads about a book a week
• Mark Zuckerburg – a book every 2 weeks
• Elon Musk – is an avid reader and links his knowledge of building rockets to reading books

Of course this is only a small sample of the highly successful people that all read.

This got me wondering just Why Is Reading Important To Success, let’s find out.

 

What is Reading?

Ok this seems to be a little ridiculous because everyone knows what reading is… don’t they?… or do they?

Mmmm maybe. We know its looking at words and reading them but what really is READING in a more scientific way.

Well, according to the Wikipedias definition which you can read it here…

“Reading is the complex cognitive process of decoding symbols to derive meaning. It is a form of language processing.”

I bet you didn’t think of it been that complicated. Yes reading is a very complex system which works similar to the way computers process numbers.

Our brains are so much more powerful then a computer.

Ok so we know what it is…

 

Why Is Reading Important To Success

We are taught from childhood that reading is important for our success and enjoyment.

While being a reader won’t ensure success you can rest assured ALL successful people are avid readers.

Reading helps develop many skills that when transferred to other areas of life help ensure success.

Let’s explore some of those skills that becoming a reader can help us develop.

 

The Ability To Remain Focused

Reading will help you develop your ability to remain focused on one task for an extended period of time.

Yes avid readers take breaks but once they dive into a book they can’t seem to put it down for very long.

They carry that same ability forward to any task they are working on and tend to see things through to completion which goes a long ways to ensuring success.

 

Setting Goals

I have covered an article on Why Are Goals Important For Success. Readers tend to set goals for themselves.

Those goals could be as simple as reading a certain number of pages or perhaps gaining a clear understanding of a certain concept before moving on to another task.

Readers are actively trying to accomplish something every time they open a book.

Successful people set goals for almost every moment of their life and are constantly striving to surpass that goal.

This is also why we encourage young kids to start reading, it develops the habit early.

 

Spending Time Wisely

Highly successful people don’t waste time.

If they have 20 minutes of spare time they don’t see is as not being long enough to accomplish something, they see it as an opportunity to read, learn and grow.

There are plenty of moments when a person could read for instance while waiting at the dentist or doctors office or waiting for that train or flight.

Successful people see their time as extremely valuable and because of that they take every opportunity to learn a new skill or accomplish a goal.

We all have the same 24 hours in a day, the highly successful people choose to make maximum use of their time.

 

Develop Perception and Reflection

Being a reader gives you the ability to see all angles of a situation and to be able to empathize with another once you see their side.

Being an avid reader allows you to put yourself in someone else’s shoes, if only for a moment; but once that moment’s over, you remember the experience for a lifetime.

Along with developing perception reading also allows you to be reflective.

While gaining perspective allows you to see things from the other side of the fence, being reflective allows you the opportunity to understand how you can be productive with your new-found perspective.

Successful people understand the profound effect reading can have on the mind and how reading can change your life if you remain open to the possibilities.

 

Helps To Improve Writing and Speaking Skills

It is no surprise that all of the greatest speakers and writers in history have all been avid readers.

Great historical leaders such as Lincoln or Nelson Mandela drew their inspiration from their mentors and used it to further their cause.

Successful people learn from other successful people and strive to emulate them.

 

Improved Memory

The human brain is incredibly powerful and readers understand that it can hold an almost limitless amount of information.

Reading is a skill that develops over time. The more you read the easier it becomes to retain information.

Readers also see the brain as a muscle that needs to be exercised regularly.

Successful people habitually create challenges to overcome, which in turn improves their minds’ capability to solve increasingly larger problems every day.

 

Being Educated and Informed

Successful people spend their time learning.

They read with the purpose of taking away some information that can carry them forward in life rather than just read to finish the book.

Even when reading fictional books they look for the life lessons to be carried forward with them. Learning someone’s mistake ultimately saves you time money and possible grief.

 

What To Read

There are books available in any subject imaginable.

You just have to decide what it is you would like to learn first.

I have compiled a list of some of my personal favorites to get you started:

• The Magic of Thinking Big by David J. Schwartz
• Think and Grow Rich by Napolean Hill
• Secrets of the Milionaire Mind by T. Harv Eker
• Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek
• Road to Success by Napolean Hill
• How to Stop Worrying and Start Living by Dale Carnegie

Highly successful people like to read the biographies of other successful people and then emulate them to create their own success.

If you’re stuck on picking one, may I suggest “Think and Grow RICH“. I believe it should be in everyone’s lap.

It really doesn’t matter what you read as long as are looking for the message to carry forward.

Even in fiction novels there is usually a hero to be emulated and a lesson to be learned.

With practice you will get better and your brain will become more attuned to looking for the message within the written word and you will begin to rise to new levels of success within your own life.

 

Conclusion

I hope I have managed to answer the question “Why Is Reading Important To Success”.

The biographies or autobiographies of highly successful people is basically like a road-map to success.

If we learn the principle they used to achieve their success and in turn apply those principles to our own lives we will create our own success in whatever method we choose.

It is the success principles we are seeking to uncover in each book we read.

With practice you will get better at reading and your brain will become more attuned to looking for the message within the written word and you will begin to rise to new levels of success within your own life.

I encourage you to pick up a book and start reading today with an open mind seeking for the message within the printed word. Who knows where that will lead you.

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Please leave any comments or questions below.