Every couple of year’s some scary statistics will appear on my radar that say things like X% of high school graduates never read another book again or X% of adults read less than one book a year. And I think, how…. why? I forget that not everyone’s idea of a perfect afternoon is being lost in a book.
I get that people have many more channels competing for their attention and they consume and learn in many ways, but there’s still something, for me, about a book. Yes, I have a Kindle and I love the convenience of having access to so many books at one time, but for treasured books and ones that I will reference, meaning, I have put notes in the margins, I still want the old-school, real thing.
This post is really less about the love of reading and more about the importance of always learning, always challenging, and keeping your skills up-to-date. It’s great to do that all year long but as I transition into a new year, and it is February 1st today so we are officially into 2019, I find I do spend more time in December and January whittling down my reading pile and thinking about what skills I need to acquire or brush up on to be successful in the new year.
Which leads me to my last thought for the day. In our modern world, where knowledge is accessible at our fingertips, we need to take responsibility for our own lifelong learning. So, let’s stay curious, let’s stay on top of our game (whatever game that is), and let’s keep reading.
In case you’re wondering what I’ve knocked off of my reading list so far this year, that I would highly recommend… The Culture Code: The Secrets of Highly Successful Groups by Daniel Coyle, Dare to Lead (now you know where the inspiration for the blog post title came from) by Brene Brown, Play Bigger: How Pirates, Dreamers, and Innovators Create and Dominate Markets by Al Ramadan and Dave Peterson, and for fun State of Fear by Michael Crichton. Here’s to hoping for a snow day this season to curl up by a roaring fire with a good book and no guilt!
What’s on your reading list?
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