The Power of Reading

Why the secret to success may be in the pages in your hands

‘There are two major divides of people who don’t read. There are people who simply don’t put a value on reading. These are people who maybe haven’t graduated from high school or college, and they just don’t see a correlation between reading and success.

‘The other group of people are professionals who understand there’s a value to reading but aren’t reading as much as they would like to. The research I’ve seen suggests that the average professional, at least in the United States, reads fewer than five books per year - that’s an incredibly low number."

— Paul C. Brunson, reads over 50 books every year.

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The Power of Reading

By Sandy Clarke

The Star/12 August 2017/www.Leaderonomics.com 

IF someone asked you to name one trait that truly sets successful people apart, what would pop into your head?

Talent? Resources? A great network base? Innovative ideas? All of these things surely make a difference, but the sin­gle constant that permeates the top 1% of income earners is that they read. A lot.

Research carried out by habit and wealth creation expert Tom Corley shows that, while less successful people read mostly for entertainment, those at the top are avid readers of self-improvement books. In fact, 85% of successful people read two or more self-improvement or educational books per month.

International entrepreneur, lifestyle coach, and American TV show host Paul C. Brunson often cites Corley’s research when expound­ing the power of reading to those he men­tors.

As someone who spent a total of six years working with billionaires Oprah Winfrey and Enver Yucel, he knows first-hand the pro­found effect that the specific habit of read­ing for improvement can have on a person’s success.

Although he enjoys global recognition as a motivator today, Brunson was a lackadaisical student until he came to read his first book at the age of 18 after accompanying his then girlfriend (now wife) Jill to a bookstore.

The effect was transformative. The power of reading had inspired Brunson, led him into his first job as an investment banker, and drove him through a fascinating journey that took him to where he is today, reaching out to millions of people across the globe who are looking to improve themselves - their relationships and their careers.

OVERCOMING BARRIERS

That reading has a powerful effect on our capacity to learn, develop and grow isn’t a new idea. Like exercising and medita­tion, many of us are aware of the positive results that come with a reading habit. The question, then, is: Why aren’t more people - particularly young students and profes­sionals - reading more books?

“There are two major divides of people who don’t read,” says Brunson.

"There are people who simply don’t put a value on reading. These are people who maybe haven’t graduated from high school or college, and they just don’t see a correla­tion between reading and success.

If we stick to online reading, we’re selling ourselves short by missing out on the one crucial factor for learning that we find in books: context.

"The other group of people are profes­sionals who understand there’s a value to reading but aren’t reading as much as they would like to. The research I’ve seen sug­gests that the average professional, at least in the United States, reads fewer than five books per year-that’s an incredibly low number.”

He suggests there are three main reasons that prevent professionals from reading as much as they might like to. These are:

‘I’m too busy to read.’

While professionals are indeed busy, Brunson advises that if we look at the amount of time we watch TV, browse social media and otherwise use up other chunks of our day, we might find that we’re not as busy as we think. We just feel busy.

There is, of course, nothing wrong with watching TV or using social media, but as the top successful people show, to priori­tise reading is a habit that offers a huge return on investment that hours spent on TV and social media just can’t match.

‘Books are challenging.’

If we aren’t familiar with a particular concept (such as investing or negotiation skills), reading can seem like a chore and, let’s face it, it can also feel like a Sisyphean effort trying to get through a 400-page tome on, say, how to develop great communica­tion skills.

At the end of a long day, it’s just all-too-tempting to put our mental energies to other uses, such as watching TV.

‘Where do l start?’

Brunson suggests that there are cur­rently more than 250,000 titles released by major publishing houses every year and, on top of that, another 750,000 books are offered by self-publishers. That’s over one million new books each year - it’s no wonder that people feel overwhelmed.

DIVING DEEP INTO CONTEXT

With the caveats that exist around read­ing books, might we be better off turning to the Internet for concise blog posts and all those convenient "top 10 ways to achieve success” articles that pop up everywhere? Surely books are so 20th century?

According to Brunson, if we stick to online reading, we’re selling ourselves short by missing out on the one crucial factor for learning that we find in books: context.

He says, "Books take you so deep into the narrative in a way you can’t get from blog posts - and it’s the narrative that gives you context. The context is like glue - there are little bits of concepts that are dropped in. And then there’s context, which binds the concepts in your mind.

"The challenge for people who read the ‘top 10 ways’ articles is that, while they come away with the tips, they don’t have the context. Therefore, they don’t know how to apply those tips in multiple scenarios - the tip comes at face value, but there’s no depth to it."

Brunson reads over 50 books every year - an impressive feat he achieves by making sure he gets out of bed early every morning to fit in two hours of reading before his two young sons Liam and Kingston wake up. This ensures he gets about 14 hours of reading time each week, enough to get through at least one book.

But the lifestyle mentor is conscious that not everyone will be able to find the time to read as much as they’d like, and so he has developed an initiative called Knowledge Share.

The initiative shares information in a way that condenses self-improvement books

with depth and context that allows people to absorb key lessons and apply it directly to their lives, while providing access to world- renowned experts (such as Professor Walter Mischel, creator of “the marshmallow test”) to whom they can put their questions and clarify points on what they’re learning.

“We’re building a community of people who want to level up in their career,” says Brunson.

“The people I’ve interacted with, from Oprah and Enver to many other successful leaders, all say that in order to level up, you need to have transferable skills.

"So our primary focus is looking at how you can acquire, develop and master valu­able, transferable skills so that you can level up. And what Knowledge Share does is give a thorough masterclass on specific skills that can greatly enhance your career."

When we think about what we read, many of us might have the tendency to pore over the material without giving much thought to what we want to get out of it. As a result, we likely miss out on absorbing as much value as we could if we were able to take our learning to a deeper level.

So how can we absorb as much informa­tion as possible from a book that’s been written with the purpose of helping us raise our game?

Brunson advises, "There needs to be some immediate application of what you’re con­suming. What I’ve found to be most effec­tive is to write up how I can apply what I’ve learnt to my life. What can I do right now that can make me better?”

APPLICATION OF KNOWLEDGE IS POWER

This notion of application is perhaps why the self-help industry is, in part, so success­ful. How many of us read in order to find that one sentence or single concept that will magically transform our lives? We humans are evolutionarily wired to seek the maxi­mum benefit while expending the minimum energy.

In other words, we’re not naturally geared towards investing in ourselves beyond what makes us feel comfortable. And yet, a great number of us want to reach beyond our comfort and achieve specific goals and ambitions. As the saying goes, "If you want some­thing you’ve never had, you must be willing to do something you’ve never done”.

This is what sets successful people apart from the rest - they are constantly learn­ing, both within their area of interest and outside it, learning new ideas and concepts along the way.

When we take a look at successful people, none of them began at the height of their stories; they had struggles and doubts along the way just like the rest of us. What set them apart was their determination to nur­ture a curious mind, learn as much as they could, and make an investment in them­selves that would push them all the way from where they started to wherever they

wanted to be.

And the crucial point bears repeating- the sole constant that runs through most of the stories of successful people is that they read as many books as possible. They read books that help them to develop and grow their existing skills, as well as master real life skills such as willpower, communication and negotiation skills, and self-discipline.

For Brunson, it’s his current mission to fos­ter a hunger for reading in as many people as possible through his Knowledge Share initiative, which works to immerse people in what he calls “a masterclass course” in skills that are delivered by the top thought leaders in the world.

When asked about why he feels so pas­sionate about sharing with others, he replied: "Do you have someone who is in the top 1% in the world to help you get from where you are currently, to where you can reach your goal? I’ll bet 99% of people will say they don’t, and that’s why they need to pick up a book. While there are awful books out there, when you pick up a masterful book, you are literally being taught by a world-class mentor.”

BRINGING IT ALL TOGETHER

There is little doubt that reading for self- improvement makes a profound impact on a person’s capacity to succeed. Business mogul and multi-billionaire Warren Buffett reads between 600 and 1,000 pages each day;

Bill Gates gets through 50 books per year; Winfrey herself is a voracious reader; and when someone asked how he learnt to build rockets, Elon Musk replied, "I read books.”

The evidence is clear - reading is the habit to develop if you want to increase your chances of leading a highly successful professional life. But how exactly do books affect the reader? What edge does someone with a habit of reading have over those who read few books or none at all?

Brunson is unequivocal in his response, "If you choose to read - and I’m talking rigorous reading - you are going to climb your ladder faster and higher; you’re going to make more money; you’re going to have more influence; you’re going to create a bigger impact; and, most importantly to me, you’re going to cre­ate a powerful legacy.”

About Leadership

What makes a leader?

Breaking down the myths around what leadership is and what it is not

By Kevin Kruse and Travis Bradberry
WHAT makes someone a leader anyway? Such a simple question, and yet it continues to vex some of the best thinkers in business. We’ve written several books on leadership, and yet it’s a rare thing to actually pause to define leadership.

Let's start with what leadership is not...

Leadership has nothing to do with seniority or one’s position in the hierar­chy of a company. Too many talk about a company’s leadership referring to the senior most executives in the organisa­tion. They are just that, senior executives. Leadership doesn’t automatically happen when you reach a certain pay grade. Hopefully you find it there, but there are no guarantees.

Leadership has nothing to do with titles. Similar to the point above, just because you have a C-level title, doesn’t automatically make you a “leader.” We often stress the fact that you don’t need a title to lead. You can be a leader in your workplace, your neighbourhood or even your family, all without having a title.

Leadership has nothing to do with personal attributes. Say the word “leader" and most people think of a domineering, take-charge, charismatic individual. People often think of icons from history like general Patton or president Lincoln. But leadership isn’t an adjective. We don’t need to be extroverted or charismatic to practice leadership. And those with charisma don't automatically lead.

Leadership isn’t management. This is the big one. You have 15 people in your downline and P&L responsibility? Good for you, hopefully you’re a good manager.

Good management is needed. Managers need to plan, measure, monitor, coordinate, solve, hire, fire, and

so many other things. Managers spend most of their time managing things. Leaders lead people-

So, again, what makes a leader?

Let’s see how some of the most respected business thinkers of our time define leadership, and let’s consider what’s wrong with their definitions.

Peter Drucker: "The only definition of a leader is someone who has followers."

Really? This instance of tautology is so simplistic as to be dangerous. A new army captain is put in the command of 200 soldiers. He never leaves his room, or utters a word to the men and women in his unit.

Perhaps routine orders are given through a subordinate. By default his troops have to “follow" orders. Is the captain really a leader? Commander yes, leader no. Drucker is of course a brilliant thinker, but his definition is too simple.

Warren Bennis: “Leadership is the capacity to translate vision into reality.”

Every spring you have a vision for a garden, and with lots of work carrots and tomatoes become a reality. Are you a leader? No, you’re a gardener. Bennis’ def­inition seems to have forgotten "others”.

Bill Cates: "4s we look ahead into the next century, leaders will be those who empower others.”

This definition includes "others” and empowerment is a good thing. But to what end?

We’ve seen many empowered "others” in life, from rioting hooligans to Google workers who were so misaligned with the rest of the company they found themselves unemployed. Gates’ definition lacks goals and vision

John Maxwell: "Leadership is influence - nothing more, nothing less.”

We like minimalism but this reduction is too much. A robber with a gun has "influence" over his victim. A manager has the power to fire team members which provides a lot of influence. But does this influence make a robber or a manager a leader? Maxwell’s definition omits the source of influence.

So what is leadership?

DEFINITION: Leadership is a process of social influence which maximizes the efforts of others toward the achievement of a greater good.

Notice the key elements of this definition:

Leadership stems from social influ­ence, not authority or power. Leadership requires others, and that implies that they do not need to be “direct reports”.

No mention of personality traits, attributes, or even a title; there are many styles, many paths to effective leadership. It includes a greater good, not influence with no intended outcome.
Leadership is a mindset in action. So don’t wait for the title. Leadership isn’t something that anyone can give you - you have to earn it and claim it for yourself.

Leaderships
What the world needs?
What kind of leadership does the world need?
By Jomo Kwame Sundaram