How To Read Like a CEO: 5 Ways To Learn More, Faster

According to Inc. magazine, the average CEO reads 60 books per year.

Why?

Because they know the key to success is constant learning. 

Think about it: 

If somebody has decades of experience in marketing, for example, and they put all their experience into a book, you can sit down and read the entire thing in a few days.

Now you've downloaded decades of insight in a short amount of time. There's no greater advantage in the workplace than to be able to do that.

But most people don’t read. In fact, the average person reads 2-3 books a year, max.

So how do we read more, faster?

Here’s a few tips that worked for me:

1. Treat Books Like Throwaway Blog Posts - Skim Many Books, Dive Deep Into What Interests You

Most people think books are sacred. To be read from beginning to end without stopping to read something else.

Wrong. There are 1-3 million books published every year. Most are garbage. 

You see, we all know somebody “stuck” on a book somewhere. And all that time they spent stuck, they could have been reading something else. 

Start viewing books as a blog archive. A blog might have 300 posts on it and you could read the two, three, five that you need right now. 

So pick up a lot of books and start reading. Put down any book that doesn’t interest you. And keep going until you find something that does. 

2. Build a Reading Habit

The most important thing is to create a habit of reading every day. It doesn’t really matter what you read. Just read.

It could be fiction. Comic books. Heck, even the National Enquirer.

As you build the habit of reading every day, you’ll naturally progress to more challenging books you’ll learn more from.

It’s like exercise. Do something every day. Don’t obsess over what you do.

I also find it’s easiest to build the habit if you do it at the same time every day. For me, it’s the first thing in the morning and the last thing before bed.

3. Don’t Budget On Books

A really good book costs $10 or $20 and can change your life in a meaningful way. Reading is an investment, not an expense. Don’t bother trying to save money on books.

4. Don’t Add, Subtract

Reading shouldn’t be another thing you add to your daily routine. You need to remove things to leave room to learn.

For me, social media has been the biggest distraction. The average person spends 2-3 hours per day on their phone, and most of that time is spent on social media. 

Why? Because it’s addicting.

If you met someone who drank whiskey first thing in the morning you’d call them an addict. But the first thing most people do in the morning is check their phones. 

Here’s the trick I used to end my social media habit for good:

Delete all social media apps from my phone. But allow myself to check social media on my laptop.

I found the laptop/desktop formats of the apps are much less distracting. 

I can use social media more consciously and avoid mindlessly scrolling for another “domain snack”.

5. Reading is a Muscle, You Gotta Feel The Burn

Well, not exactly. But the metaphor works for me.

Imagine this:

You’re reading a book and you start to feel confused. You’re not totally understanding the material. 

So you stop reading.

Noooooooooo!

That's the same as lifting weights and stopping when you start to feel “the burn.”

As bodybuilders like to say, “the burn” is the only time you're actually getting stronger, growing.

Muhammed Ali said he only started counting reps when they started to hurt.

Reading is the same. Feeling confused. Not totally comprehending the material is natural and normal.

You need to “lean in” to tough books. That’s how you learn. 

So next time you’re reading a challenging book, shift your mindset from “I don’t understand” to “I’m learning something new.”