Make reading part of your lifestyle!!

A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies…..The man who never reads lives only one. This is such as appropriate quote by George R R Martin, best known for his series of epic fantasy novels, a song of Ice and Fire, which was adapted into the HBO series Game of Thrones. Every so often, when I see my sons who are in their teens, bored with nothing to do and furiously using their smart phones, I urge them to read. It’s a fruitless and frustrating conversation. It is not that they are not interested in reading but they just don’t seem to understand the importance of reading. They feel it’s a waste of time and don’t see any benefits from reading. They do pick up a book once in a while, but reading is not a habit with them.

Perhaps I may have touched a chord with many of you and may also get an emphatic nod from a few who may have experienced having a similar conversation at home. But how do we convince the younger generation that reading is important for not only keeping your mind alert and constantly in think mode, but is also provides a cutting edge difference in the highly competitive world. It gives you a larger perspective of the world around you, improves your vocabulary, allows you to broaden your horizon, creates new interests and lastly ensures that you utilize your time not in ephemeral activities. Reading is grist for the mill when one is faced with competition from well-rounded individuals who along with you are vying for resources which as time goes by, will be in shorter supply. Resources here could mean a college admission, a job interview, a committee position or something as basic as a good, solid conversation with another individual. I don’t want to sound pretentious by saying that reading makes you intelligent, but it does make you confident. Not priggish but quietly confident. It makes you stronger in your convictions. All great world leaders have known to be voracious readers. And then look at Donald Trump, a classic case of someone who has hardly read. Even now, apparently he does not bother even reading his briefs.

I was never a big reader myself during my school and college days. My early reading was limited to the Hardy Boys, Nancy Drew and a few Enid Blyton classics, Mark Twains - the adventures of Tom Sawyer & Huckleberry Finn, Archie comics, Tin Tin and many local and international sports magazines. Once I stepped into the corporate world and looked around me, I felt the need to broaden my perspective and took to reading. Having come from a state board education, my English was not as solid as some of my peers including my wife who were educated in other boards where English was taught as a language to understand, learn and speak and not just a subject to get by. I did feel inferior. So I had only one option, which was to read and read ferociously, read a wide repertoire of books, read and refer to words I had not encountered before. Over the years, this practice made me confident and gave me the required skill to write a bit as well. I took to blogging. My reading habit over the last 20 odd years has ebbed and flowed. There have been times, when I haven’t read a book for months. But over the last 2 years, I have engrained it into my lifestyle so much so that I have been reading close to fifty books every year. In addition, I have had one companion who has been my constant since 2002. The Economist – I consider it to be the most complete newspaper. The Economist team calls it a “newspaper” even though its circulation is that of a weekly magazine. The language – quintessentially British is something I have learned to understand and enjoy over the years. I also introduced my dad in law to the Economist post his retirement for which my mom in law thanks me every day. When one is spoilt for choice with so many other excellent publications available such as the Wall Street Journal, The Guardian, The Times from UK, The Washington Post, McKinsey Quarterly, The Hindu and the HBR, I have trusted the Economist. Not that I don’t read the others, but that is more sporadic and if on a particular topic of relevance. The Economist – it is a daily read for me which I relish. The reason I am touching on the Economist is because apart from reading books, it is important that you also pick up a couple of magazines and newspapers which you should read regularly. It is an essential reading habit which one must inculcate.

So how does one go about developing a habit of reading, especially for someone who is not naturally inclined to reading books? As the wise man Aristotle has said “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit” We must cultivate a habit to read. Set small goals. Say you decide to read for 20 minutes every day or you may decide that you will read two books in a month. Start with something as simple as this. And slowly increase your goals. There are many reading societies. Perhaps you may want to join one if it is situated close to where you stay or work. The initial few attempts will be tough but don’t give up. Don’t make unrealistic promises to yourself. You start small, achieve small, you will feel good and will eventually end up reading regularly. Make it a part of your lifestyle. Whenever I get time on weekends, I carry a book and head to the nearest Starbucks and spend a good 2 to 3 hours reading. This year for the first time, I decided to take a reading vacation. I took a week off to be on my own with about four books and headed to Panchgani. It was blissful and I plan to repeat this break every year. I hope this short blog gets at least a few of you to start reading in case you haven’t been reading yet. Let me end with another quote on reading, this time by Jim Rohn, American writer, entrepreneur and motivational speaker – “Reading is essential for those who seek to rise above the ordinary”. And none of us want to stay ordinary? Do we?