A few thoughts I have about reading books:

Reading is work and shouldn't be skipped. French philosopher Rene Descartes wrote, "The reading of all good books is like conversations with the finest (people) of the past centuries." So my question is, why would we rely only on our personal experiences?

Great books are like blue chip stocks. Walt Disney said, "There is more treasure in books than in all of the pirate's loot on Treasure Island." Yep. And if you take action, you can buy some Google, Apple, or Microsoft.

A single idea might change the course of your life. Matthew McConaughey stumbled across a book at a college party. He finished it one night. Two weeks later, he changed his plan of attending law school to attending film school. I'd say it worked out.

People don't learn from reading the news. News is emotions. Your goal in reading should be: on a mission to collect wisdom to improve the quality of your life.

Good decision-making is the byproduct of thoughtful reading. You'll rarely meet someone living a high-quality life who doesn't make great decisions. Even more rare is finding one who doesn't crack open books.

Reading is a numbers game. You're a hunter. Hunt for life-changing ideas.

But it's not a vanity contest. If you have a stack of books posted on Instagram with no notes, dog-eared pages, or highlighters… you're not winning at the game of reading.

Don't worry about what you "should" read. Business books are the worst at this. Start with what interests you. Go down the rabbit hole.

The best books should be reread. You've found a gem if you are overwhelmed with value on every page you read. Reread it again and again. As reading expert Mortimer Adler said, "In the case of good books, the point is not to see how many of them you can get through, but how many can get through to you."

Popularity doesn't mean worth it. 10,000 reviews on Amazon means one of two things: 1) it's really that good, or 2) it's complete trash that resonated with the cult the author created. Usually, you can tell the difference.

Don't overthink it. Just start reading. Reading a book will always be better than scrolling Instagram, arguing on Twitter, binging Netflix, or playing video games.

Thanks for reading!

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