CEOs Do Not Read 52 Books a Year

There is a misconception made popular by book-vending apps, authors, and publishers that successful CEOs read a-book-a-week! What’s inherent in that assertion is that if you do not read as many books as others do — you are not successful.

While I read and recommend reading, I do not encourage mindless reading — especially if you have ambitious personal and professional goals.

To be sure, I checked with many successful C-level leaders in different industries and found three things

• They do not count the books they read (their goal is not the number)
• They do not complete every book they read (they skim through to pick up what’s useful)
• They do not read every book they have (they have many unread books on their shelves like all of us! Shelf-development vs Self-development. You get it.)

Now the questions are — Why do they read? — and — What do they read? — and — What habit can YOU model? The obvious answers are — to follow a reading routine, to wind down, to take the mind off problems for a while, etc. There are also several other not-so-obvious answers.

Here are three action items I would suggest that you consider

• Goal-Oriented-Reading Focus your reading to something that can help you find an answer to a pressing problem you are facing. I call this Goal-Oriented-Reading. This makes your reading more engaging, fulfilling, and rewarding. I would often stop reading a book after I got what I was looking for — on a random page in Chapter 8 — as I was browsing through. Don’t feel guilty for not reading a book cover to cover. Set clear professional goals and align your reading with your goals. Don’t worry about the money you spend on books — you also have a few old phones that you do not use anymore. You can at least donate those books!
• Choose Action over AccelerationJust because a speed reading guru can read a book a day, it doesn’t mean that you need to do the same. What’s the point of speed reading, if you have no tangible results to show? After reading each book, write down 3 to 5 actions you are planning to take — and immediately add that to your To-Do list. If you do not act on what you read, it is as if you have not read at all. You are going to forget most of it, anyway! Have you ever met someone who reads a lot, but has no apparent increase in practical knowledge? That’s probably because they go after the count, volume and speed, instead of goal-oriented reading and putting ideas into immediate action.
• Great Minds Discuss IdeasOne of the best lessons I learned from my father is a quote attributed to Eleanor Roosevelt “Great minds discuss ideas; average minds discuss events; small minds discuss people” Choose to be a great mind. Join a Mastermind of like-minded people. Bring up problems you are facing, share ideas you have for others, and be open to inputs. You will achieve the most in the least time. You will get ideas, goal-oriented reading recommendations, and accountability for taking action. During the monthly Leadership Mastermind sessions I run, I ask members to bring up their biggest challenges to get the brightest ideas — often from the life experiences of the mastermind members — and often from best-of-class books. Members also share insights from ideas they implemented, results they found, and enticing others to implement the same. That way, you get a lot more than reading a whole book (or 52 books) — all by yourself. Masterminds are the most overlooked platform that helps you to accumulate massive knowledge and accelerate your professional development.

Next time you hear someone brag about the number of books they have read each week, ask them — What problems were you facing? What ideas did you get? What have you implemented? What results did you see?

Stop counting the books you read, make your reading count. Often, what you need is not more information, what you need is more implementation.

Stop counting the books you read, make your reading count. Often, what you need is not more information, what you need is more implementation.

About the Author: Manoj Vasudevan is an internationally renowned Next Level Leadership Readiness expert, management consultant, and the World Champion of Public Speaking. He helps executives and entrepreneurs to break through to the Next Level in career, business, and life. Manoj is known for his expertise in simplifying complex topics into practical strategies. He is the CEO of Thought Expressions and holds an MBA from Imperial College, London. His books include the international bestseller Mastering Leadership The Mousetrap Way. and How to become the World Champion of Public Speaking. He speaks at international conferences, multinational companies, universities, and around the world. As a coach, Manoj has a proven track record in personal transformation and breakthroughs. CEOs, Senior Executives, UN Diplomats, Celebrities & Professionals from over 50 nationalities have benefited from Manoj’s coaching. To contact the author’s team, click here.

Originally published at https://www.linkedin.com/in/manojthecoach.