Summary

The article argues that reading books is an inefficient way to learn and suggests alternative methods for gaining knowledge.

Abstract

The author of the article expresses a contrarian view against the traditional value placed on reading books, particularly in the context of self-improvement and learning. They argue that reading can often be a form of procrastination, as it gives the illusion of productivity without necessarily leading to actionable results or significant life changes. The article points out that many books are unnecessarily lengthy, filled with redundant content to meet publishing word count requirements, rather than providing concise, valuable lessons. Instead, the author recommends more efficient learning methods such as watching interviews, listening to podcasts, utilizing educational content on YouTube, and reading shorter articles, which can impart the same knowledge in less time and lead to more tangible outcomes.

Opinions

Reading books is not always synonymous with productivity and can be a form of procrastination.
The length of self-improvement books is often inflated with filler content that does not add value.
The author criticizes the need for extensive reinforcement of principles in books, which they consider a waste of time.
Alternative forms of media like interviews, podcasts, and YouTube content are deemed more efficient for learning.
The article suggests that the same valuable knowledge can be obtained through shorter, more concise formats than full-length books.
The author believes that by reducing time spent reading books and utilizing other educational resources, one can achieve better results and higher productivity.

Why You Should Stop Reading Books

And find better ways of learning

Bill Gates, the multi-billionaire founder of Microsoft was once asked which superpower he would like to have. He answered that he would like the ability to read books faster.

Although books can be a source of learning, I have actually become opposed to excessive book reading over recent years.

Yep…I said it. Shock horror!

But I will explain why book reading can be counter-productive, and that there are better alternatives.

Reading Books takes a long time

I’m not pointing this out because I’m bone idle. (I have read each and every Harry Potter book I’ll have you know) I am pointing this out because spending hours reading does not always equal productivity.

During all your hours of reading self-improvement and financial books, has your life really changed? I’m going to assume that nothing has changed for the better because let’s face it: I’m probably right.

Reading tons of books is not a viable solution to your problems. In fact, reading for hours on end is often procrastination disguised as productivity. This is ultimately where my problem with book reading starts.

You feel like you’re taking steps towards bettering your future when you read for three hours. But honestly, you’re not. Just because you have read a five hundred page long book does not mean you are on a road to success.

It is plausible that within those five hundred pages, you have read some things of value that you can implement. But chances are you have also spent three hours reading something that basically repeats itself over and over, instead of getting into action.

You Don’t Need a full book to understand a valuable lesson

You really don’t. Books can be educational, but they are not the best form of education. Mostly because the damn quantity of any kind of self-improvement book is way more than you really need.

For books to be published, they often have to reach a certain number of words. Imagine this scenario for a second: You write something that can argue a point or teach a lesson within 10,000 words. But to publish your idea in the form of a book, you need to get it to at least 60,000 words.

What does that tell you?

It tells you that the additional 50,000 words are just filler. Fluff, that is no use to anyone. It merely exists to make the book longer but adds no value to the lessons within the book.

The author puts out a few key principles (that can be put out in only a couple of thousand words) and from there they reinforce the principles to stretch out the pages.

You don’t need pages and pages of constant reinforcement to see the value within a principle, so full-on book reading is a waste of your time and energy.

If you want to be more productive, I would desist with book reading altogether and try some different, better alternatives for educating yourself.

What can you do instead?

If you want to actually get the valuable knowledge about investing, business, entrepreneurship, self-improvement or whatever you are interested in, you should start doing these things instead:

Watch interviews
listen to podcasts
Take advantage of all the valuable content that is just sitting there on Youtube
Read short articles like this one

You get the point. Doing these things allows you to get the same value as you would from a book, but in less time. So you have more time to actually get tangible results.

So remember these important facts before you click off this article:

There are two types of authors who write education-based books.

The guy who just needs to stretch the pages of a book when it’s neither necessary or increases the actual value of the book
The guy who is concerned with kissing his ass and showing off how smart he is with fancy words and tall tales that help no one

But at the end of the day, there are resources that can give you exactly the same knowledge within less time than a book.

So if you want results in life, throw down that book and experience your productivity go through the roof!