In 2013, I decided it was time to make some changes.
Back then, I was living in Shanghai and at the time I had what we could call “a nice life”.
I had a great job (I was a Brand Manager for 6 high-end spirits and as I love cocktails, that was a good match) and I was earning a decent amount of money.
However, something was missing.
That’s pretty much when I decided it was time to make a move. But I had no idea what that move was. I still don’t to be honest.
Anyway, that’s when I started reading startups blogs, got into time management, productivity, morning routine, etc.
I found some very interesting blogs out there but only a few really stuck, especially two: Tim Ferriss and Ryan Holiday’s blogs.
Long story short, I started reading what they had to say and like a lot of people I guess, found it pretty amazing.
I soon realised that if I wanted to change something in my “normal” life, I would need to so something different. I would need to change something.
If you keep doing what everybody does, you will be where everybody is. And that’s pretty average. Right?
So here is the deal:
You have no idea where to start, but you know you need to DO something. So what do you do?
YOU GET SMARTER.
It’s for sure a good starting point, and you can’t be wrong with that. So how do you get smarter?
Sure you could go to school, do an MBA, follow different classes and so on. But there is an other way. A better way.
It requires more self discipline, a bit of work and setting your priorities straight but it is worth it. All the way.
Read more. A lot more.
I can already hear some of going: “I just don’t have enough time to read more, I’m too busy.”
“I just sit in my office and read all day.” Says Warren Buffett. And he estimates that he spends 80% of his time reading and thinking.
If he has time to read, you should be able to find a few hours everyday as well.
If you have the time you might thing, read more? Okay. That’s easy right?
Well it was not for me.
Plus I was part of the 90% as Jim Rohn calls it. The people that spends more time in front of their TV then at the library.
My goal was now to be part of the 10%.
I bought a few books (mainly biographies, as that’s what I really like) and started reading.
To be very honest, that first attempt lasted a week.
Second attempt, was even less.
But then two things happened:
First, I realized that it was just a decision I needed to make. It was that simple. I needed to make this a priority. And as Ryan Holiday puts it in How To Read More, A Lot More:
“If you want to read more, there’s no real secret. It’s about adjusting your priorities and your perception so that reading becomes an extension of who you are and what you do.When that happens, you’ll be the person that people now ask: How do you do it? And the answer will be: I just do.”
Second, I came across the Tim Ferriss’s book club and he was giving away free a free audiobook version of: Vagabonding by Rolf Potts
I was hooked.
At first, I did not think I could “listen” to books. But this was a game changer for me.
Yes, I prefer real books but this was just a way better solution for me to start “reading” more.
I bought a subscription on audible and started buying books after books. I was unstoppable.
I was going through a book per week, or even more.
I was “reading” on my way to work, while walking the dog, in waiting rooms, when driving to a meeting… every minute was a good time to read, and it was as easy as listening to music on my iPhone.
That was it for me. Listening to books helped me get back to reading and my formula is now the following:
- Get 4 books a month on audible. These books are usually stuff that I want to “try”, quick reads, marketing books mainly.
- Then, buy “real” books for all the things you want to keep. Biography, “life changing books”, books to base your life on.
- Read 15 minutes (of a real book) in the morning when you wake up (don’t check your Instagram or emails, read.
- Listen to your audible on your way to work
- Listen to your audible when you wait, walk, run, workout. Listen to your books whenever your hands are busy doing something else.
- When you get home from work, kiss the wife, and read for 30 minutes.
- After dinner, don’t watch fucking LOST, read for 1 – 2 hours
- Go to bed, read for 15 minutes.
Ok now that you are reading like crazy, what’s the next step?
You should keep track of what you are reading.
You should Create your commonplace of books for all the things you want to remember. Again, Ryan Holiday puts in perfectly :
“A commonplace book is a central resource or depository for ideas, quotes, anecdotes, observations and information you come across during your life and didactic pursuits. The purpose of the book is to record and organise these gems for later use in your life, in your business, in your writing, speaking or whatever it is that you do.”
Now, I’m not going to tell you how to start your commonplace, just read Ryan’s article.
I would just add this:
If you listen to books, just buy a small notebook, so that you can write stuff down and add them later in your commonplace.
Now, open a new window on your computer, get an account on audible, buy your next 4 books (real and audio) and make some time to read. Make some time to get smarter.