I was on Facebook one day back in December and came across a post that Mark Zuckerberg had made. He put up a picture showing books that he had been reading over the last year. I was blown away as I looked at some of the books he had been reading. First because of the amount of books he had read and second, as I looked at the titles of some of the books he was reading it was hard for me to imagine being able to make it through some of those books.
As I was looking over the book selection I realized that I have to do it. I have to start reading books and commit to learning. I thought about all of the articles and videos I had watched with people talking about reading and learning being a key to personal growth and large contributor to success and knew that I needed to commit to making this happen.
Whats significant about this was that I hated reading. In all of my life the only thing I had willingly read was scriptures, and even that was difficult for me. The thought of reading books, non-fiction or fictional books had very little appeal to me.
A few months back I decided that if I want to become the person that I envision myself being I need to just do it. Take action. No more excuses. Just do it #Nike. So I spent $224 and purchased 24 books on audible.com. A few months out from doing that, I am here to say that was one of the best investments I have ever made in my life. I had invested in myself and its changed me completely. I can honestly say that I am more happy now than I have been in a long time. Not that my life was bad before, but that my life now has more purpose and direction than before. I am learning and growing and it feels incredible. I have come to believe that within every human being exists the ability to create, be creative, and the desire to learn and grow.
I am writing this because the impact from reading has made such an indelible impression on me that I had to share it. I also wanted to share some of the things that stood out to me in hopes that someone else can find inspiration that may need it, and also to encourage other people to invest in themselves and read books that can help you grow and change your perspective on what your able to achieve.
The following are some of the books I have read and some of the things that stood out to me:
Think and Grow Rich-Nepoleon Hill
-At one point he asked us to imagine all the wealth in the world and all you take is 1 penny. He then went on to explain that this is probably exactly what we are doing with the use of our brain.
It helped me to recognize that our brains our capable of so much more than we can imagine, It helped to put into perspective what our brains are capable of, and what most of us do with the incredible gift we have been given.
Money Master the Game- Tony Robbins
-Fewer than 10% of people that buy a non-fiction book ever get past the first chapter.
I loved this because I felt empowered knowing that I had just been placed in the top 10% in at least 1 category!
- Losers react- Winners anticipate
In the book he talked about why alot of people fail is because they react to situations that come up and people that succeed often already thought of the problems that could occur so they dont react, they anticipate. They think ahead.
The Obstacle is the way- Ryan Holiday
- Lots of people have great ideas but often give up when it's no longer easy or things get difficult. To get to uncharted territory you have to push harder and endure longer than those that have been before you.
This help me gain a greater perspective that to achieve what I want I have to realize that other people have probably tried what I want to do but gave up because it got difficult. If I want to get to uncharted territory I have to do what other people could not do before me, and that wont be easy. I have to push harder and endure longer!
- The obstacle is the way.
This book did an incredible way of helping me to change my perspective on life and to accept that things will happen that we cannot control. What we do control is how we handle the things that happen in our life. Looking at obstacles as a deterrent will always hamper our success and prevent us from accomplishing all that lies ahead. This book helped me to learn that the obstacle that lies ahead of us is part of the path and that by going through it is what will get us to where we are going, not avoiding it and not coming up with excuses about how we cant get through it. Take the obstacles and use them to your advantage and to help you grow.
Big Magic- Elizabeth Gilbert
- Fear is boring.
Elizabeth talked about growing up and how she was afraid of everything. Didn't want to try new things, and didn't want to try some things at all. There was just too much fear of failure, lack of the unknown, and getting hurt that she didn't do anything. This fear controlled her life until one day she realized that fear is boring. There are so many things she had been missing out on in life simply because she was afraid of doing failure, doing something not as well as someone else could do it, and so on. She realized that this way of thinking and this way of life is just plain boring and it will never avail much. The moment she changed her perspective she was able to go out to the unknown, do things that she loved but that she wasn't the best at, and do things that scared her knowing that fear should never rule over us, it can help us, but should never be in the drivers seat.
These are some, but not all of the things that I have read that have made a great impact on my way of thinking and perspective on life. I cannot express how much starting to read has changed my life. To those who wish to add value to their lives and become a better person, more capable, smarter, wiser, and more understanding, then read non-fiction books that can help you grow and reach your divine potential.
Don't limit what your able to accomplish in this life. Read and broaden your perspective to learn more about who you are and what you can become. I know I have and it was one of the best decisions I have ever made. Strangely enough, I have found that the more I learn, the more I realize how much I don't know and how much of the knowledge that exists in the world that I don't have. It propels me to read more and learn as much as I can. Time is limited and I no longer want to waste it.
- Josh
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