Step 9 - Warren Buffett's Book-A-Day Diet & Making War With A Multitude Of Counselors
This lesson is all about reading books and why it is so important, that we commit to reading books.
To get ahead in life, we must learn. And everybody learns by mistakes, but it is a hell of a lot easier to learn by the mistakes of others.
The ability to simulate the future gives us a jump ahead to those individuals, who only learn on the basis of overt trial and error. The trouble with overt trial is that it takes time and energy. The trouble with overt error is that it is often fatal.
Mother nature should be the teacher of last resort, because the lessons of mother nature can be fatal. Fatal to your business, fatal to your health and fatal to your dreams and life. Our brain evolved, so that we no longer have to learn through trial and error.
Simulation is both safer and faster. And the wisest and most successful people in life are readers. From the Great Alexander, who had his own library with him, to Warren Buffet who reads 5 hours a day. A rich mans house, has always a library.
Everybody wants the good life, but not everyone is willing to read, because the acquisition of a new skill and money takes humility.
But wide is the path that leads to destruction and many are the people that go on it and few are the people that go on the narrow path that leads to the kingdoms.
We went to the moon, because we were built with the ability to learn.
We generally succeed through accurate simulations of outcomes, without having to go through it, to get whatever we want.
Everything depends on the quality of what we read. Thus what should we read?
In general there are books, that have stood the trial of time. These are older books. Then there are books from good authors, like Arnold Schwarznegger on Health and Working out, or from Sam Walton on Business. The quality of the Author is a good indicator. Also Biographies are a good choice. Don't judge a book by it's cover. The best way is to work through Tai's book list by priority. And remember, don't read only on business, because the Good Life has 4 pillars. 25% of the books you read should be on health. Since it is the first Pillar of the Good Life.
And also don't go for speed reading. When reading books, get the Gold Miner mentality. Grab a book and skim through it. If you find one piece of gold in one chapter your mission was successful.
Avoid the mentality of having to read a book from start to finish, because you fear to miss something. Instead embrace the chaos of missing something, because there is always opportunity cost for the time you invest to read everything, secondly because you are assuming, that you can't read the book again later. Your relationship with a book should be like a relationship with a human being. You meet multiple times, once for 10 minutes, other times for 10 hours.
Books are the easiest way to simulate outcomes.
Read in the morning an old book, even if just for 5 minutes. One great thought of a great thinker is enough. Learn to fall asleep by reading a how-to book, which is connected to your industry, when you try to nap. Biographies in the evening and fiction at night, if fiction at all.
Nine out of ten successful people read. The ones who can simulate the future do win.
Side-notes
The only people who operate alone are poor people. Everybody else, the rich friends all have accountants, lawyers, CFO, board of advisers, paid consultants. They make war with a multitude of counselors. You won't be a specialist in everything.
Questions
What has been your biggest excuse for not reading, and what book reading pace are you going to commit to?
Actually I like reading, because there have been a lot of books which have opened my mind. Maybe why don't I read everyday? Well, I read everyday, but not a book everyday, because of time restraints, since I have the notion, to count a book as read, if I have read it from start to finish. But I will commit to read at least one book a week from start to finish. I know I'll probably do more, because I just finished Social by Lieberman, and have started Gary Kellers The One Thing today. But still. The books I commit to read in the following order will be:
- The One Thing, Gary Keller
- When I Stop Talking You’ll Know I am Dead
- Confessions of an Advertising Man
- The Selfish Gene – Richard Dawkins