Lets talk about reading.

A topic well worth paying attention to.

It may sound silly but I get the feeling that nowadays most people who commute to work via public transport waste their time either listening to music on their mobile phones, reading newspapers, which has nothing good to say, or just stare plainly into space.

For example, I was riding the tube the other day and I always make a point of bringing some reading material with me on a journey so that I can make the best use of my time while commuting.

While reading I paused and began to look around me to see what the other passengers were up to, and I noticed that 80% of the people where doing… nothing at all! just sitting there, like zombies, staring into space. There where the few who read newspapers while some were on their mobile phones but I get the impression that most people who commute to work, on a daily basis, just sit there idly and waste time instead of making the best use of it – and one of those is reading books.

Books are the antidote to boredom, they are items of work that inhabit a person’s knowledge and feelings, they are pieces of literature which cry out to be looked upon and flicked through. They are a source of benefit to a healthy mind.

In other words books are the six pack of the brain.

I would go so far as to say that it is preferable to be reading non fiction books rather than a fiction ones. Not that theres anything wrong with fiction but you get to cultivate and acquire more knowledge when reading a good biography, an historical book, an insider marketing manual, a business hardcover or any other subject related paperback book of your choice.

And why should you be reading I hear you say because it’s invigorating. It expands the mind, develops your knowledge, lightens the soul and definitely entertains the spirit. If you look at any successful person out there more than likely they have a library of books at their disposal because they understand that readers are leaders. Bill Gates and Warren Buffet come to mind.

Some may dislike the idea of reading because its a muscle that hasn’t been exercised for quite some time. And just like any muscle you need to practice and exercise it.

A 15min read a day whether a start to your morning, when you wake up, or on a public transport, on the way to work, leads to nearly two hours of reading a week and since an average sized book has around 200 to 250 pages, and going on the assumption that an average person reads about a page every two minutes then an average person could finish one book within 3-4 weeks.

BUT, if you were to put that extra 15min of reading time on your journey back from work then there’s no reason why you can’t double the amount of books you can read.

Stop reading those depressing newspapers they handout outside the tube station. Avoid the urge of listening to the latest CD or playing another dumbed down computer game on your mobile app,  and make the conscious effort to read a good juicy book.

Try it for the next month and see how you feel. Books can be expensive but public libraries still exist where you can hire books for free or you can venture into charity shops around town and purchase new books sometimes for 1/4 of the price of what they go for.

So, make that slight adjustment to the way you commute to work and begin to feed your mind with the knowledge the universe is sharing with you and I promise you you will not regret it.

Go on, give it a go.

Happy reading!