Read to Lead
It is absolutely true that you must “Read to Lead” and it is absolutely true that this is more necessary in our time than ever in history. The sheer volume of information and literature today demands it, as does the sheer pace of change. So let me give you some tips on how to read more. I’ve written previous Leading Thoughts on what you should read, but now I want to help you with how to read and digest more material.
- Train Your Eye
Your eye cannot move as quickly as your brain can absorb. So, train your eye to move faster. I teach people to periodically read with their finger moving the eye as fast as it can read every word. Yes, you look like a first grader learning to read—but it is worth it! Run your finger under the words and move it as fast as the eye can absorb what you are reading. Do this for a while and do it often. You will literally teach your eye to move more rapidly when you read without your finger. By the way, people often report back to me that they have doubled and even tripled their reading speed within a few weeks using this method.
- Scan What You Read Before You Read It
This suggestion may sound like a waste of time, but it makes a huge difference. I never read a book without scanning it first. I read the flap text, I read over the table of contents, I’ll read any summaries that may appear at the start or end of chapters, and often I’ll scan the last chapter. Often—particularly when I’m reading in my academic fields—I’ll know what an author is going to say before I let him or her say it. At the least I know what he intends. Then, when I read the book, it’s like I’m driving a familiar road rather than each statement coming at me new and unexpected. I also use this method with longer articles. I look at subtitles. I look for summaries. I read the last few paragraphs—first. Then, if I don’t already know all I need to know about what the author is going to say, I read the article. Using this method, I learn more, I remember longer, I take less time, and I discard what I don’t need more rapidly.
- Have Your Reading Always With You
This is easy in our cell phone world. Make sure you have your reading on your cell phone. If you subscribe to National Review and get the print magazine delivered to you, this means you can also have the National Review app on your phone. I suggest you do your book reading digitally also—on Kindle, Apple Books, or whatever. In other words, have what you are reading available on your cell phone and or on a digital pad you always have with you. Then, redeem “down time” by reading during what would be wasted moments—waiting for someone to arrive for an appointment, etc. You recover dozens of hours a year this way. I’ve concluded that I read an extra book or two a year just by reading when I might be tapping my toe in impatience. Try it.
- Learn to Scan While Reading
Not every word needs to be read. I’ve read entire books reading only the first sentence of every paragraph. I’ve sprinted through some chapters and jogged—slowed down and absorbed—through others. I’ve digested other books by only reading the summaries at the end of each chapter. It isn’t cheating. It’s learning to invade material, get what you need, and move on. Develop your own methods of this. Your goal is to get what you need. Not necessarily to pass your eye over every word of every book and article.
That’s it. Read to Lead. More necessary now than ever.