BFW: How to Read to Learn What You Need to Know

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Dear Reader,

Hello Brain Food Wednesday readers!
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Welcome to another edition of Brain Food Wednesdays, your weekly intellectual feast. In this edition, issue 231, we talk about how to read books to learn what you need to know.
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Introduction: How to Read to Learn What You Need to Know
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The rapid changes taking place around us, and the busyness of life force us to do things differently. One of those things that has to change is the way you read. It’s time to read like a leader. The most successful leaders read nonfiction books to learn what they need to know.
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• What do you need to know?
• What challenges are you grappling with?
• What problems do you have to solve? Or what questions do you need to answer?
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There is no reason any professional needs to read a book cover-to-cover. Because you’ll seldom find any nonfiction book that needs that kind of attention and investment of time.
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Reading to Learn What You Need to Know
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Why do luminaries seem to get idea after idea to drive their businesses forward? Part of the answer is that they know and understand that learning never stops. Many of these leaders are avid readers. Yes, they learn from books, but they also practice what is called leadership reading.
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And as a result, it appears to the outside world that they have the Midas touch. However, it’s not just about the new ideas found on the pages of a book. It’s also about new ways of looking at the world. And new perspectives they bring to old problems.
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Leaders do not read the same way that average people do. Instead, they read to learn what they need to know. When they read a nonfiction book, they do so because either they have a problem to solve or they have questions to answer. That means they’re looking for specific pieces of information.
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When they find what they need in the book, they’re finished with the book. That’s just-in-time reading. And that’s why it’s so important to define your purpose for reading, so you know how to identify what you need to learn from the book. Because of the fear of missing out, most people feel compelled to read every page in a nonfiction book.
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Change your mindset about what it means to read a book. Think of a book as a solution to your problem, and answers to questions you have. Now you’ve personalized your reading, so you’ll actively read the book, looking to satisfy your needs. Active reading helps you to develop into a leadership reader. In the book, Turn the Page by Chris Brady, he says that readers are protégés and authors are mentors. He also recommends that you approach every book you want to read, with focused and targeted questions.
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Use books to your advantage to:
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1. Achieve Personal goals.
2. Reach professional goals.
3. Solve actual workplace problems.
4. Answer the pressing questions.
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Leadership reading – reading to learn what you need to know – is strategic, and will save you lots of time because you’re reading with purpose. So, you can solve your problems and answer your questions. This type of reading also forces you to focus on what’s important to you.
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If you found this newsletter informative, and you want to support me, please:
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​Sign up for my membership site Art of Learning Leadership Academy​

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Warm regards,

Avil Beckford

Brain Food Wednesdays

Editor, Brain Food Wednesdays

Founder, The Invisible Mentor & Art of Learning Leadership Academy

​theinvisiblementor.com artoflearningleadershipacademy.com​

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