Was Reading a Book a Week for a Year Worth It?

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●Marcus D – Trophy

[thejohnfish]

Oof my bad on the b-roll volume, I was editing this in a rush between classes and the thought "I should lower this before I render" definitely popped into my mind... and then straight out again. Sorry!

[languagelearning]

“I cannot remember the books I've read any more than the meals I have eaten; even so, they have made me.”
― Emerson, Ralph Waldo

[Ackmood]

To see that 250 hours of reading is around 52 books is crazy because I spend around 2000 hours a year on YouTube(not kidding)

[modernafflatus]

"Finding an hour every day for reading is more finding an hour every day to become more educated, to broaden my perspectives on life."

Well said John.

There's so much wisdom and enjoyment to be found in books that it's one of the best investments we can make in life.

[Pokerbilly]

Wow this guy commited to his New Year's Resolution. No wonder why he's a Harvard student 👏 his discipline is impressing.

[macerly]

I swear I’ve waited for this video since you uploaded “a book a week for 6 months” ahh finallyyy😍

[bnsgokugreat]

I have read 36 books in the last 6 months :)

[Booktrovertdiaries]

I am actually doing the 52 book challenge because you inspired me too. I’m on my 6th book this year:) it’s great!

[PouryaBigonah]

This is truly a great video. Books are such a massive part of school, so the problem for me are the associations with it. It´s like when we watch a movie in class, no matter how good it is..I still can´t shake the "this is school work" feeling. And it´s as if that feeling never went away with books. When you´re 3 years old, your mom or dad might read stories from books that have created good experiences but when you are 5 or 6, you are given these school books that become a part of a strict stressful world. From then on, the good associations I had were shattered.
Anyways, maybe it´s not that deep, maybe It´s just my ADHD.
Again, another great video John :)

[baodo]

I was kinda like you. Not into reading fiction but I decided to give it a chance and read "All the Light We Cannot See" by Anthony Doerr and read it in 4 days. Can't wait to read more

[gladys.carolina]

I love that you recognize your age and your lack of experience in a way that reflects your wisdom, congrats! great video! :)

[byronarnaoutoglou]

John I guess you really are a fast reader but if you really read one book per week and you only spend one hour daily to complete each, unless they were too short, I can't help but question how well one can absorb the essence of what one reads. Maybe you're just a very productive person (duh, Harvard) but my point is just be careful not to set as goal mere numbers to the point you read fast just to reach a certain weekly quota.

[TheScienceBiome]

I managed to read about 40 books in 2018 thanks to you!

[Maddwavybby]

honestly, i feel smarter just by listening to you talk! i need to start reading more because I've noticed I spend waaaay too much time on my phone. this is my motivation!

[asotljc]

What a great habit reading a book a week! I like how you mentioned many of the auxiliary benefits of the habit of reading in general, despite whether or not a particular book is earth-shattering or enlightening. The ability to process the written word effectively is one the most powerful skills one can develop. Those who made the biggest impacts on history were almost all voracious readers.

One conundrum all avid readers must inevitably face is the question of what to actually read. Emerson once said, “There are 850, 000 volumes in the Imperial Library at Paris. If a man were to read industriously from dawn to dark for sixty years, he would die in the first alcove. Would that some charitable soul, after losing a great deal of time among the false books and alighting upon a few true ones, which made him happy and wise, would name those which have been bridges or ships to carry him safely over dark morasses and barren oceans, into the heart of sacred cities, into palaces and temples."

As Emerson said, it is just impossible to read all that is out there. Further, much of what is written for trade publishing is done so with an eye to make a profit, therefore much of it tends to pander to the appetites of the intended audience—which can often be appallingly fickle. So then, many make a decision based on reference: whether a book is reputed to be worth reading by a trusted opinion. I do agree that there is much to be said about reputation. After all, how can we know the canon of literature without some works having gained a reputation for standing the test of time? If Shakespeare’s works weren’t distinguished by his reputation, hardly any of us would stumble across his works amid the endless works written throughout history.

But, does that mean one should only read the canonical books? Not at all. Sometimes one may gain more from reading a blog post by some kid halfway across the world than by reading a Greek tragedy. And so, not all is lost if one reads something that has no reputation for being great. Indeed, when it comes to reading, nothing is really lost, but can contribute to one’s overall perspective. I like what Aristotle once said: “It is the mark of an educated mind to be able to entertain a thought without accepting it.” They that would be widely read should take care to cultivate a critical mind, and let nothing escape the most rigorous of scrutiny. That way, one could have the confidence to expose themself to as wide an array of reading as desired, while not fearing that one should be swayed by the ideas one is constantly being exposed to.

And then there is the topic of the quality of one’s reading. What does it mean to have read a book? If a person has read a book, but after reading it couldn’t tell you anything about the premise, the author’s perspective, or even some of the informative material contained therein, then having read a book means nothing more than having scanned one’s eyes across the page for as long as it took to reach the end. And if a person reads a thousand books simply by doing that, then one has severely deprived themself of valuable time to digest meaningful ideas. Though I’m reluctant to say it will have been a waste of time since we don’t know if the mere exposure to those writings hasn’t left some useful impression on the brain.

Clearly, it is desirable to become a more skillful reader. But what do these skills consist of? Unlike physical prowess, a person’s reading skills can’t as tangibly be measured as can, say, a person’s physical strength or endurance. Similarly, developing these skills is not as simple as merely going to the gym and lifting weights. But standardized tests have developed a good way of measuring these skills. The reading comprehension sections of standardized tests effectively measure a person’s ability to do what I call “accountable reading”: reading with the understanding that one should be accountable for what one has read. Reading in the context of one of these sections on a test forces one to do accountable reading instead of merely “reading on faith”: reading freely and trusting that one is retaining and/or comprehending what one is reading. And so, getting one’s hands on these reading comprehension exercises is a great way to force one to do accountable reading, and done enough it will create the habit of accountable reading, which will allow the person to gain much more from even what he/she reads for leisure.

Excellent video, and great habit to share with your audience. I’m convinced that those watching your videos will be influenced for the better. Keep it up!

Best

[othgyal]

I've been taking a dive into making reading a daily habit and I can totally agree in many ways with what you're saying!!! Just having the new perspectives on life that you would not get from doing other things. KNOWLEDGE IS

[verucasalt]

I've suffered from alcoholism and depression, and reading has helped tremendously! So far this year I've read 33 books, all from my local libraries - all for free.

[lumdisumdi]

Hey John - great work on these videos. I'm a 19 year old university student like yourself, and I decided to commit to setting aside some time for reading after seeing your 6 month update in early December. To see a guy who cares about producing quality content and sharing his experience with building habits.. I must say it's really inspiring. In case you haven't read it yet, my book suggestion to you is this: St. Augustine's Confessions. All the best with your endeavours!

[criss]

0:33 15000 pages / (250 * 60 min) = 15000/15000 = 1 minute/ 1 page => Rapid reader detected!!!

[_sab_]

I took the same decision this year, and I really feel that spending time on reading is such an enriching habit
great video as usual <3