Did You Really Read That Book?

We buy a book and read through it once and then put it away on the bookshelf. But, did we really read that book? How many times should a book be read? 

Source: Oh, The Books!

About a fortnight ago, a friend invited me to join a Mastermind group to study "The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership" by John C. Maxwell. I had always wanted to participate in a Mastermind group. Plus, I was examining my life to identify areas that need improvement or adjustment. So I promptly committed to the ten-week group.

Now my first contact with this book was in 2003 when Hidden Treasures Bookstore opened for business. In that season, it was one of our best sellers. As a bookseller who wanted to be on top of her game, I read the book at the time. But, did I really read that book?

I received the first pre-meeting assignment and purposed in my heart that I would be a diligent, focused member of the Mastermind group. I set out to get a new copy of "The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership" and discovered that it had been revised in 2007. Once I got the revised edition, I commenced reading. Again and again, as I read on, I asked myself, "Did I really read that book?" 

You must be wondering why this question kept coming up. The question arose because although I had vague remembrances of the knowledge I grasped when I first read the book in 2003. I had forgotten much of what I read. As I turned the pages, I noticed some important information for the first time. In addition, with the experience of passing years, I reckon that some information also became more relevant to me. I wasn't the same person I was twelve years ago. I've grown and had varied leadership experiences. I look back and assess my performance as leader in the years gone by. All of these changed how I now view the book, "The 21 Irrefutable Laws of Leadership". Perhaps, I now appreciate the book as I didn't do in my first reading. Perhaps things I glossed over then, now have meaning in the light of my experiences.

I ask the question again, "Did you really read that book?" when you read it just once. There probably are various reasons why you don't re-read books. Some would say, with so much to do, who has the time to re-read a book they already read? Some others would say, I have read it once, and I already know what's in the book, why re-read it? I'd say, don't dismiss re-reading a book you have read. Re-reading can be a useful tool. Think of how you will request a teacher to go over some material you really want to understand. Why not take the same desire to understand a little further and re-read a book once in a while?

Now it’s your turn. Did you really read that book?

One Tool You Should Be Using...Thinking Out of the Box

One tool you should be using is "Thinking out of the Box".

When people say to you, "Think out of the box", what do they mean? They mean think in a way that you wouldn't normally think. Now, we human beings are creatures of habits. We love our comfort zones. It very often takes a crisis to push us out to try something new.

I have always found reading books to be a good way of encouraging myself to think out the box. Some years back, I read the book, Creating You & Co. by William Bridges. At the time I was reading this book, I had been an employee for about twelve years. In all that time I assumed that my employer owed me the obligation of providing me with a secure job once I fulfilled my own part by being a good employee. Everyone I knew, who had a job was looking forward to working till they attained the retirement age.  In this book, I was confronted with realities of the changing world of work. The buzz word then was re-engineering of businesses which very often resulted in down-sizing of the workforce. Bridges helped me to begin to think about my work in a different way. I began to think of myself as the CEO of Me and Co. and realised that I needed to take responsibility for the path that my career would take from then.

Roy H. Williams, the New York Times best-selling author of teh The Wizards of Ads Trilogy of books, published an article "Your Seat in the Stadium of Life". In this article, he said, 

"Your box is your perspective, your worldview, your schema - the sum of your life's experiences - your own personal set of assumptions. Like a seat in a stadium, your "box" determines the angle from which you view every game.

What people call "thinking outside the box" can be accomplished only by getting out of your seat and walking to an unfamiliar part of the stadium to borrow the seat of someone else.

Now you're seeing things from their view. You're still in a "box", but it's not your own. You've borrowed a new perspective so that you're seeing your problem through the eyes of another - according to their values and assumptions." Read more here...

A book that you choose to read, very often enables you to borrow someone else's seat in an unfamiliar part of the stadium of life and see life through their eyes. In the book, you have the opportunity of seeing how things will turn out if you choose paths of action that are different from what you are familiar with. The beautiful thing is that you see all this without having taken any step forward in any direction.

Since reading "You & Co.", I have read other books which have firther solidified my perception that my career in my business.

And now it's your turn. Which books have helped you to begin thinking out of the box?

I'm Staying With It...

One of the beautiful things about defining an objective and committing to it, especially publicly is that you never forget it or give up.

Source

It is now four months since i wrote and posted a blog entry. In all that time I have constantly thought of my commitment to write a weekly blog post, As desirous as I was of keeping my commitment, taking the needed action has been much harder than I initially thought it would be.

Looking back now, the truth was that I already had a very full schedule and if my blogging desire was going to truly take off and be consistent, something had to give. I couldn't be everything and do everything that I wanted to be. It was time to determine which of my many interests, I will have to let go.  And so I gave myself time to reevaluate my time commitments.

In the past couple of months, I have learnt how to say No to some things so I can say Yes to some other things.Most of the things I have had to say No to are good things. Being on a committee for a good cause, attending yet another social event...I am still in the process of making my life lighter...but as you can see, I am making progress. Evidence of my progress is my writing this post.

One thing I will not give up in this process of making my life lighter is reading books.

I have continued to read books. In my next post, I will tell you about "Miracle on the Hudson" by Chigozie Udmezue the book I am reading now.

Now what about you? What is that thing you have committed to doing and which hasn't taken off? Don't give up on it. Go back to your planner and make time for it in your schedule. It may take a while for you to get going. Stick with it.

I Won't Give Up...

Making a commitment involves dedicating yourself to something, like a person or a cause. 

A commitment obligates you to do something.

Making a commitment is a good thing. Once you define an objective and make a commitment to achieve it, the commitment holds the objective constantly before you. I am learning the benefits of making a commitment. It is a little over eleven weeks now since I posted my last blog entry. In these eleven weeks, I constantly remembered my two commitments:

• To write a blog post every week; and
• To read for 15 minutes every day

I kept the commitment to read for 15 minutes a day. In fact because I already have a love for reading, I read for more than fifteen minutes each day. I have since completed the book, Things I Wish I'd Known Before We Got Married by Gary Chapman and started to read "Love, Sex and Lasting Relationships" by Chip Ingram. However, I still struggle to read at regular times.

Writing a weekly the blog post has been a tougher nut to crack. Eleven weeks have gone by without a blog post. Did I just forget my commitment? Not really. Every day, I remembered it. Yet each week went by, without a blog post. I am slowly recognising that when I make a commitment, I need to make space for it in my schedule of things to do. For writing the blog, I need to make time for thinking about what to write. I need to also make time for writing the entry and posting it. And so I am at my desk resuming work on something that I have committed to do.

I'm glad I made a public commitment. It has kept me accountable. I thank you, my friends, who have inquired from time to time, about when you'll see my next post. Here it is...

The next couple of weeks will show me whether I am mastering the lesson I am learning about making space in my schedule of things to do for the commitments that I have made.

Now its your turn. What commitments have you made in recent times. How are you doing with keeping them?

Discovering Myself...

“What you get by achieving your goals is not as important as what you become by achieving your goals.” ~Henry David Thoreau

A few months back, I decided to write a blog post every week. My commitment was public and because I pride myself as one who keeps her word, I have since then kept that commitment in my face. At first, it was a struggle to even remember to put writing the blog post in my weekly schedule. And when I did remember, it was yet another struggle to write it. I chose to keep my commitment.

My blog was to share my journey as I build my life by learning from books. I am not sure there is any time in my life that I am not reading a book. I always have a pile of books beside  my bed. I do not leave my home without a book in my handbag so that if I find myself waiting somewhere I have something to read. I will rather read a book than watch TV. So I felt blogging about my journey with books will be a breeze. Alas!!! That has not been the case.

In these few months, I have discovered a few things about myself. One discovery that has surprised me is this: Though I have read portions of very many books, I have completed only very few. And so I know bits about many subjects because I have skimmed many books, but I am not sure I can have a rich conversation about these books and their content.

Do I hear you say, "What does it matter?" I ask myself the same question.

Prior to blogging, I would have responded that it does not matter. However, the goal of my blog is to encourage others to develop a reading habit and enjoy books. To do that I have to read books to and not just skim through them.

Last week, I made another public commitment. I decided to start a 15 Minute A Day Reading Challenge from today August 1. I will choose a book, read it for 15 minutes each day, and stick with the same book until I complete it. All through this week, I have struggled with the choice of which of my many books, I should read. I have concluded that it doesn't matter which book I choose. What matters is that I stick to the plan. Arriving at that conclusion made it easy for me to write today's post.

And so starting from today, I will read from from 6pm to 6.15pm every day. My first book is Things I Wish I'd Known Before We Got Married by Gary Chapman.  If I read for just 15 minutes a day - every day, for one year - I can complete 20 books! I am excited, just thinking about it.

Hmmmmmmnnn! I set out to write one blog post a week. I am steadily approaching the achievement of that goal. But look! See what I am becoming by achieving my goal.

What goals have you set for yourself? What are you becoming by achieving that goal?

I'm at the Starting Block...

There is no elevator to success…you have to take the stairs. - Zig Ziglar

With an elevator, you can close your eyes and be taken up to a higher level. With taking the staircase, you have to focus on where you are going, you have to exert yourself to get to the higher level .

Last week, I renewed my commitment to read for 15 minutes everyday. Start date for implementation is August 1.  In preparation for taking action on this commitment, I have all of this week been looking at my activities plan with a view to choosing the specific 15 minutes of the day in which I will read.

Its amazing how very cluttered my life is that to find just 15 minutes to spare is tough. However, because my decision is public and because I like to be accountable, I have not given up on finding the time to read for 15 minutes daily. I realise now, that it is good that there is some time lag between when I made the commitment and when I am to start its implementation. The last one week and the remaining days of the month of July are affording me the privilege of thinking through my commitment and how best to implement it. If I were to have implemented the decision last week when I made it, I probably would have given up by now. I hear you asking me "Why?"

I'd have given up, because, I had not yet answered some important questions that are critical to helping me achieve the goal. Some of these are:

1. Which time of the day was I considering?

2. How would my current daily activity plan be affected by using this time differently?

3. What adjustments do I need to make to accommodate the expected changes?

4. Which book do I want to start with?

Not having answers to these questions meant that I was already falling down right from the starting block. I have learnt an important lesson. When I set a goal, that is just the first step. My current activity plan will require some adjustment to accommodate the steps that I will take in order to achieve the goal.  I need to ask and answer the questions:

• What are the small steps that will help me to achieve the goal? 
• How would my current daily activity plan be affected by implementing these steps? 
• What adjustments do I need to make to my present activity plan?

I have chosen two 15 minutes segment in my day for reading my book daily one in the morning and one in the evening. I chose two so that regardless of the pressures on my time, at the worst, I'll have 15 minutes daily, at best, I'll have 30 minutes daily.

If I read just 15 minutes a day - every day, for one year - I can complete 20 books! I am excited just thinking about it. 

Will it be easy? I'm not kidding myself that it will. But  I will give it my best effort. 

Will you join me in the 15 Minutes a Day Reading Challenge? Click here to find out more about it. Let me know in the comment box if you're accepting my invitation.

I'm Taking My Own Advice...

Advice is very easy to give to others but quite tough to implement in one's own life.

As a bookstore owner and a lover of books, I very often dish out advice to others with a view to encouraging them to give time to read good books. In 2013, I read a blog post on Lifelong Learning by Jen Harris and learnt that:

• If you read just one book per month for 12 straight months, you will be in the top 25 percentile of all intellectuals in the world!
• If you read five books on one subject, you are one of the world’s foremost leading authorities on that subject!
• If you read just 15 minutes a day — every day, for one year — you can complete 20 books!

Based on this discovery, on Hidden Treasures Bookstore's Facebook page, we invited our fans to  join our 15 Minutes A Day Reading Challenge. Here's how the challenge worked. Participants were to:

1. Choose a book to start with and get the book;

2. Choose a specific time in the day when they'll read the book EVERY day for 15 minutes, e.g.     6.00 - 6.15pm;

3. Start reading the book every day at the scheduled time;

4. When they finished reading the first book, take a second book and repeat the cycle;

5. Share their experiences (if they like) with us on our Facebook page as they go on this journey;

6. Invite their friends to do the same.

Since I resumed blogging about my experience reading books, I have done some self assessment and found that I have not taken my own advice. I haven't put in my daily schedule time for reading as advised in the 15 Minutes A Day Reading Challenge. Invariably, my desire to read regularly is not realised as other activities overwhelm any efforts I make to fulfil that desire.

The time has come for me to take my own advice. I really do want to share my experience about reading books. To do that I have to read books on a regular basis. So I have come to the place of a new commitment. I commit from August 1, 2014 to take the 15 Minutes A Day Reading Challenge.

I invite you to join me in this challenge.  Let me know in the comment box, if you're accepting my invitation.

Encouragement from Books

Books are great tools for encouraging yourself.

As I dwelt on the matter of book piracy and its devastating effect on the Nigerian Book Trade in general and Hidden Treasures Bookstore in particular, for the first time in the history of my bookstore, I considered shutting down and moving on to some other business.

While in this mode, I  had a trip to make to the village. I would be there for about ten days. When I go on such a trip, it is my practice to go with a book. The atmosphere in the village is serene. In addition, life in the village is a break from my regular routine. I find that I am able to speed read a book while there.

For this trip, I chose Supernatural Destiny by Don Nori. Don Nori is the founder of Destiny Image Publishers, an American Christian Publishing company. Supernatural Destiny is the story of how he started Destiny Image. In his book, Nori shared the challenges he faced while nurturing his publishing company in the early days.

In  a chapter titled, "God Sends People to Encourage", Nori shared how God providentially sent people his way at different times in the early days of his business to encourage him. As I read about his experiences, I began to recall similar experiences in the years past of how God providentially brought people my way. I recalled how in my interactions with these people, I had received encouragement and assurance that I was not in the wrong business.

By the time I'd read through the book, "Supernatural Destiny", I was greatly revived. I remembered the dreams and vision that led to the start of my bookstore. I remembered the significant milestones, I had passed in the life of the  bookstore. I recalled the undeniable encounters which could only have happened because God showed up. I was revived and reminded that challenges and obstacles are part and parcel of life.

And so the thoughts of closing down my bookstore which arose in my mind as I reviewed the impact of book piracy on our operations receded. I love reading books. I want to share that love of books with others. I want to promote the love for books in the coming generations. The activities of book pirates will not discourage or deter me from working at fulfilling my dream.

If my experience encourages you, even in a small way to hold on to your dream, I will be delighted to hear from you.

Facebook Friends...

Many people will not touch Facebook for all the gold in South Africa. Many more who use Facebook are very, very wary of connecting with people they do not know or have not had physical contact with offline. Given the scams and other such schemes that abound, I am not surprised that they are that cautious.

While I also exercise a great deal of care, I like Facebook and the ability it gives me to reach out and touch other people. I have met quite a number of people on this medium who are in the process of becoming good friends. Some I have had face-to-face meetings with. Others I am yet to meet. I am amazed at the impactful positive use that these friends are making of Facebook.

One friend has used the medium to connect friends who have resources with widows who were despairing and had no one to run to. Another has used it to raise funds for medical treatment for a little girl who desperately needed it but didn't have anyone to who she could turn. Another is using it to connect young wives in different corners of Nigeria who want to have balance in their lives, husbands, children, work and everything else. Another is using it to help people understand how to make their marriages work. Yet another is using it get his friends to examine their beliefs in the light of the Scriptures and not just hold on to long held myths. I could go on....

I have been thinking about these as well as all the very negative uses that Facebook has been put too by many other people. I realise that friendship on Facebook, indeed any social media is no different from face-to-face or physical contact friendships. We make good and bad friedship choices.

Dr. John Townsend in his book, "How to Be a Best Friend Forever", (that's the book I'm reading now, remember?) said, "Most best friendships begin as we simply pass through life and meet someone we like".  According to him, people meet their friends in the one or more of the following sources:

• Your kids are friends with their kids
• Childhood and school days
• College
• Workplace
• Neighbourhood
• Church
• Introduction from a mutual friend
• Chance encounter

I like to think that social media falls into the chance encounter category.

In life, we should choose friends based on principles. Dr. Townsend posits that a friendship should have three elements.

1. Knowing. Having objective information  and personal experience with the person which provides the foundation of whether or not this relationship will be a friendship, and how deep it can go
2. Liking. You are drawn to each other's presence.
3. Presence. Friends spend time together, that's how knowing and liking happens.

I like the sound of that. It gives me a basis for evaluating my relationships even on social media. Although, deceitful people provide false information in their profiles, I find that by applying principle 1. above, I shut out a significant percentage of them. I think that my friends who I mentioned above have achieved the success they have with social media because they have chosen their friends based on principles.

Should you want the book, "How to Be A Best Friend Forever" by Dr. John Townsend, let me know in the comment box below.

And now it's your turn. Would you like to share with me something from the book you are reading?