BEYOND THE READING CULTURE: Fleshing it out
“A man who reads one book a year and consistently applies its principles is better than a man who reads 1000 books a year and applies nothing.”
Read books, but don't read to finish like most people do just to get it under their belt, rather read a book till you get it, till you get the ‘WHY’ the author would even bother to spend months sometimes even years to put it together. A MAN WHO READS ONE BOOK A YEAR AND CONSISTENTLY APPLIES ITS PRINCIPLES IS BETTER THAN A MAN WHO READS 1000 BOOKS A YEAR AND APPLIES NOTHING. I’m all for reading widely and reading as many books as one can because it stretches one’s understanding of things and broadens one’s vocabulary. However, if we are to really develop as a nation, we need to move beyond just teaching people how to read and beyond getting them acclimatized to a reading culture until they get to learn how to consistently apply what they read in those books. Having citizens who can read is good, having citizens who love reading is better but having citizens who have learnt to consistently apply what they read is what produces lasting results in any setting - at individual, national and global level. This is what produces results that impact generations to come. How many great books have you read since you developed a reading culture? How many great books did you read last year? How much of all that 'Great' material have you actually consistently applied to your life? Real change and true progress only begins to manifest the moment you begin to apply new and old principles. Have you read 'Think and Grow rich' by Napoleon Hill? Or 'Rich Dad Poor Dad' by Robert Kiyosaki? I bet you have, if not then it’s either you haven't read much or ‘Self-Help’ is not exactly your favorite genre, but that’s besides the point anyway. So many of us will get caught up in the high of the fact that we actually read best seller books from the top authors and yet if we did an in-depth investigation, we may actually be intrigued to learn that what has been consistently applied from those books equates to zilch, zero, nada, nothing. Truth be told, one who reads and never applies is in no way any better than one who does not read at all. The next time you read a great book like the one you are reading right now note down three main things that you feel can impact your life the most - JUST THREE – which you will walk away with and are ready to apply consistently. Write these on your bedroom wall or stick them on your refrigerator as a daily reminder. That way you can rest assured that if you forget everything you read in that book at least you will forever walk away with the three. Often times, if consistently applied for twenty-one days straight, you are guaranteed a good habit for life. Great books are doors to progress but only if the principles they contain are consistently applied by the reader.
The knowledge you understand empowers you. The knowledge you apply impacts you. The knowledge you understand and apply consistently, impacts you and the generations to come. So if you don't understand something ASK questions, nobody made any significant progress by pretending to know what they don't know. There's a Bemba adage in Zambia that says, 'Uwakanwa taluba' which means, one who asks questions never loses his way. I can add to that and say 'Uwakanwa taposa nshita' meaning, one who asks questions never wastes time. Ask, understand and apply, MOVE.