How and how much to read a day for self-development - my experience and list of books

When I first began my journey, I was very concerned about whether I was not devoting enough time to personal growth? How much time should I devote to this or that practice, ideally? Is it essential to read, and how often? It turned out to be necessary. Because reading is the cornerstone of personal effectiveness, today I will tell you how much time you need to read a day for self-development to have an effect, and I will share how and how much I read.

Warren Buffett, one of the most successful businessmen in the world, describes his day in this way:

"I just sit in the office and read all day."

He advises everyone to read as much as possible, and that is indeed a worthy goal. So how can you make reading a regular habit?

First of all, you need to read all the time.

Read at least 1 hour a day on weekdays and more during weekends and holidays. Make time for reading in your schedule. Don't make excuses for being too tired or too busy.

Read all the time means to turn the pages of a book when you are:

eating
on the bus
feeding a baby
bored at work
sitting at the hospital

And the most important: read while other people are watching the news on TV or checking Facebook or Instagram for the 250th time of the day.

If you can do that, you can easily read 100 books in a year. Most people read about 50 pages in an hour. So if you read 10 hours a week, you will read 26,000 pages in a year. Let's assume that the average book has 250 pages. Simple arithmetic: that means you can read 104 books in a year. What's more, you can even take a two-week break, and then you get exactly 100.

That's a good result and well worth the time. What you can't say about reading news on social media.

Secondly, you need to keep your attention focused.

You can read fast, and you can read a lot. A combination of these two skills is a great way to get used to reading and not get bored, but at the same time, each of these skills is valuable on its own.

In fact, for many people, it's not just important to read a book from beginning to end; it's more important to them to read the story itself. The speed of reading doesn't matter that much if you are reading for pleasure.

From this point of view, wanting to read more means having more time to read and getting more information in general: from books, magazines, blog articles, and so on.

List of books from Anastasiia Shapoval

Fairest of All: A Tale of the Wicked Queen by Serena Valentino. (It is a book for those who want to break the ice while reading)
Whatcha Gonna Do with That Duck? by Seth Godin
Sapiens – A Brief History of Humankind by Yuval Noah Harari
The 48 Laws of Power by Robert Greene
The 7 Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen. R. Covey
Atlas Shrugged by Ayn Rand
Business @ The speed of thought by Bill Gates
The world is flat by Thomas Friedman
Eat That Frog! by Brian Tracy

What to remember?

The quantity of reading is not as important as the quality of the material that is understood.
If you discuss, think about, and put read information into practice, new connections are formed in the brain.
The more cognitive activity, the lower the probability of age-related brain disorders.
If the text is hard to read, listen to the audiobook.
Unlike viewing video content, reading activates the imagination.
Famous individuals - businessmen, inventors - read at least one book a week.
Reading is a tool for self-development. If you have a goal, reading will help you achieve it.

Overall, I can say that you need to read as much as you can, but don't forget the most important thing: putting what you learn into practice. If you spend a lot of time reading books, make sure it gives you something in return.