This is perhaps one of the most important commitments you can make if you want to be on a happier, more productive and more fulfilling career path.
The statistics about how many books people read after completing their formal education are appalling. Upon graduation, colleges and universities hold commencement ceremonies. The word commencement itself holds the clue that your life is beginning and that your education, rather than coming to an end, should be commencing as well.
If you study successful people in any walk of life, you will find that they are continual learners and avid readers. Every high achieving individual I’ve ever met reads personal-development and business books regularly. They continually listen to audio seminars and podcasts, and they attend live seminars, where they not only gain new knowledge but also meet and network with other successful people.
Many of the largest, most successful companies in the world encourage people to participate in a book-of-the-month club. They know that the more their employees work on their personal development, the better the company will perform. If you want to lead a fulfilling and successful life, make a daily habit of reading good books.
The information you learned in school was just the beginning. It will not carry you into the future. Rather, the learning you acquire regularly is what will determine how far and how high you reach in your work life. It’s not something that you were taught in school a decade ago. This is one of the reasons that many people with little formal education have reached high levels of success in business and in life.
Commit now to reading for at least ten to fifteen minutes a day. Read a book or more each month and listen to audios and podcasts in your area of interest. Attend seminars, teleseminars and webinars to continually sharpen your skills and maintain your positive attitude, because, as the title of my friend Jeff Keller’s book suggests, Attitude Is Everything.
My friend the late Charlie “Tremendous” Jones, a personal development legend, taught us, “You will be the same person in five years as you are today except for the people you meet and the books you read.”
| Jim Donovan speaks regularly to employees and executives at small business and large corporations. He is a frequent media guest and expert source on personal development, business success, and the spiritual laws that develop both. His previous books include Handbook to a Happier Life and What Are You Waiting For? It’s Your Life. www.JimDonovan.com.
This article was excerpted from happy @ work: 60 Simple Ways to Stay Engaged and Be Successful, published by New World Library. Copyright © 2014 by Jim Donovan. Buy the book>> |
image: Jayel Aheram via Compfight cc
