Leaders are Readers: How to Read a Book a Week…Like a Boss

By

*I’ve been given permission to do a special giveaway at the end of this article that will support your read-to-succeed goal, so if I were you, I’d straighten my spectacles and become one with my chair for a few moments!

What do all the leaders of Fortune 500 companies have in common, according to every rags to riches story ever written? They read. A lot. And not just about world affairs. In fact, according to HuffPost, when Warren Buffet was asked what his key to success was, he pointed to a stack of books and touted reading between 600 and 1000 pages per day, since the beginning of his career. For us mere mortals, however, he suggested aiming for 500 pages…

Similarly, it’s been documented that Bill Gates, Elon Musk, Mark Zuckerberg, and, of course, Oprah are avid readers. What are they reading about? Business, finance, self-improvement, economics, historical and inspirational figures, and wizardry. 

You read that right. Autocorrect pleads the fifth. On Oprah’s website, she provides an entire list of books to read after you’ve finished the “Harry Potter” series. So while it’s been said that “wealthy people read for educational purposes and poor people read to be entertained,” I’d argue otherwise. 

Regardless of what you read, you’re expanding your vocabulary. Learning life lessons, whether through real or imagined characters. And to paraphrase Anne Bogel, author of I’d Rather Be Reading—we only have one life, and books allow us to fit in experiences that would otherwise be impossible as well as provide us with a safe space to encounter new and unfamiliar situations. Even picture books are beneficial, which we go into great depth about in another article you may be interested in reading: The Children’s Fable That Belongs at Your Meeting Table. 

But this article is less about why and what to read and more about how to read a book a week…like a boss. (And, yes, I’m trying to pull off using last year’s slang because we at MindEquity are proponents of leadership as opposed to bossing others around.)

However, if you are interested in the books we’ve recommended throughout the last year via our “MindLeader” social media posts, I’ve included their titles and our takeaway at the bottom of this article. 

But, first—

If your goal is to read a book a week, follow this simple formula: number of chapters divided by seven. For example, Atomic Habits has 20 chapters. If you want to read it in seven days, you need to read at least three chapters a day. Broken down in this fashion makes it seem doable, regardless of the actual number of pages in each chapter.  

For some, reading three chapters can equate to an hour…or more. And just like when attempting to implement any new habit, obstacles will inevitably arise. This is why we’re so often told to exercise in the morning. It not only allows you to fit in your workout before the interruptions of the day begin, it also combats stress hormones before they’ve had a chance to kick in. Reading in the morning has the same effect, especially if your tome (my favorite pretentious word for “book”) of choice is motivating and puts you in a productive mindset. 

That doesn’t mean it has to be a self-improvement book; it could be a fiction book, where the character has a similar life to yours. This is my theory for why one of the most binged TV shows is The Office. Because it’s a parody of our (pre-COVID) office experience. And one thing Stephen King points out in his book On Writing is that “people love to read about work.” Possibly because—“When the reader hears strong echoes of his or her own life and beliefs, he or she is apt to become more invested in the story.” 

If You’re “Not a Reader”

If you’re reading-averse (likely due to being force-fed unrelatable literature in high school) but want to emulate the habits of renowned leaders, start by finding any author/book that sweeps you away. Judy Blume. Nicholas Sparks. Danielle Steel. A historical fiction novel. Even a comic book. (After reading Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud, I now look at those perusing the graphic novel section of Barnes & Noble as geniuses.) 

Nobody has to know…

Revisiting how to integrate reading at least three chapters a day into your busy schedule, I’ve found it helps to piggyback this goal off of another habit you’ve successfully instilled. For instance, I wanted to get up an hour earlier each day—before my responsibilities started—so that I could work on my blog. First, I had to reset my circadian rhythms so that I could fall asleep earlier and get a full night’s sleep. Then, because working on my blog was something I looked forward to, it wasn’t as hard as I’d anticipated to get up, brew a cup of coffee, and do my thing. Furthermore, part of my new bedtime routine involves reading instead of watching TV—the act of doing so can help lull you to sleep because as you move your eyes from left to right, you start to simulate rapid eye movement. 

However, unless what you’re reading is relaxing or somewhat dense, it can be hard to put down a book you’re really absorbed in. Thus, I now give myself the option to either read or write first thing in the morning, preferably beside the window, where I can watch the sunrise and get a dose of Vitamin D—which helps stop your body from producing sleep-inducing melatonin. 

Can’t Fit Another Thing Into Your Morning Routine?

If your morning is already accounted for, there are other options. The first is an idea taken from Dr. Shad Helmstetter’s book Who Are You Really And What Do You Want? A goal-setting exercise he proposes involves writing out your goal, i.e., “To read one book a week” and then listing the top three obstacles that might prevent you from achieving this goal. 

For example:

  1. I don’t have enough time.
  2. I don’t know what to read.
  3. I hate reading.

Then he suggests writing down how you might overcome each obstacle, like this:

  1. There are 168 hours in a week. If I subtract 56 for sleeping, 40 for working, 21 for getting ready in the morning and commuting, 5 for errands, 7 for playing with the kids/pets, 5 for date night, 5 for preparing meals…I still have 29 hours left over for hobbies, extra work, puttering around, Netflix binging, and reading. I do have time, I just need to decide where to integrate reading into my schedule. And maybe take a speed-reading/learning course.
  1. I can Google keywords to help me find books on topics that interest me, peruse the (real or virtual) aisles of Barnes & Noble, Target, or Amazon, and read a few pages or reviews of different books until I find one that piques my interest, or, better yet, refer to the list of recommended reading at the bottom of this article!
  1. I can take a few moments to figure out why this is and brainstorm some solutions. We learn more by taking action than by overthinking. I can also write down my “why” for wanting to instill this new habit.

And there you have your action plan—the mini-goals for achieving your overarching goal. 

Another option is keeping a book (or reading tablet) with you at all times. That way, if you find yourself waiting in a long line, idling in your car at your grocery store’s “contactless pick-up” zone, or bored on the treadmill, you can pull out your reading material instead of defaulting to another habit you may be trying to break—such as aimlessly scrolling through social media posts. (Another suggestion offered by Dr. Helmstetter is not to solely rely on intrinsic rewards when goal-setting, so perhaps make looking at Instagram or Pinterest, etc. for 10 minutes your reward for finishing your three chapters. You’ll get an even greater dopamine rush beforehand, simply from the anticipation. This is another reason for reading one book at a time as opposed to several; the act of finishing an entire book in a week is similar to checking off everything on your to-do list in one day—gotta love those feel-good hormones!)

Killing Two Birds With One Tome

Here’s a great how-to for pushing your goal onto others and cultivating a collaborative team culture at the same time: 

Integrate reading into the workplace!

One of the issues our clients bring up most often is how to get their teams on the same page (shameless pun). Part of our social media campaign includes posting theMindLeader: What We’re Reading, which provides a one-line synopsis, quote from the author, and our one-line takeaway. In order to create this, we do book reports after any of us has finished a rave-worthy read—made super-simple via a template I created (and am happy to share, if this is something you’d like to try). This idea stemmed from our founder’s practice of doing something similar when she was the divisional manager of a mortgage lender’s regional operations center. 

LaNell kept a library in the office, where her team could borrow books to read at their leisure as well as assigned books, and, yes, book reports to her teams on a quarterly basis. And they did them—in part because they also helped create their ROC’s mission statement (apart from corporate’s mission statement), which resulted in more buy-in to living up to certain expectations, of which, reading contributed to. (This is something to consider asking prospective employees if they’re willing to do during the interview process to ensure they fit in with the growth-oriented culture you’re establishing.) 

Because reading during work hours wasn’t plausible, the sales and operations teams had to read of their own volition. Enter the power of rewards. The operations side received two hours of overtime for turning in their book reports. And the sales side further developed their presentation skills by choosing reading material that resonated with them and imparting their newfound wisdom during meetings. Oftentimes, LaNell would be sold and end up adding it to the office library.

Having an office library also plays into today’s desire for better sustainability practices. As a leader, you can support this movement by donating your books to the shelves of the library, or instead of buying books, encouraging your team to check them out from their local library (or downloading them onto their tablets—though, I must say, there’s something romantic about the scent and feel of books and being able to honor them by arranging them as pieces of decor). Or to increase accountability, there’s always starting a book club with colleagues. 

And now it’s time for your free reading list, otherwise known as—

Our 21 Favorite Books of 2021

  1. What to Say When You Talk to Yourself by Shad Helmstetter, Ph.D.: We are always having conversations with ourselves and engaging in one of the five levels of “self-talk.” The first two levels are negative and will keep us stuck. But if we choose to be more conscious about what we’re saying when we talk to ourselves, we can take our thoughts and reality to another, more positive level.
  1. The Power of Neuroplasticity by Shad Helmstetter, Ph.D: In a time when everyone is talking about “limiting beliefs,” Dr. Helmstetter teaches us how to actually combat those beliefs by creating neural pathways that serve us so that we can be who we want to be and live the life we want to live.
  1. The Go-Giver: A Little Story About A Powerful Business Idea by Bob Burg & John David Mann: This is a parable about a young man who is looking for the secret of financial success and learns about “The Five Laws of Stratospheric Success.”
  1. Mortgages, Money and Life by Trevor Hammond: Despite my personal qualms about self-published books (even though I’ve gone this route myself), the information provided in this read trumps any minor punctuation errors; it feels as if you’re getting an entire financial consultation for free—complete with easy to follow exercises that truly help you increase your confidence, create a financial blueprint, and sleep at night.
  1. The Five Dysfunctions of a Team by Patrick Lencioni: Want to create an unfair advantage that enables your business to thrive? This author’s words of wisdom provide a deeper understanding of the “five dysfunctions of a team” (absence of trust, fear of conflict, lack of commitment, avoidance of accountability, inattention to results) along with exercises to overcome them.
  1. The Energy of Money: A Spiritual Guide to Financial & Personal Fulfillment by Maria Nemeth, Ph.D.: Create a life-changing action plan via exercises and strategies developed by Dr. Nemeth that help you stay in touch with your standards of integrity (values) and your true life’s intentions (goals)!
  1. Leaders Eat Last by Simon Sinek: When leaders create a circle of safety around their teams and those team members feel it, they will work tirelessly to see the leader’s vision come to life…and be proud to be part of that vision.
  1. Shifting Gears: A Brain-based Approach to Engaging Your Best Self by Robin Rose: Feel your feelings and act from your values. Impulse control is the critical skill that separates mature from immature individuals and professional from unprofessional behaviors.
  1. High Performance Habits by Brendon Burchard: Burchard goes beyond labels often assigned to us via personality tests and gets to the action part: If you want to be successful, do what successful people do!
  1. Overcoming Underearning: A Five-Step Plan to A Richer Life by Barbara Stanny: This book encourages us to live a satisfying life by understanding where you are financially, where you want to be, and creating a simple plan to get you there.
  1. The Hope Quotient by Ray Johnston: Johnston shares how to develop our “hope quotient” so that we can create the life we desire.
  1. The Power of Decision by Raymond Charles Barker: The tone of the book feels like it’d pair well with Shad Helmstetter’s classic What to Say When You Talk to Yourself. We especially like the premise that successful people have good control of their mental attention; they think what they want and want what they think…
  1. NLP: The New Technology of Achievement by Steve Andreas & Charles Faulkner: The authors not only explain how Neuro-Linguistic Programming involves our nervous system, inner dialogue, and how our brains are like computer programs that can be upgraded—but provide strategies for doing so!
  1. The Five Rules of Thought by Mary T. Browne: We create every aspect of our world through our thoughts. We can change any part of our lives by applying these 5 rules, because we are what we think…
  1. Abundance Now: Amplify Your Life & Achieve Prosperity Today by Lisa Nichols & Janet Switzer: Understand what abundance is in all areas of your life and the process of taking intentional action toward creating it.
  1. Think Like a Monk by Jay Shetty: A young man who became a monk and lived in an ashram for three years shares the lessons he learned and how to apply them to our everyday lives.
  1. More Time to Think: The Power of Independent Thinking by Nancy Kline: Kline illustrates the importance of learning how to really listen and give others a safe, non-judgmental space to come up with solutions and ideas.
  1. The Five Levels of Leadership by John C. Maxwell: Maxwell identifies each level of leadership and the growth process involved, including what it looks and feels like.
  1. Start with Why: How Great Leaders Inspire Everyone to Take Action by Simon Sinek: Know your why, stay connected to it in everything you do, and it will attract people—whether customers or employees—who support your mission. Martin Luther King, Steve Jobs, and several other renowned leaders all started with their why.
  1. The Feel Good Effect by Robyn Conley Downs: The studies Downs references are quite intriguing: it’s not that we lack willpower, it’s that we have decision fatigue. Downs provides strategies for how to combat decision fatigue and learn to enjoy the process of achieving our goals, which, in turn, increases our odds of doing so.
  1. Stories That Stick: How Storytelling Can Captivate Customers, Influence Audiences, and Transform Your Business by Kindra Hall: There are four types of stories, and we need to know our audience in order to ensure we’re connecting with the right stories, starting with asking ourselves two questions: 1) Who am I telling the story to? And 2) What do I want them to think, feel, or do?

What We’ve Already Sunk (Or Re-sunk) Our Eyes Into in 2022

  1. Scrappy by Terri L. Sjodin: From the words of the author—”People will sit up and take notice of you if you will sit up and take notice of what makes them sit up and take notice.”
  1. Atomic Habits by James Clear: We’ve read every “habit” book out there, and this one is definitely worth the hype: it includes stories, methods, scientific research, and easy to follow scripts that enable (and motivate) you to start implementing your desired habits now. (And, yes, Dr. BJ Fogg’s Tiny Habits is next on our list.)
  1. Badass Habits by Jen Sincero: If you prefer your self-helpery to include both wit and wisdom, this one’s for you. In addition to uncovering the key elements involved in habit creation, learn how to shift your identity to match the habits you’re adopting—which includes setting boundaries—and then embark on a 21 chapter-a-day journey toward becoming your true self. *Just pardon her French.
  1. Who Are You Really And What Do You Want? by Shad Helmstetter, Ph.D.: The exercises provided in each section are game-changing; it feels as if you’re in a private coaching session with Dr. Helmstetter, especially when he has you ask and answer certain questions out loud to really become honest and clear with yourself!
  1. How to Stop Worrying and Start Living by Dale Carnegie: This is a read-at-least-once-a-year book; it not only covers worry from all angles, it has a certain charm due to the time-period in which it was written. One that reminds us that even in the midst of today’s seemingly compounding current events, generations before us have overcome challenges that felt just as futile…if not more so. 
  1. The Dalai Lama’s Cat by David Miche: A relaxing novel that reveals some of the Dalai Lama’s teachings—with respect to all religions—through the eyes of his rescued cat.
  1. The Wisdom of OZ by Roger Connors & Tom Smith: The overarching theme of this book is that great things happen when you start to take responsibility for your future and action toward your goals.

And Some Mindblowers We Couldn’t Leave Out

  1. 168 Hours: You Have More Time Than You Think by Laura Vanderkam: The title pretty much says it. One thing the author doesn’t address, however, is how to combat energy slumps. (So I’ll just write the last chapter for her and say, the reason for fatigue often has less to do with expending too much cerebral energy and more to do with 1) Doing work that feels boring, and 2) Not taking five minutes to recharge every hour, which has been shown to increase overall productivity by 33-500 percent!) Vanderkam’s other books, including What the Most Successful People Do Before Breakfast, are just as thought-provoking.
  1. RUDDER: Strategic Brand Clarity by David M. Flanagan: Another self-published book so good it gets a pass when it comes to improper punctuation. This is the most informative yet easy to read books on branding out there. A must-read for entrepreneurs.
  1. On Writing by Stephen King: Similar to how it’s important for both small and large organizations to fully grasp the impact branding can have on a business’s reputation, this book is THE ONE that will help you grasp the principles of good writing and what to keep in your toolbox when you want your writing (e.g., proposals, marketing emails, and other correspondence) to be taken seriously. You do not have to be an author or science-fiction fan to benefit from King’s teachings.
  1. Understanding Comics by Scott McCloud: Speaking of communication, this book, creatively written as if it’s a graphic novel (yay, pictures!), will change the way you view the world. After gaining a unique understanding of the evolution of pictorial and written language, including how we (i.e., your team, clients, referral partners) interpret written, spoken, and nonverbal body language, you will become one of those geniuses I mentioned before…and, no, you don’t have to have any interest in comic books to get sucked into these pages. Furthermore, once you realize the importance of visual communication, I recommend studying either Presentation Zen by Garr Reynolds or Slide:ology by Nancy Duarte if you ever use PowerPoint in meetings. 
  1. The War of Art: Break Through the Blocks and Win Your Inner Creative Battles by Steven Pressfield: This is the flagship of a collection of other books you’ll want to read by this author. Pressfield addresses the “resistance” we feel when embarking on a venture important to our soul—be it writing a book or starting a business—using tactics that will instantly motivate you to plant yourself in your chair and get to work!

If I Had to Pick Just One

Several of the books I’ve listed are permanent fixtures on our bookshelf at MindEquity; ones that somehow shapeshift into what we need when we go to read them for the umpteenth time. However, when I pulled out the following book, saw how many Post-it notes were hanging out of it, and started digging through it again, I felt compelled to give it an honorable mention:

Everything Is Figureoutable by Marie Forleo: Rarely does an author share personal journal entries that led to his or her success (as opposed to a quick story at the beginning) that resonate with you on such a deep level. Moreover, the exercises in this book are ones you’ll actually want to do on paper, rather than just in your head, because beyond tactical strategies, Forleo provides what we’re all really searching for in a success book—hope.

Best Epilogue Ever

Now, if you’ve made it this far, you’ve not only met your reading quota for the day, but you’re also about to be rewarded! (That’s right. We walk our talk!) We are going to send you a book from our above list(s) of your choosing. 

All you have to do to “enter” is email me directly at maria@mindequityinternational.com—and include which book you’re interested in reading as well as a runner-up if it happens to be unavailable. (Don’t forget to provide your mailing address, so we know where to send it.) And rest assured, we promise not to store or use your mailing address for any other purpose.

That’s what I call a good ending.