Not every reader is a leader, but leaders are readers.
Have you contemplated the art of reading? Do you realize it's actually a super power? Not everyone reads therefore it separates you in the ability (making it a super power) and it can give you the well needed knowledge that you seek.
I must admit, reading has been straightening out my life! I say this because when I was in my younger years with not much to think about during the Summer days, I discovered within to ask myself to challenge to read a whole book. I was about a 6th grader and wanted to read a book about football. It was perhaps only 112 pages or so, but the point was achieving a goal I had set myself.
Low and behold at Summer's end, I finished reading the entire book and not only that, I chose to play flag football at the University of Portland Community Center, which lead to full on contact football at Floyd Light Middle School and David Douglas High School. I will say that I was a little Asian running Rudy of my own right. (Without the scholarship to go to Notre Dame)
Here's something I would encourage and challenge any reader of this blog. Set a goal to read 10 pages a day or 10 minutes. Looking at the math, you can perhaps get through a 300 page book in a month, and perhaps 12 books a year!
Another pivotal time that reading made the difference is when I was recovering from my diagnostic and being hospitalized for a mental/spiritual breakdown in 1999. This was during my senior year in high school where I was having racing thoughts and challenges of being calm and sane. The hospitalization gave me a space to be calibrated of what was the matter.
They diagnosed me with Bipolar Disorder and there I was prescribed a plethora of pills. I was so out of touched that I was fastened at times to tame my misplaced anger. I would find myself sleeping much more because of the drugs being too powerful. As weeks past by, I discovered/realized that something was off because when I was doing recreational activities like basketball, I could not muster enough measured energy to make the basketball go over the rim and in the hoop. But I knew I've made hundreds of shots before.
But here's the moment that really allowed me to realize I was off... I picked up a Green Yams and Hams book by the infamous collection of Dr. Suess. It was on the side of the hospital bed. I attempted to read the words knowing that I have learned to read at 5 years old and knew that I could do it. However I couldn't muster out the words on the pages calmly nor accurately. (My mind was racing) This was a WAKE UP call. I needed help! This moment being present of noticing something I knew I could do and no longer capable; gave me the awareness I needed to progress.
I hope that you see from my sharing that books have power of words filled in it to empower us to activate the ideas, and wisdom it sheds. My thing is that sometimes you don't have friends around you in your circle with a story that resonates, but you could and can find a book that does.
May you take on the challenge of reading to become a more epic being with reading super powers. Feel free to order your books from Thriftbooks (Discounted big time) or simply get the Kindle version of them if you don't seek to have a library of heavy bo&5&oks.
If you accept the reading challenge, please feel free to share which book to you intend to do so below and why. Best of booking!
Don't bully the book, master it. Because a trained mind can work wonders.
