Hi, in this lecture, you're going to learn the first habit of highly successful people. It's reading. I know that's not a secret and chances are you're not surprised. That's okay. Because a lot of the topics and habits we'll be discussing are common sense, but not common practice. Successful people read a lot.

Warren Buffett, a phenomenal investor said that he reads 500 pages every day. That's how knowledge works. It builds up like compound interest. All of you can do it, but I guarantee not many of you will do it. Bill Gates reads one book per week. That's around 50 books a year, Elon Musk, a great entrepreneur was asked how he learned to build rockets and he said he read books.

Frankly, you can find hundreds of examples if you do research on the topic of reading the reading habit, but here is the important part. The people I mentioned above and other successful people don't just read anything. They are highly selective about what they read. Even if you're an avid reader, I ask, Do you read for entertainment or for knowledge and learning? This is a big one because you can be great reader. But if you lack focus on what you read, your reading won't bring that much good.

You and I, we need to be selective when we choose what to read, and what the purpose of reading is. I don't really like statistics, but in his book, rich habits, the daily success habits of wealthy individuals, Tom Corley writes that rich people with annual income $160,000 or more in the liquid network of 3.2 million plus read for self improvement, education and success, whereas poor people with annual income Count of 35,000 or less in the liquid network of $5,000 or less, read primarily to be entertained. Besides dramatically increasing the chances of achieving your goals, and achieving success, whatever that means for you. Reading also has said benefits such as prevents stress and depression enhances confidence, empathy in decision making. So yes, reading is a big deal. Why should they read?

That really depends on your lifestyle. I read in the morning and before bed. Some people always go out with a book in their hand, and they read whenever they get a chance. My advice is try early in the morning or before bed and see what works for you. I assume it's really hard to read 500 pages per day just like Mr. Buffett does. However, I really want to set some standards or a minimum of what we should read my understanding The the bare minimum must be two books per month.

I know that's not a lot. And if you're an avid reader, you might laugh right now, my wife, for example, reads 500 books a year, most of which entertainment, of course, I'm gonna have to tell her towards this class. But let's get back to the point, at least two books per month is what I recommend. And the more books the better, obviously, but the minimum is two. The first book should be about your occupation, your profession. That's the field you've chosen to develop yourself in.

The second book should be about personal development. I know that's broad, but you should be reading about money investing, success, startups, business management, leadership and so on. And again, these are just rough ideas. Here is an example to clarify. My profession is marketing. So this month, I will read two books.

The first one will be confessions of an advertising men by David Oh, Lv, a brilliant direct response marketer. This book is in a direct relation to my profession, because advertising is one part of marketing. And the second book I will read is thinking Grow Rich by Napoleon Hill or Seven Habits of Highly Effective People by Stephen Covey. The second book is more about developing a successful mindset in philosophy, and actively looking for new ways in concepts to elevate my perspective and point of view to a higher level. Now, how do you turn your reading activity into a habit? And the answer is through practice, you will have to start reading today and set the first milestone let's say 30 days you shouldn't break the chain for 30 days.

Here is a very simple system to follow. And not only does the system apply for reading, but for developing habits in general. First, you need to have a reminder of the activity. For example, I put a book on my desk When I sit on my computer in the morning, the first thing I see is that book, that was my reminder. Second, you do the activity, the routine, in our case, do the actual reading. Third reward.

That's the benefit you get from doing the habit. When the reward is positive, you will want to repeat the habit tomorrow. So that's very simple but effective, just three steps. Use them to cultivate habits. So reminder routine and reward, reminder, routine and reward. So I challenge you, what is the next book you're going to read?

Tell me use the discussion section and tell me right now I read the effective executive by Peter Drucker let's recap quickly, you must be reading primarily for learning and knowledge. Reading prevents stress in depression. Reading enhances confidence, empathy in decision making. Find the best time to read try in the morning or before bed. the bare minimum is two books per month. The first one is for your occupation to help him become an expert.

The second one is your mindset and successful philosophy. The simple ineffective three step system for cultivating habits is reminder routine reward. Tell me what the next book you're going to read is or the book you read right now. It would be nice to share some ideas. Thank you for watching.