The 100 Day Challenge, Day 13:
The first time I ever heard the phrase “readers are leaders” was from Brian Tracy and boy did that make my ears perk up! I have heard it many time since (and this was YEARS ago!) and each time it reminds me to stay on track with my reading. I have always liked the idea of being a leader and I have always loved books and reading, so the link between the two is very exciting to me!
I stumbled upon a study that was released by the National Endowment for the Arts in November 2007 entitled To Read or Not to Read. www.nea.gov/research/ToRead_ExecSum.pdf. It contains many interesting statistics regarding reading. Here are a few:
-The number of adults who read a book not required for work our school in a year’s time: 57%.
-Good readers generally have more financially rewarding jobs.
-Good readers play a crucial role in enriching our cultural and civic life. In fact they went on to say that literary readers are more than three times a likely as non-readers to visit museums, attend plays or concerts, and create artworks of their own. They are also more likely to play sports, attend sporting events, or do outdoor activities. It seems they are just plain more engaged in life and the world over-all.
-Literary readers are more than twice as likely as non-readers to volunteer or do charity work.
Michael Angier at www.positivepath.net adds a few other great points. He says that though there may be readers who are not leaders, but that leaders are most certainly readers. Quoting Michael “If you are commited to being all that you are capable of being, I implore you to become a voracious reader. A book a month will keep you even, a book a year and you are falling behind.” Just like Michael, my most prized material possession is my personal library. I am a self proclaimed book-a-holic and I can not visit a book store without buying at least one book!
What was the last book you read for pleasure? Reading is an essential component to any personal transformation and development plan. Kids are going back to school, why not make your own learning and enjoyment plan for reading this fall?