Five Ways Reading Books can Transform your Lives
It instils calmness and drives away negative thoughts
Right from my childhood, my parents used to say that reading books always brought about positivity in oneself. It didn’t matter much as to what book you read, but the fact that you actually read it. I never used to care much about the advice until I started reading books myself. And boom. Was I so grateful!
“The reading of all good books is like a conversation with the finest minds of past centuries.” — Rene Descartes
Starting with “The Famous Five”, I never imagined I’d continue to read a lot at such a young age of 13. It’s undoubtedly true that the more you read, the more positive you become in life. Whenever angry or depressed, read a great book and it will help instil calmness in you.
I read books because it helps me paint a positive picture in life. Whenever my efforts go in vain, I always have a book as my companion so that I could depend on it to encourage that everything is going to be okay. Such can be the power of a single book! So, imagine reading a ton of books in your lifetime. Of course, the effect also depends on the book you are reading.
“A reader lives a thousand lives before he dies, said Jojen. The man who never reads lives only one.” — George R.R. Martin
There are several benefits to reading a book which I have experienced personally and I’ve outlined some of them below.
#1 — Books reduce stress
As I’ve explicitly mentioned in the above paragraphs, reading immensely helps calm your nerves irrespective of the situation you are in.
Whether you’re in a bad mood or in a spoilt relationship or angry, reading books reduces the emotional strain out of your mind. It all fades away when you’re immersed in a great book.
A well-articulated novel can take you to other realms, while an entertaining article distracts you and holds you at the present, allowing anxiety to drain and relax for the moment.
#2 — Books enhance your Knowledge
Even if you lose your job, money, and whatnot, remember that knowledge can never be taken away from you. Knowledge is eternal!
Reading each day for at least an hour increases your productivity in hindsight without you knowing it. It’s unarguably true that great leaders spend a great amount of time reading rather than looking for other ways to find answers.
Try to inculcate the habit of reading each day and see where it takes you in the near future. The more you read, the better equipped you become and you might never know when it comes in handy.
#3 — Books improve your memory and vocabulary
This goes without any saying and is self-explanatory. The more words you’re exposed to, the richer you grow in grammar and vocabulary. I remember the time when I used to stutter and hesitate to speak just because of my grammar.
The most significant aspect of reading is that it helps synchronize your thoughts with your speech or writing.
Reading books is also important for learning new languages since the reader is exposed to a variety of words which helps amplify their fluency.
Another important element of reading is the enhancement of your memory power. When reading a book, you might discover multiple characters, situations, or backgrounds, all of which train your mind to remember more with relative ease! This effect compounds over time.
Although a picture might be worth more than 1000 words, it still will never equal the super-powers bestowed by a well-written piece.
#4 — Books strengthen your focus
A meticulously written piece of writing can enthral readers such that they completely ignore what’s happening around them. This not only increases your concentration in a particular activity, which is reading but also improves your focus.
“It’s not the daily increase but daily decrease. Hack away at the unessential.” — Bruce Lee
This can be seen in our daily lives as well.
In an age where we’re disclosed to tons of unnecessary information, books stand tall as they revolve around a single topic which you love!
Try reading around 15–20 minutes before your work routine and you’ll be marveled at how active you’re for the rest of the day.
#5 — Books improvise your writing skills
This goes in tandem with your reading skills. Reading books help streamline your thoughts so that you can focus and synchronize your thoughts while writing.
Prior to reading, I struggled for words but soon after reading quite a number of books, I could visibly see my fluency in writing improve due to the refinement of grammar.
Exposure to well-written work can profoundly impact your writing skills as observing the creativity and fluency of great writers does. As we know, verbal and written are entirely two different forms of communication, and reading books will help you stand out in both worlds!
So, these were my key takeaways from reading books and I hope I gave you a clear glimpse of how the habit of reading books will help transform your lives. I’d love to hear your responses on this :).
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Thanks again for reading and have a great day!
