Who Has the Time to Read All of a Non-Fiction Book Anymore? Here’s What to Do Instead!

Who Has the Time to Read All of a Non-Fiction Book Anymore?

How to Read a Book: The Classic Guide to Intelligent Reading

This article came into being because of a conversation I had with a friend yesterday. He told me that he hasn’t been reading books because life’s so busy. So I asked him if he was reading book summaries instead. And he said he was previewing books first, then reading only the sections that interest him.

I said OMG, that’s what I’ve been saying to professionals for a while now. Who really has the time to read all of a non-fiction book anymore. Life is busy, you have places to go and things to do. And reading books needs to be a part of your busy lifestyle.

I know I’ve said this before, but I’m saying it again. While taking the PhotoReading course I learned that only four to 11 percent of the text on a page is important information. You read that correctly. So, you tell me, why should you be reading the other 89 to 96 percent of the book?

Book Summaries an Alternative to Reading Non-Fiction Books?

In the past six months, there’s been so many mentions in the media about book summary services. They’re cropping up left, right, and center. Book summaries are great, but please don’t use them as a substitute for reading a book. Why would you want to outsource your thinking to another person. Back in the day when your teacher told you to put your “thinking cap on,” she was onto something.

I’ve already mentioned in this space, that there are three reasons for reading any book. Mortimer Adler and Charles Van Doren, in How to Read a Book, say you read for:

• Entertainment
• Information
• Understanding

I’m not talking about reading for entertainment. Most people read fiction for entertainment. I don’t want you to miss the plot by skipping over information. Though some of those books today could be over one hundred pages shorter. What I’m talking about in this article, is reading for information and understanding.

If that is the case, more than likely you have a question you want the book to answer. You’re reading the book(s) for the answers to your questions. Book summaries might have the answers to your specific questions. But more than likely they won’t.

Have you read?

Reading Checklist: How Many of These Things Are You Actually Doing?

Reading All of a Non-Fiction Book: The Thing with Book Summaries

Don’t get me wrong, there is a place for book summaries. They are very appropriate to read to understand what books are about. The problem however, is that someone distilled information on your behalf. And what’s important to one person may be unimportant to another.

See where I’m going with this. The other issue is that book summary companies tend to summarize bestselling books. Because a book is a bestseller, doesn’t mean it’s any good, it could be. But perhaps it became a bestseller because it had a great promotion engine behind it.

Elon Musk Book Recommendations

When was the last time you read a book off the beaten path? How many people were reading the following books before Elon Musk recommended them? 

1. The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy by Douglas Adams
2. Einstein: His Life and Universe by Walter Isaacson
3. Structures: Or Why Things Don't Fall Down by J.E. Gordon
4. Ignition!: An Informal History of Liquid Rocket Propellants by John D. Clark
5. Superintelligence: Paths, Dangers, Strategies by Nick Bostrom
6. Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future by Peter Thiel
7. The Foundation Trilogy by Isaac Asimov
8. The Lord of the Rings by J.R.R. Tolkien

Not too many I’m guessing. I read The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy, Zero to One: Notes on Startups, or How to Build the Future, The Foundation Trilogy, and some of The Lord of the Rings before Musk recommended them. Bill Gates highly recommends The Rosie Project. I read this book before he recommended it. And yes, it’s an excellent book. I do listen to luminaries, but I’m not waiting on them to tell me what to read.

In a bit, I’ll tell you where to find books off the beaten path! The thing with books off the beaten path is that when you read them, you get access to information that others do not have. Therefore you are likelier to see what others miss. I want to add that not all books off the beaten path are good. I've read my share of crappy ones.

Alternative to Book Summaries

Preview books you’re interested in before you read them. Decide for yourself which chapters and sections align with your purpose for reading the book in the first place. If you read four to 11 percent of the book and understand it, you’ve read the book. Don’t feel guilty about it.

Traditional publishers have word counts. That means authors often add extraneous information to satisfy the word count. As a busy professional, why should you invest the time to read extraneous  information? When you read more intelligently, scanning the book first, you’ll be able to read more books. The more books you read, the more ideas you’ll get. Knowledge is like compound interest.

I want to add that it’s important to read enough of the book to understand it. Four to 11 percent is a guide. There are times when you’ll have to read more of a book. The trick is to approach every book differently. And always preview a book before you read it. Previewing a book is like gathering intelligence, and you can learn a lot of information in 30 to 60 minutes.

You’ll find that there are times when a preview of a book is all you need to get the information you need. While at other times, you may have to chew and digest it. Use your judgment. When you preview a book, you'll find that you usually don't have to read all of a non-fiction book.

Books Off the Beaten Path

It’s difficult for me to say, go to a specific place to find books off the beaten path. I learn about them because of the kinds of things that I’m interested in. There are several unconventional books mentioned here.

I also love the following  lists. However, they're not for everyone.

Using Rare Books to Inspire Learning One

Using Rare Books to Inspire Learning Two

Reading Across Disciplines

I’ve been talking about reading books across multiple disciplines. Here’s a peek at some of the books on my reading list this year.

1. First Principles
2. Cure: A Journey into the Science of Mind over Body
3. The Leading Brain
4. Money: Physics and Distributive Justice
5. Life 3.0
6. Code Girls
7. The Flight Girls
8. Girl Wash Your Face
9. Christianity and Evolution
10. The Story Engine
11. Words that Change Minds
12. The Moon is a Harsh Mistress
13. Lawrence in Arabia
14. Mind for Math
15. A Mind for Numbers
16. Signup: How to Create a Successful Subscription Business
17. The Visual MBA
18. Lords of Finance
19. Selling to the Affluent
20. The Power of Impact Entrepreneurship

Who Has the Time to Read All of a Non-Fiction Book Anymore? 

When you preview books before you read them, what you’ll notice is that all of a sudden, you’re reading more books. If you’re looking for an infusion of ideas, then this is definitely one way to go. If you’re an employee, you can use this strategy to work on a stretch project at work.

How Avil Can Help You!

I invite you to Join the Performance Accelerator Plan that walks you through the process and more. You’ll be reading books to build skills and develop intercultural awareness.  Get more reading and learning tips here.

In December, I published two books on Amazon. I would greatly appreciate your support if you bought my two short e-books Read 30 Books in 30 Days Like Francis Bacon and Performance Accelerator Plan: Guide to Learning and Mastering Key Skills for the Future.

Read 30 Books in 30 Days Like Francis Bacon is not about speed reading. It’s about approaching every book differently and reading only the sections that align with your purpose.

The Performance Accelerator Plan book is a stripped-down version of the paid reading challenge of the same name. Obviously, you won’t get all the resources that come with the program that I sell on my website. But if you are a self-directed learner, it will help you tremendously.

Note: There are several Amazon affiliate links on this page. That means if you click on Amazon and buy something the organization will pay me a small commission.