The things that books can do for you

At the beginning of the year, I determined that I was going to change some of my habits and become more productive, even though we’re in a lockdown situation.

I spent time online looking at different systems and followed some pointers I’d picked up in books and youtube as to how I going to make me more efficient.

One of them was to make a chart which I could cross off each thing I wanted to get done each day. The thinking behind it is that if I can see that I’m doing each activity, it will be easier to keep doing it.

I’ve been learning Spanish online and because the app tells me how many consecutive days I’ve done it for, and because I can the total, I don’t want to break that run. And it’s proved to be a very good thing. The fact that each day it tells me the total I’ve done, it keeps me motivated to keep going, even on the days I don’t want to (it’s 1372, in case you were wondering).

I’ve made a little grid that allows me to track each day and I put a cross into each section when I’ve accomplished the task.

I’m on Day 29 so far, I’ve failed on a few of the tasks for the odd day  regularly going out and walking being one, because, for the first 5 days of the year, we were in Quarantine and weren’t allowed out, so I couldn’t even start on the 1st.

The other area I’ve missed the goal is in eating – 3 days I’ve overeaten but I don’t mind as I knew I was going to, as it was the day after weigh-in day and I treated myself. I’ve restarted checking what I’m eating because I had a period of going wild with chocolate and needed to rein it in if I’m to maintain the weight loss I’d achieved previously. 

The key is to only miss for one day. Start again the day after,

The biggest surprise however as been in reading.

I’ve always enjoyed reading but never really dedicated a consistent time to it. I may not read for weeks at a time and then only just before I went to bed at night. Other times, I’d have three books on the go at the same time, so as you can tell, it can often be haphazard.

I like non-fiction. I like biographies and autobiographies. If I’m involved in something, I’ll buy related books. For instance, when I was doing radio, I bought books about technique, and I bought books to learn more about the process. In the same way, now that I’m doing design, I buy books which will help improve what I do. I buy lettering books and books about layout. I’m always looking to improve.

Don’t get me wrong, I love a good thriller or crime yarn. I will read something like that alongside my non-fiction selection.

But if there’s one area of books I love to read, it’s self-improvement. Recently, I’ve been humbled by what some people have said to me. They’re comments I’d never have received if it weren’t for the books I’ve read.

I’d still be the thumb-sucking, knuckle-dragging, bonehead I was in my 20s had I not come across these books. I’ve read loads over the years.

And if you think I’m nothing special, you’re right, I’m not. I’m just a normal guy who learned a bit along the way and changed and adapted.

I realise we all do that as we get older, but a long time ago, I realised that I’m not the brightest kid on the block, not even close – and what’s more, I don’t want to be. What I did want at 30, and still do at 60 is to be a better person than I was before.

I had a great start in life with the grounding my parents gave me, but once I was left to my own devices, I started to go downhill. I was never the most confident of people. A lot thought I was, but I got to be a good actor to cover my own insecurities.

And when I discovered ‘The Magic Of Thinking Big’, back in 1990, I realised I could change. I’ll tell you here and now, it’s been long, slow progress,; often two steps forward, three steps back, and it won’t end for me until I’m placed in a box.

I’ve always wanted to be a better me. I’m not the jealous type. I applaud people who get on in life. They just prove it can be done. I’m not envious of other’s success. What’s the point? Being envious isn’t going to do me any good.

But I can try and improve myself and that’s what I’ve always wanted to do. Not in the monetary, ‘look at what I’ve got’ sort of way either. I’d like to think by the end, I’ll be respected and thought well of by people. That’s as much as I want.

Those self-improvement books have helped me no end – they’re not a ‘do this and you’ll be a success’ kind of thing; after all, we’re all different and our journeys are too.

They can give you motivation, but the truth is, that’s only temporary. To develop motivation, you need to develop the ‘why?’ Without that, it’s just a wish.

The best thing about those books isn’t the ra-ra, it isn’t the how-to, it’s more subtle than that.

The best thing about the books kind of books I read is not what the writer says, it’s about how what they say helps me to think in ways I hadn't before.

I’ve read many of my books over and over again and at different times, I’m looking for different things.

I use the supermarket approach to reading them. I take what I need at the time, give it some thought as to how I can apply whatever it is I need to and then take action and leave the rest. When I read it again, I may need something different then.

Just thinking about a thing is motion, but action makes the difference. And that’s the long-winded point I’m trying to make here. And I’m doing different things daily, so I am also doing the action bit.

Since the start of January, I’ve completed 5 books and I’m reading 2 others at the moment. Of course, they’re not all 500-page epics, the shortest was just 88 pages long.

But in doing that and crossing off each day when I’ve done my reading, I’ve fallen in love with reading again. I feel more positive about where I’m headed. I’m feeling good about me. But best of all, I’m enjoying reading again.

Just imagine, if you turned the TV off, and instead of getting wound up by Piers Morgan or the seeing the news for the 7^th time today, you picked up a book and used that time reading, maybe a novel in your favourite genre, or an autobiography by someone you admire, how much better would you feel?

Books can transport you to a different world. They can make you see the World in a different way They can change you for the better. They can be all of these things and more.

With the kind of books that I read, I get input from people whose minds are far greater than mine, they have a different perspective from me, and through them, I get to think about things in a different way.

I’d agree I’m nothing special.  Even after reading all those books, I’m not anything out of the ordinary. But without those books that have slowly drip-fed me ideas and thoughts over the years, I can pretty much guarantee, I would be a whole lot worse-off a person than I am now. And I’m not talking about in monetary terms.

I quite like the man that I’m becoming. I’ve still got a way to go and more to learn. In fact, I’ll never stop learning. But what I do know, is that I like me a whole lot more than I did 10 years ago.

You don't have to read the kind of books that I do. Find something that works for you. A trashy novel is going to do you more good than watching a news channel to start your day!

And what I’ve picked up and absorbed from books has made all the time I’ve been reading worthwhile. I can’t say that about spending time watching the news and the naysayers on the telly.

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