In an appeal for deeper and wider reading among leaders, John Coleman highlights the importance of reading in the lives of Steve Jobs, Sir Winston Churchill, and General David Petraeus. He then persuades us with three benefits:
1. Reading improves intelligence and leads to innovation and insight: it increases vocabulary, world knowledge, abstract reasoning skills, and creativity (especially for those reading in many fields)
2. Reading makes you more effective in leading others: it enhances verbal intelligence, deepens empathy, and ramps up productivity, often leading to pay rises and promotions.
3. Reading relaxes and improves health: reading for six minutes can reduce stress by 68%, and may even fend off Alzheimer’s!
As, despite these attractions, people are reading less widely and less deeply, Coleman closes with five ways to help us improve personal literacy and, therefore, leadership skills. Read the whole article here.