Ha ha ha… An funny retro piece over at Modern Mechanix shows a 1970 excerpt from the magazine Popular Mechanics. In it, they show how to build a meditator ‘tank’ for relaxation and reflection.

‘Bye for now, says the man of the house as he retreats into think tank….’

Aside from the contraption being huge, I just can’t imagine it being helpful for meditation. Seems like it would get stuffy and confining. The whole time I’d be thinking “Man this thing is huge. I’m going to have to take it apart after this and put it away.”

“The fun, then, in making your personal Meditator, is double: First you create 11 pholages (only the access panel is left bare), then discover the unexpected cross-referencing when you wrap yourself in the assembled panels. Beyond that, you’ll be able to compare responses with your friends. And when you feel you’ve exhausted the potential of a given assembly, it’s easy to paste new pictures over the old.”

I recommend for meditation some 25 cent earplugs and a quiet room…

via Boing Boing

“So much of life, it seems to me, is determined by pure randomness.” –Sidney Poitier

Sometimes you just can’t insist on the order you get your ideas. Sometimes they come in crystal clear, sometimes they arrive in random format.

This is one of those posts.

Although it may seem strange to post them randomly in this way, there is a benefit. Sometimes, the most inspirational ideas come out of left field.

Read with an open mind and an eye for what you are going to do.

So here are 10 Random, yet powerful ways to reach your goals in 2008:

1. Measure your results — Part of knowing where you are going is knowing where you came from. Someone who wants to lose 50 pounds needs to know their starting weight and track the weight loss as they progress.

I recommend using goal steps make these measurements. For example, in the case of losing 50 pounds, you can set a step to lose 5lbs in the next 2 weeks. At the end of those two weeks, measure. If you are 5lbs lighter, it’s reward time baby! If not, measure again, the following week. Get your check mark and reward.

Once you’ve gotten the first step out of the way, start the next one. And then the next…

2. Resist your dependence on tomorrow – Nobody is guaranteed a tomorrow. Death is certain for us all. What would it mean if you died tomorrow knowing you hadn’t done your part today? Would you be content in the idea you did your best? No? I thought not. Don’t count on tomorrow. One day, it won’t come.

3. Schedule work on your goal – To make every day progress in the most efficient way, I recommend you schedule task sessions. Pick a time every day that you can dedicate for goal tasks. Some people work better early in the morning, others better at night. Whichever you do best, schedule the time. Set an alarm reminder for that time in your electronic calendar if you use one. If you don’t, set an alarm clock. Get in the habit of working at the same time every day and they’ll go easier on you. Trust me.

4. Read for 30 minutes each day about your goal — Did you know the more you study a subject the more interesting it becomes? Think about some of your most recent large purchases. Didn’t you spend a lot of time thinking about it, reading reviews, and getting the opinions of others? It’s the same with your goal. You can motivate yourself simply by dedicating 30 minutes or so per day to studying it.

If you are overweight and aren’t interested in exercise, buy a book on exercise and see what happens.

If you would make a good business owner but don’t feel like starting a business, read a book on entrepreneurship and you’ll be inspired to start.

Stressed out all the time but aren’t interested in meditation? Buy a book on relaxation techniques and you’ll learn other ways – if not take up the habit of daily meditation.

5. Journal your progress — working on a goal is a marvelous thing. It is also your life in action. That’s why it is important to Journal or record your progress as you go. Wouldn’t it be nice to hand down to future generations your struggles and victories you experienced while working through the steps on your goal list? It’s a part of your family history — especially if you choose a goal that is big.

Another good reason for journaling is you can go back in history to what you were thinking and what you were doing when you first started. It is great fun and very enlightening to go back into the Journal to see what I was thinking when I first started a particular goal. Sometimes I think “how naïve I was by approaching it this way…”

However, and this might be embarrassing, other times I have found that I actually started out the right way and slowly drifted into the wrong way. This happens to most people who set personal goals eventually. You start down the path and things are going great and so you tweak them and they stop going so great… what do you do? Well if you have a journal you can go back and compare what you are doing now to what you were doing before and then readopt what you were doing back in history. If you don’t have a journal it’s likely to your former success will be lost forever.

6. Gain the support of your family — this tip is especially important for married people. It is important to get the agreement of your spouse or significant other will for you journey off towards a large goal.

Big goals take time. Families take time. If you have a big goal, make sure that it does not conflict with your family. If it does, it may need to be re-targeted so that there is no interference. If your spouse loses support for you during the pursuit of your goal your ability to do it becomes 10 times more difficult.

However, having the support of a spouse will pay off royally in your ability to get it done. Who better knows you and what buttons to push to get you off your butt then your spouse? Who knows what guilt trip is most effective to get you to stop procrastinating?

7. Hire some help — this tip is especially true for entrepreneurs. But it can also work wonders for people who want to free up more time for their family or who want more time for health pursuits. There are plenty of people out there who want to do work do you need done. Be it mow your lawn, or clean your gutters, doing those types of chores pull you away from more important tasks. You always have the option of hiring someone else to do the time consuming no pay jobs do you have to do or are responsible for.

Now you might say “I don’t have enough money to hire anyone, I am barely scraping by.” Well maybe you should consider doing a side business where you are providing that type of service to other people so you can build your income. It’s just an idea…

8. Test new ideas — everyone is unique. Therefore what is good for one person may or may not be good for you.

That’s where testing comes into play. All inventors and innovators are good testers. They like to test to see what will happen. They like to combine formerly incompatible substances and make something new. As you move toward your top goals, you too can test the waters.

Perhaps you’ve read a book on how to achieve the position of CEO. However you are stuck in middle management. You might stumble on an idea such as an anonymous note to the office blabbermouth telling him you are in line for a promotion to CEO.

This is, of course, not an often used idea. But you are sure to draw attention to yourself by doing it. And who knows, it just might work.

9. Hire a mentor — Nobody knows it all. That’s why getting a helping hand from someone who has done what you want to do is so important. Picture a goal you estimate will take you three years to achieve. Maybe you want to finish graduate school. What if you knew someone who finish graduate school in one year. Wouldn’t you be interested to talk to that person? I know I would. I’d like to get it done in get out the door as soon as possible.

But that’s what mentors do. They save you time, they save you energy, and they save you money. What’s cool is in almost all realms of goal setting, you will find someone somewhere who has achieved what you set out to do. It may cost money to speak to them and to get their advice. But they could be knocking years off the time it will take you to succeed.

10. Build your self discipline — Many people first starting out goalsetting feel that they do not have enough self-discipline to get through a major goal. But what you will happily find out he is building self-discipline is easier than you think.

Building self-discipline is similar to how lifting weights will build your muscles. by forcing yourself to do the things you know you should do, you will build your self discipline. Now like lifting weights, building discipline is the same approach. Start with something small like disciplining yourself to wash and put away your dinner dishes every night.

It may seem small, but by forcing yourself to do something small on a repetitive basis, you begin to build that muscle of self-discipline much like doing curls will build the muscles of your biceps. So pick a task and do it every day. Self-discipline will soon follow.

This post covers tips 57-67 of 101 Goal Setting Breakthroughs: A 31 Day Blog Series That Will Make 2008 Your Best Year Ever! Subscribe to my free RSS feed to get the rest of the series and never miss a tip!

P.S. If you like this post, please give me a thumbs up on StumbleUpon or vote for it on Digg. Many thanks!

If only I was taller…

If only I was smarter…

If only I lived somewhere else…

If only I had the right computer…

What if onlys are holding you back from persuing your goal?

If onlys come in two flavors. The ones you can do something about and the ones you can’t. Either way, here’s the way to get rid of these before they undermine your goals.

Which category does this if only go?

What’s the difference between “If only I was taller” and “If only I had a car”

Answer: one you can do something about, the other you can’t.

Don’t go changing for me…

You were born with physical and mental attributes that make you unique; some of which you cannot change. Likewise, there are other people in your environment who you cannot change either. You might call this the hand you were dealt.
With that said, what you think is your weakness often turns to a strength in the long run.

I remember when I was in my early twenties, I was networking with a local and highly successful restaurateur. I was trying to decide whether to take a major loan against my home mortgage and open a restaurant franchise.

After doing the math, I decided the risk and investment wasn’t good at the time. But the business owner had another opportunity. He offered to fully finance a new restaurant concept with us as partners. I would manage the business – he’d finance it.

He even had a location picked out!

Well, after touring the location, I had a sick feeling in the pit of my stomach. The rental agent was pushing for a quick sign on the lease – my potential business partner was pushing for me to sign his contract ASAP. The more I thought about it, the worse I felt.

Something just wasn’t right about the deal – but I didn’t know what.

However, at the time, I was kicking myself for being too sensitive and analytical.

“If only I wasn’t so emotional about business decisions.”

“If only I could ignore my intuition.”

I was pretty hard on myself for not ignoring my gut feeling and going for it. There was so much money potential and here I was walking away from it…

Fast forward a year -

Turns out that the location the rental agent said was “going to be rented to someone else tomorrow” sat empty for a over a year…

A benevolent couple who had purchased a franchise from this guy called me and warned me not to do business with him. He exaggerated his bottom line and they felt like they were left holding the bag with this franchise.
Although I don’t know the reasons why, every last one of this entrepreneurs restaurants went out of business. It was a mystery to me why these went under so quickly with the lines of customers they had every day.

So you can see, my weakness of intuition and making decisions with my gut turned out to be a blessing.

Fixing the if onlys you can fix..

Abraham Lincoln called what I am talking about sharpening the ax.

Nothing stalls forward goal progress like getting in gear to work on your goal and finding out the one tool you need to make it all happen is unavailable.

Before you get started on your tasks, decide what do you need in order to work on this goal. Do you need some pens or paper? Do you need some new running shoes? Do you need to buy some software? Whatever it is go get it! There’s no sense putting off a goal’s progress when it’s just a tool standing in your way.

The time to collect the tools you need is when enthusiasm is high and inspiration has it’s grip. Most times you’ll find that it’s when you are first starting out that getting the right tools is necessary.

If you wait, then the lack of the right tools become “if only syndrome” If only syndrome results in destructive little gremlins knocking you off your game… They persuade non action because you can always say “If only I had a pair of decent running shoes I’d run today.” “If only I had some fresh vegetables, I’d make a salad instead of throwing in this microwave pizza…” “If only I had that computer book, I could study for my certification.”

Have you ever had an experience where a personal “weakness” turned out to be a strength? Was there ever a time when getting the right tool moved your progress forward? If so, please tell us about it in the comments below!
This is part 26 of 101 goal setting Breakthroughs: A 31 Day Blog Series That Will Make 2008 Your Best Year Ever! Subscribe to my free RSS feed to get the rest of the series and never miss a tip!

When the student is ready, the teacher will appear…

This month was historic in this blog’s traffic. Due to a Stumble of my The 26 Major Advantages to Reading More Books and Why 3 in 4 People Are Being Shut Out of Success post being voted up to the front page, some 100,000 new visitors stopped by to read. There were so many comments posted, I couldn’t keep up. All the new visitors stopping by and commenting was a great Christmas gift!

I get lots of enjoyment out of writing on the blog, and reading all the comments, but I’m not the only one who benefits. Readers who read daily have told me they get a burst of motivation with top-notch goal setting advice every day. It’s like having a personal coach – without having to pay!

Additionally, here are 8 excellent reasons to subscribe to my free blog RSS feed right away:

1. Get answers to YOUR personal self-development questions – Have you ever wished you had a personal coach? How many times have you wished you had someone you could ask for advice? Well now you can ask and get an answer. My door is always open. I answer your emails via blog post every time I get a request for help. This is open to new readers too. Just ask.

2. Save time and money with honest, real product reviews - When you are considering a purchase of an expensive product, you want to know the truth. The truth saves you money and it saves you time. If I review a product here, I answer all your questions without the hype or salesmanship of other “review sites”. An example: When the entire Internet was posting positive “reviews” of Day Job Killer, I was posting the truth about how bad it is – I also refused to put in an affiliate link to the product because I consider it just plain wrong to recommend someone NOT buy something and then give that same reader a link to buy it.

3. Think Like A Genius – For over 20 years, I’ve been a student of mind sciences. I believe there is a creative problem solving genius within every one of us. Whatever your problem might be, you can solve it if you learn to better use your mind in new and exciting ways. Tapping into this natural genius brings greatness into our lives. Tip: As computers and electronic distractions consume the minds of the masses, harnessing this creative genius is all the more important. You can get ahead while others are spinning. I’ll show you the proven methods for generating endless creative breakthroughs.

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5. No ads in the feed – When you subscribe to the RSS Feed, you get full articles without ads. So you can read all the great content, without being distracted by ads.

6. Written by someone who walks the walk – Have you ever heard someone recommend a tip, but by looking at them you knew they weren’t taking their own advise? We’ve all had that happen. For me, it’s not in my makeup to do it. I’d feel bad recommending you do something I don’t do. So if you see a tip here, you’ll know I use it or have tried it in the past.

7. RSS comes to you – You don’t have to remember to browse to this site. Your RSS reader will pick up the latest articles and deliver them to you – automatically!

8. Free & Unique Productivity Software – Many of my longtime subscribers use Taskblaze to time their tasks and export them to Outlook calendar. I am still building updated versions of that software as well as many others. You’ll be surprised as a kid on Christmas to find some new software ready for download.

These reasons are just a few of the advantages of subscribing to my free RSS feed. As you’ll find out soon enough when you make reading this blog an exciting new habit in your life.

So why not take a second or two and bookmark this blog? Subscribe to my RSS feeder if you haven’t. You can always unbookmark it at any time – but after a week or two of regular reading, I doubt you will.

Best wishes,
Brad Isaac

In my recent popular post The 26 Major Advantages to Reading More Books and Why 3 in 4 People Are Being Shut Out of Success, you saw that reading more books is one of the most powerful shortcuts to success.

But one obstacle to reading more books is simply finding the time to do it.  Well friends, put on your trench coats and fedoras and get ready to sneak some great reading in on the down low. 

Here are 5 sneaky ways to get more book reading into your day:

1.  Rip chapters out of your book – Hear me out before you make a judgement!  When I worked for a car wash years ago, reading books on the job was quite inappropriate.  So here is what I did to get around it.

I went to the local used book store and purchased some of the titles I wanted.  They might have cost $1 or $2 each.  When I got home, I picked the first book and carefully grabbed a chapter and ripped out the whole chapter from the seam.  If done carefully, the whole chapter was held together by the existing binding glue.   I repeated this for each chapter in the book.

When I was done, I picked one or two chapters and folded them in half and stuck them into my back jeans pocket.  The rest of the chapters, I put back into the original book cover and held it all together with a rubber band until I needed them.

In between rinse cycles, I’d just grab the current chapter out of my back pocket and read.  Boss-man was none the wiser.  

I would replace chapters I read back into the book cover and take the next chapter or two until I finished the book.  

Turns out, when I was done reading a book, I could fit everything back together and re-glue it using Elmer’s and the book was in rough, but readable condition.  Now, that I’ve refined a great bookbinding method, I’d just use that to rebind it good as new.

Caution: It goes without saying you should only do this with books you own.  Don’t rip up your friend’s book or a library book.

2.  Take a book with you into the bathroom – I am surprised at the number of businesses that do not allow employees to read.  It makes little sense to me considering books make employees smarter, why would you not want them to improve?  

Regardless, there is a “no mans land” where you can take a book where you won’t be disturbed – the bathroom.  

You may choose to read while you are doing your business or you might just want to close the door and read in the bathroom stall.  Since bathrooms are typically quiet, you can read for 10-15 minutes undisturbed.  

Since you’ll technically be in the restroom, your boss likely won’t be able to punish you.  Just make sure you don’t leave any incriminating bookmarks or hilighters lying around when you leave.  

3.  Make reading a high priority – If you feel like you aren’t reading enough now, the only way you will be able to change your behavior is if you make reading a high priority. I have already given 26 major reasons, some of the people commenting to the post have added some excellent reasons to the list as well.  

Reading good books often is a proactive skill to develop.  The late Earl Nightingale used to say that through reading and improving your vocabulary you communicate your education within seconds of entering a room.  Your skill with language is communicated immediately – so the impression you make is largely dependent on how “well read” you are.

Imagine sitting for a job interview and the potential employer choosing between you (who communicates intelligence) and a non-reader who doesn’t.  Provided the boss wants a smart person for the job they’ll know you are the right person in seconds.

4.  Scan Books for Your Phone or iPod – You can buy an inexpensive scanner that will convert your books to text so you can load them onto your cell phone or iPod for having a library with you at all times.  I have been doing this for as long as I’ve owned a Pocket PC – 6 years.  

Like point #1, I scan a chapter of a book and convert it to text with the free OCR software that came with the scanner.  Then I just copy it to my Pocket PC for reading at any time of day or night.  Since I always have my device with me, I can read while waiting for my meal at a restaurant, in line at the post office or just have some down time at work.  

If you own an iPod there are many good utilities that convert text to e-books such as eBook to Images and iPod Notes Packager.

5.  Use Text-To-Speech for On The Road Reading – Another tool I like to use that only gets better and better is text to speech software.  Great for reading blog posts in my car, you can also load E-Books chapter by chapter into the software.  This frees you up to read as you drive without wrapping your car around a tree.

The only possible downside, in my opinion,  is listening isn’t as mentally engaging as reading.  But it is still quite good.  

Currently, I am using Text2Go software with the Samantha voice you can get separately when you purchase the software.  The voices are lifelike and easy to understand.  The advantage of this program is it not only converts text to speech, it loads it automatically on your iPod or MP3 player.  Plus, there is a slick management feature that allows you to delete recordings you’ve heard and create custom play lists based on the text you are converting – useful when you are recording blog content.

 This post will self-destruct in 15 seconds…

Well, there you have it.  5 sneaky and underhanded ways to add more reading to your daily schedule.  Some are radical, some may cost money.  But all will make you better read and more successful if you only apply them.  

Before you add more reading to your schedule you have to see it as important – crucial even – to your personal success and enjoyment of life.  Until you do, then you probably won’t read much more than you are reading now.  

I am sure a lot of you who read this blog have other good ways of sneaking in some book reading on the sly, so please feel free to share in the comments.

You can make my day by subscribing to my RSS Feed.  I promise you’ll get lots of quality self-development tips or you can easily unsubscribe at any time

I read a Associated Press-Ipsos poll revealing that 1 in 4 adults read no books last year. Yes, that’s 25% of the adults out there are reading zero books. This is sad.

I knew intuitively the number of books read each year had gone down but to zero? Ridiculous!

And what about the adults who are reading more than zero books a year. How many are they reading in all? One? Five? Actually, the same poll reveals the average adult reads only four books per year. Half of those people read less than four.

If you are one of the non-book readers who feels you “don’t need no stinking books”, here are 26 great reasons to start the habit…before you are left behind!

1. Reading is an active mental process – Unlike TV, books make you to use your brain. By reading, you think more and become smarter.

2. It is a fundamental skill builder - Every good course on the planet has a matching book to go with it. Why? Because books help clarify difficult subjects. Books provide information that goes deeper than just classroom discussion.

3. Improves your vocabulary – Remember in elementary school when you learned how to infer the meaning of one word by reading the context of the other words in the sentence? You get the same benefit from book reading. While reading books, especially challenging ones, you will find yourself exposed to many new words you wouldn’t be otherwise.

4. Gives you a glimpse into other cultures and places – What is your favorite vacation spot? I would bet you read a lot about that destination. The more information the better. Books can expand your horizons by letting you see what other cities and countries have to offer before you visit them.

5. Improves concentration and focus – Like I pointed out before, reading books takes brain power. It requires you to focus on what you are reading for long periods. Unlike magazines, Internet posts or e-Mails that might contain small chunks of information. Books tell the whole story. Since you must concentrate in order to read, like a muscle, you will get better at concentration.

6. Builds self-esteem – By reading more books, you become better informed and more of an expert on the topics you read about. This expertise translates into higher self esteem. Since you are so well read, people look to you for answers. Your feelings about yourself can only get better.

7. Improves memory – Many studies show if you don’t use your memory, you lose it. Crossword puzzles are an example of a word game that staves off Alzheimer’s. Reading, although not a game, helps you stretch your memory muscles in a similar way. Reading requires remembering details, facts and figures and in literature, plot lines, themes and characters.

8. Improves your discipline – Obviously, if 1 in 4 people don’t read one book per year, then there is a discipline issue. There may be many causes for people not reading books such as the “quips” of information you can get on the Internet. TV is also a major distracter. Making time to read is something we all know we should do, but who schedules book reading time every day? Very few… That’s why adding book reading to your daily schedule and sticking to it, improves discipline.

9. Learn anywhere – Books are portable. You can take them almost anywhere. As such, you can learn almost anywhere too.

10. Improves creativity – by reading more books and exposing yourself to new and more complete information, you will also be able to come up with more creative ideas. As a personal example, I read many, many books on IT Networking. So often, when IT Admins are stumped with a problem, I can come up with a creative (smack your head simple) solution that isn’t written anywhere. But the reason I can do that is because I have read so many books on the subject, I can combine lessons from all of them into new solutions.

11. Gives you something to talk about – Have you ever run out of stuff to talk about with your best friend, wife or husband? This can be uncomfortable. It might even make married couples wonder if their marriage is in trouble. However, if you read a lot of books, you’ll always have something to talk about. You can discuss various plots in the novels you read, you can discuss the stuff you are learning in the business books you are reading as well. The possibilities of sharing are endless.

12. Books are inexpensive entertainment – What’s the average price of a movie ticket these days? $8 – $10? You can buy a paperback for that price and be entertained for many hours more. If you have a used bookstore nearby, you can get them even cheaper.

Tip: Once you make reading a habit, you’ll enjoy reading the books in your chosen career as well.

13. You can learn at your own pace – Where formal education requires time commitments, books have no late-bells or hourly commitments. So you can learn at your own pace when you read books.

14. New mental associations – I touched on this above. As you read more books the depth and breadth of your knowledge expands and your ability to form new associations increases. In reading a book to discover the solution to one problem, you find the solution to others you may not have considered.

15. Improves your reasoning skills – Books for professionals contain arguments for or against the actions within. A book on cooking argues that Chili powder goes well with beef and goes poorly with ice-cream. A book on building a business argues that testing an idea for profitability before setting up is a smart strategy and argues against just barreling forward with the idea without testing.

You too will be able to reason better with the knowledge you gain. Some of the arguments will rub off on you. Others you will argue against. Regardless, you’ll be reasoning better.

16. Builds your expertise – Brian Tracy has said one way to become an expert in your chosen field is to read 100 books on the subject. He also said by continuing the same for 5 years you’ll become an international expert. With the Internet and blogs, you could hone that time down to 2-3 years if you follow through.

17. Saves money – Apart from saving money on entertainment expenses. Reading books that help you develop your skills saves money. Reading books on how someone went bankrupt will be a warning to you against repeating their mistakes. Reading a book on how to build your own backyard deck saves the expense of hiring a contractor.

18. Decreases mistakes – Although I would never suggest putting off an important goal because you fear making mistakes, it is still important to sharpen the saw (link to A.L. post). When you gather the deep and wide wisdom that books can provide, you are less apt to make mistakes.

19. You’ll discover surprises - As you read more books as a source of information, you’ll learn stuff you weren’t looking for. I’ve read many great quotes on life and love by reading books on marketing. I’ve learned facts about biology from reading about chemistry. Heck, I’ve picked up some facts about history while reading about programming. Since so many subjects intertwine it’s almost impossible not to learn something other than the book’s subject.

20. Decreased boredom – One of the rules I have is if I am feeling bored, I will pick up a book and start reading. What I’ve found by sticking to this is that I become interested in the book’s subject and stop being bored. I mean, if you’re bored anyway, you might as well be reading a good book, right?

21. Can change your life – How many times have you heard of a book changing someone’s life? For me, it was Your Erroneous Zones (link) by Wayne Dyer – which is the first self-development book I read. It opened my eyes to a whole new way of thinking that was not depressing and dull. It was the first step in my path of choosing my own life and being free of old habitual thought patterns.

There are many, many other books out there that have a reputation for changing lives including Getting Things Done: The Art of Stress-Free Productivity, Handbook to Higher Consciousness, Atlas Shrugged , A Tree Grows in Brooklyn, Lord of the Rings and Black Boy to name a few. But you can start in your chosen field and work your way outward.

22. Can help break a slump – Being in a slump is uncomfortable. If you are a writer, you call it writer’s block. If you are a salesperson, it’s called – not making a sale in 23 days. But a slump can be a crossroads. It might be you are wavering on your commitment to a particular project or (with marriage) person. Or a slump can be simply a lack of new ideas. Books are a great source of ideas, big and small. So if you find yourself in a slump, pick a book on the portion of your life you are slump-ing and get to reading!

23. Reduces stress - Many avid readers (including me) unwind by reading. Compared with the person who gets home from work and immediately turns on the TV news, you are going from work stress to crime stress. But it’s not just news. TV as a source of relaxation is too full of loud commercials and fast moving (often violent) images. If relaxation is something you want, turn off the TV or computer and pick up a book.

24. Gets you away from digital distractions – If you, like many others, feel overwhelmed with the flashing lights, beeps, boops and ring-a-dings that burn up our computing lives, then give books a chance. When you find some good books, you’ll find yourself drawn into the subject matter. You’ll want to spend more time reading. By spending more time reading books, you’ll have less time for the plethora of the digital gadgets begging for our attention.

25. You’ll make more money - If you make a serious effort to read in your chosen career, your expertise in that specialty will increase. As you become more specialized and learned, you join a smaller group of more qualified people. By being part of the small few with the highest level knowledge your pay will increase. It’s simple supply and demand.

26. The book is always better than the movie – except for perhaps No Country for Old Men.

What are some of the most important books you have read? What is the title that changed your life? If you’ve found a book that made a major change in how you work, live or love, please tell us about it in the comments below.

Update: Part 2 is up: 5 Sneaky and Underhanded Methods to Add 30% More Time to Your Daily Reading Schedule