My 2019 Reading Challenge

Last year in September, I decided to go back and read more. I have been an avid reader in the past, but in the previous three years, the number of books that I had read decreased consistently. There was always something more appealing, probably a Netflix series to watch. I kept browsing a lot on the web, but it’s not the same. So in September last year, I took the resolution to read more. And have since used Goodreads to track my advancements, using the Reading Challenge feature, which essentially allows you to set a target and keep track of how much you read. I set myself to read at least 50 books. Well, I’ve completed the year with 113 reads (and the year is not over).

The Value of a Reading Challenge

But what are the advantages of reading? Easy: it gives a real boost to my Learning Agility, wakes up curiosity. It allows me to discover a lot of new things. On a personal basis, it will enable me to be authentic (by just having a look at my reading list, you can immediately catch my multipotentialite and knowmad side). A big part of the renewed flow of posting on this blog is coming from this added reading. I love sharing my views, and this is the reason why I spend so much time in reviewing the books I read. 

Reading requires Discipline

2019 Reading Challenge

Sergio has completed his goal of reading 50 books in 2019!

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102 of 50 (100%)

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The big (re)learning of this year is that reading requires discipline. Many friends and colleagues ask “where do you find the time to read”. Reality is that I make the time to read. Many tips could be given on when to read, but the truth is that each person is different. 

Beyond Books

My Reading Habits are more or less as follows:

1. I read news and updates in the morning, generally during breakfast. I tend to use Flipboard for this task, as I collected there most of my source of info (Twitter, Linkedin, various blogs). I sometimes integrate this with Feedly, as there are many blogs that I follow. I do scan most of the content and read-only the items that hit my interest more.
2. I read most of the business books on my Kindle app on my iPad. I often dedicate about 45 minutes of reading time during the day before or after lunch, and then during all my flight time.
3. I tend to read in the evening before dinner, and when going to bed. It is the time that I dedicate to paper books (still an essential part of my life!). 

As you see, I don’t read only books. There’s a few sources of content that I have subscribed to and read more frequently: NYTimes, Quartz, Medium. The Reading Challenge has helped me read more books, but also more articles online.

My 2019 Reads

Curious about what I’ve read? Below the full list, in reverse order of reading.

Ready for next year?

So what will my Reading Challenge be for next year? 100 books are still less than 2 books per week on average. It’s perfectly doable as I’ve shown, especially if you plug in variety in your reading list.

By The Way, do you have a Book to suggest for me to read? Use the comment below, or head to the Book Suggestion page for a form to fill in.

And you? What’s your reading challenge?