I love reading.

I find that certain books allow me to learn from others’ experiences rather than requiring myself to experience all things firsthand. It’s naive to think that I could possibly come to the groundbreaking conclusions that the best minds in history have (and especially not by 25) so I look towards books to help me understand the world.

While I’m reading, it feels great. I get the sense that I have such a better understanding of whatever subject I happen to be studying.

But I’ve found that reading can also present a trap.

It’s easy for me to get caught up in the consumption of new material. I keep absorbing and absorbing without putting anything into practice.

So I’ve informally implemented what I consider a “doing” cycle.

After I get the feeling that I’ve been doing a lot of reading and I’ve answered most of the big questions in my mind, I try to stay away from consumption for a bit in favor of trying to put my new knowledge in practice.

Because of this effort, I now tend to read significantly less than I used to.

But I’d like to think that the reading I do is now much more impactful.

-Brandon