The more knowledgeable we are, the better equipped we become at managing the challenges that lie ahead.

According to this Gallup poll, about half of Americans are reading a book. National averages for book reading continues to decline each year. Our time is fragmented with endless distractions.

So here’s the question: How much time do you invest reading each week?

If your first thought was “not enough” consider this: The quality of your reading time is more important than how many hours you spend reading.

You might be able to plow through one or two nonfiction books each week, but how much valuable information do you retain? What insights have you applied to your life? How have you grown as a consequence of reading each book?

Most of us were never taught how to read a book. We think we’re just supposed to read a book from cover to cover, going from page to page, line to line, word to word.

Reading, for most people, is passive. Do you invest time contemplating the validity of the author’s claims and its implications to the world around you? An active reader does. Effective reading requires active participation of time and energy in the focused execution of study, inquisitive thinking and repetition.

School might be out but learning is our perennial imperative. As our available reading time continues to shrink in the modern world, learning how to read a book effectively is a valuable skill. I know of no better place to start than Mortimer Adler & Charles Van Doren’s classic, How to Read a Book.

Related posts:

1. How to Read a Book
2. Five Strategies to Improve Reading Effectiveness
3. Reading with Purpose