Why Reading Is Important – 10 Shocking Benefits of Reading

In a world where entertainment is right in our hands, you may ask yourself what is the point of reading? In today’s fast paced world, reading is becoming a dying habit because there are faster alternatives to consume on social media.
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I read about a book a month so I’m gonna give you my top 10 reasons on why reading is important and why you should read. 1.
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Reading is food for the brain.
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In my opinion, this is the biggest reason why reading is important.
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Just like how our body needs food to sustain itself and function optimally, our brain needs to continue learning new things to function at peak performance.
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The best part is that you can read fiction and non-fiction to get this benefit. Studies have shown that reading has the power to change your brain structure which makes you more empathetic and improves cognitive processes.
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By reading more, you become smarter since you are consuming a lot of information and you keep your brain in top shape.
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There’s this quote from Game of Thrones that sums this point up nicely.
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“My brother has his sword, King Robert has his warhammer, and I have my mind… and a mind needs books as a sword needs a whetstone, if it is to keep its edge.” Tyrion Lannister 2. You become better at conversations.
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Books help expand your vocabulary which you can then use to express yourself better. Your speech will then be more refined and intelligent.
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Also, since reading widens your knowledge, you are empowered to participate in an interesting conversation.
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With the knowledge you gained from reading, you can add a unique perspective or sustain your argument.
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In this case, reading non-fiction can be better because you can learn about topics that show up more often in a regular conversation like technology. But there are also instances where reading fiction can be better like when there’s a new popular movie out based on a book and you read the original source material. 3.
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You can get mentored by a successful person for a very cheap price. Think about how much a successful person’s knowledge is worth. People are willing to pay millions to have lunch with Warren Buffett.
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If you are a normal person like me, you don’t have that kinda money.
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But with books, you can get mentored by a successful person for less than $50.
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A book is literally the exact words, ideas, mindsets, advice, and even the experience of the author put into a collection of papers.
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It’s almost like if the person is right there next to you speaking to you.
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75% of self made millionaires reported that they read at least 2 books a month. The knowledge you can get from reading is irreplaceable. 4.
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Reading improves your focus and concentration.
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In our fast paced world today, our attention spans are really short. Reading a book can help fix this because when you read, your attention is only focused on the story and you can be fully immersed.
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You might even achieve a flow state where you are 100% focused and forget about the world around you.
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Try reading for 10-20 minutes before work on your morning commute and you might find yourself more focused and productive at the office. 5.
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Reading opens your mind.
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As a reader, you will interact with different stories from different people with different ideas and beliefs.
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This helps open your mind and be more accepting of others as well as improve your ability to judge other people’s character. 6.
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Reading helps relax you.
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When you are reading something good, your mind is more relaxed and the subject you are reading about might even bring inner peace.
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If you are reading fiction, while you may not be fed the images and sound like when you are watching a movie, you can experience the images and sound with your imagination. The feeling you get from finishing a book can be better than the feeling of finishing a Netflix episode. 7.
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Reading helps improve your memory.
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Whether you are following your favorite character through their journey or remembering tips on how to make more money, you will be using the memory area of your brain and keep it active.
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When you really need to remember something important, it will be easier.
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Every new memory you make creates synapses or brain pathways and strengthens existing ones so memorizing will get easier. 8.
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Reading helps you make decisions better.
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When you are armed with all sorts of knowledge, making a decision can be easier because you see all possible options.
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You can make educated guesses on how each choice will play out and pick the one you like best. 9.
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Reading can help you sleep better.
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It can be hard to sleep when there’s a lot of things going on in your mind. Reading for a short period of time can help push away what is bothering you internally.
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Also, we often use electronics late at night which don’t exactly help us sleep better because bright lights signal our brain its time to wake up.
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Reading a book instead can help but make sure you put it down once it’s time to sleep. 10.
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You become who you are meant to be.
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This is a bit cheesy but by reading, you can change your personality or beliefs.
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Books open up completely new worlds for us to grow and develop as a person. Do you read often? Leave a comment below and check out this playlist of book summaries if you are interested.