Entrepreneur John Rampton said, “The most successful people on the planet are the people who devote an hour a day to reading and learning.”
And he wrote in an article published by the American "Entrepreneur" website that the most successful people in the world spend their free time learning.
The magic of audiobooks
He added that Thomas Corley found during his study - which lasted 5 years - on more than 200 self-made millionaires, that they do not watch television, and instead, 86% of them claimed that they read not only for pleasure, and 63% of them indicated that they listened to Audiobooks on their morning commute.
Productivity expert Chauncé Maddox was quoted as saying that successful people read, and on average one of them reads two or more books a month.
Therefore, she recommends that everyone read blogs, news sites, fiction and non-fiction during the downtime to gain more knowledge.
And if you're on the go a lot, listen to audiobooks or podcasts.
Who has time to sit down and read, Rampton asked.
Between work and family it is almost impossible to find free time, saying that as an entrepreneur and a father he can talk, but only to an extent.
After all, if Barack Obama reads while in the White House, what excuse do you have?
Former President Obama is not the only leader who attributes his success to reading;
Microsoft founder Bill Gates, Amazon founder Jeff Bezos, Warren Buffett, Oprah Winfrey, Elon Musk, Jack Ma and Mark Cuban are voracious readers.
"Reading is one of the main ways I've learned since I was a kid, and it still is," Gates told the New York Times.
Five hour rule
How do they find time to read daily?
They stick to the 5-hour rule.
The 5-hour rule was coined by Michael Simmons, founder of Impact, who has written about it extensively.
The concept is very simple: No matter how busy successful people are, they always spend at least an hour a day - or 5 hours a week - learning or training.
And they do this throughout their careers.
Simmons traces this phenomenon back to Benjamin Franklin, a multi-talented American scientist, statesman, diplomat, publisher, and philosopher who constantly made time to learn.
Franklin generally did this in the morning, getting up early to read and write, setting personal goals and tracking their results.
He established a club for craftsmen and merchants to gather together to pursue self-improvement, and he kept trying his new information and asking questions every morning and evening.
The Three Parts of the 5-Hour Rule
Today's successful leaders adopt the Franklin Rule by spending 5 hours by dividing the rule into 3 groups, as follows:
1- Reading:
Self-made millionaires, including Mark Cuban and Dan Gilbert, owner of the Cleveland Cavaliers, read between 1 and 3 hours a day.
And Elon Musk learned how to build the rockets that lead to SpaceX by reading.
In addition to broadening your knowledge, Jack Ma, co-founder of Alibaba, says, “Reading can give you a good start; that often your peers can't get at. Compared to others, readers are more likely to know the strategies and tactics of other industries. ".
The writer urges readers, "Even if you can't commit to an hour or more of reading each day, start with 20 to 30 minutes," noting that he always has a book by his side, so when he's waiting to start a meeting or in the waiting room at the doctor's office, he can read instead of Wasting time on a smartphone.
You can also try out the audiobooks on your daily commute or while exercising
2- Meditation:
The 5-hour rule also includes reflection and meditation.
This could be just staring at a wall or writing down your thoughts.
Focusing on the past gives you a chance to learn from the mistakes you made, as well as to assess what you did right.
As a result, you will be better suited to achieving your goals and improving your life.
In 2014, a study by the University of Texas found that mental rest and reflection improves learning.
And the writer says - regarding scheduling thinking time - that he found that booking a period of 15 to 20 minutes after lunch is ideal, because it comes after getting out of the stagnation period that followed lunch, and it is recommended to start with a short time: 5 or 10 minutes a day, and then continue your way so as not to You feel tired.
Know the questions you want to ask.
Stick to just 2 or 3 questions that focus on that specific day.
For example, if you attend a conference, ask, "What are the main points?"
and "How can I apply this to my work?"
3- Experience:
The third and final part is Quick Experimentation. Franklin and Thomas Edison became pioneers of inventors and thinkers because of their experiences.
Rampton pointed out that the invention of "Gmail" (Gmail) was because the company "Google" (Google) allowed employees to experiment with new ideas.
The reason experiments are useful is that you have facts — not assumptions — that show you what works.
You can learn from your mistakes and get the opinions of others.
Best of all, the experience doesn't take long.
Most of the time, you are tested through the same activities that you would do without a test.
Jack Ma even recommends applying the knowledge you've learned to a real-life scenario.
For example, after reading a book about collaboration and teamwork, you could do a new volunteer job to use this knowledge.
When you make learning a habit, you are more likely to be more successful and productive in different areas of your life.
And by investing in the habit of reading, you can ensure that you grow yourself - and your company - every day.