Importance of Books In Our Life (And Why We Should Read)
With the modern gadgets emerging now, we forget the importance of books in our life already.
We use phones and laptops when we are bored because some of us think holding a book is a boring activity one can ever do.
”Reading is important because if you can read, you can learn anything about everything and everything about anything.” This is one quote I found which justifies the importance of books in our life.
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But reading provides not only with plenty of information, but reading also offers you a lot more than you can imagine.
You might not be a fan of reading and you’re searching for facts that prove to you that reading has more advantages than making you intelligent, which doesn’t happen quickly upon opening a book.
Without further ado, I share with you the importance of books in our life which you might have not known before.
Here’s the importance of books in our life:
– Books make you attractive
Who would have thought that reading and books can be so attractive to the opposite sex?
According to research conducted by a dating app, My Bae, reading invites more potential matches. So if you’re in the dating arena right now, this might convince you to read right now.
If that one doesn’t persuade you, another study by eHarmony UK confirms that reading makes you attractive, specifically, if you are a man.
By writing on your profile that reading is one of your interests(I hope not a lie though), you get 19% more messages compared to 3% for women.
Add the books Screw It, Let’s Do It and Like A Virgin by Richard Branson on your profile then you collect 74% more messages from women.
In fact, Salama Marine, a psychologist of EliteSingles, indicated that having ‘‘quieter” hobbies like reading could imply that somebody you’re dating is a balanced and independent individual.
Now, if that’s not attractive for you, I am not sure how would you call it.
Well, I’m not suggesting that you shouldn’t be with someone who doesn’t care about books, or that you should criticize people who don’t read at all.
How you find someone attractive doesn’t only depend on his interests, but on other aspects as well.
When you know how to carry out a proper conversation with other people, they will find you interesting, which attracts them to spend more time with you.
But avoid monologue conversations, please.
You might like to read: 9 Commonly-Ignored Relationship Red Flags and Deal Breakers
– Reading books make you successful
When you think reading can turn you into a billionaire after a night of burying your nose in books, you’re wrong. I’m sorry if I have to burst your bubble.
It doesn’t mean that when Bill Gates aims to read 50 books a year and you exceeded that number, you’ll be richer than him.
Reading requires understanding and comprehension, but reading is more effective when coupled with work, effort, and implementation afterwards.
The word ”successful” has a lot of connotations. Being successful from reading doesn’t only mean you achieve financial success.
Some people have their own reasons why they read other than the fact of reading for entertainment.
Yes, it’s not just about Wattpad, Julie Garwood, you name it..(But I really love Julie Garwood)
People read to become successful in their careers. They want more knowledge about their profession and want to upgrade their skills.
Other people read to hone their language skills. Say English and German language skills.
You may not achieve that overnight success in reading, but if you maintain that reading habit, you will reap the importance of reading when you’re working on your goals.
Do you need to read only non-fiction to be successful?
When you’re an aspiring creative writer, fiction books are good for you. From fiction books you will get ideas about how published authors write, you know how to differentiate voices and styles of writing, and later on, you will find yours.
As a matter of fact, I recommend the Pillars of the Earth by Ken Follett. I could barely let go of the book and had to sacrifice my sleep for it. It is one of the longest books I’ve ever read aside from Gone With The Wind by Margaret Mitchell.
But frankly my dear, you might not care. 😉 – Sorry, I have to insert and revise Rhett Butler’s line.
– Books make you make mentally stronger
Okay, this comes with no surprise – reading makes you smart and widens your vocabulary.
Well-read people have higher test score result – another obvious fact. Think of your school days, you relinquish the idea of sitting next to the smartest in the class and you find preparing a cheat sheet ridiculous.
It reminds me of my college days when a classmate of mine prepared a cheat sheet for one of the subjects – surprisingly, a subject which I know doesn’t require cheating when you speak it every day.
But reading doesn’t function if you don’t understand what you’re reading like what Albert Einstein said, ”Any fool can know. The point is to understand.”
That sounds rather harsh. But it is much harsher if you waste your time reading without even understanding.
So aside from being a smartie, reading lowers the risk of acquiring Dementia later in your life. Dementia is a general term for the decline of brain functioning that includes the memory and thinking ability of a person.
– Books make you live longer
Order books on Goodreads, Amazon or in your bookstore so you will reach 120 years of age.
Then while you’re reading on your couch with your legs propped up, grab chips to munch on and watch your favourite Netflix or Amazon Prime shows.
Hey, I hope you don’t consider that (if you’re not yet doing that though).
But sarcasm aside, books play a significant role in your life and how it lengthens your time on Earth.
A study done by the Yale University School of Public Health found that people who read books at least 30 minutes a day live 2 years longer than those who don’t read.
It is also advisable to read books than newspapers and online forums. It doesn’t mean that you shouldn’t read newspapers, but reading books is more effective and you have more survival advantages than those who don’t.
– Books makes you more confident
Above all mentioned, this one benefit of books summarizes reading importance in our lives.
If you’re a voracious reader and your brain took in every letter and the word you’ve read, you might be Sheldon Cooper in real life.
But to avoid being socially awkward like Sheldon Cooper, you have to balance it by reading different genres of books.
Well, I’m a huge fan of Big Bang Theory and Young Sheldon here, and the main protagonist, who happens to be egocentric (which he’s not aware of), read a book called How To Win Friends and Influence People by Dale Carnegie in hopes of learning how to get along with people properly.
By reading you will know how to communicate well, you will learn how to deal with real-life situations, you will understand more how people think and you will understand others’ behaviour.
Reading is a powerful habit if you know how to apply it and you know what kind of stuff you should be focusing on.
You wouldn’t ever realize and feel the importance of reading if you force yourself to read because others seem to be reading too. You should know your valid reasons why you should grab something to read now.
What if you don’t have time to read?
Think about the amount of time you are on your phone or on your couch binge-watching your favourite Netflix show.
Surely, you can sacrifice 30 minutes of your time to flip some pages. Remember even 30 minutes a day will secure additional two years of your lifespan.
Do you have ideas about the importance of books in our life and if you’re an avid reader too? How does reading affect your life?
