Talk to those in publishing and they’ll tell you that the number of people who purchase books dwarfs the number of people who actually read them. The exceptions to this are fantasy novels, all things Harry Potter and so-called “mommy porn.” Sadly, teachers will tell you that most students struggle to read more than 300 words at a time.
Over the past 20 years, we have witnessed an evolution in print media from 1500 word analyses to 200 word summaries. A substantial portion of Millennials admit that they get their news from The Daily Show, the evening monologues, Facebook and Twitter. TV news producers have learned that stories need to be reported in 90 seconds or less, regardless of the topic’s complexity. The result? Shallow thinking. And when we do it everywhere else, we can’t help but do it at work.
So, you want to put a sharper edge on your workplace decision making? Here’s the challenge, read long and deep. Ignore the distractions. Set aside some time every day to read something about your industry, a thought-provoking editorial, perhaps current affairs. Ever meet someone who expresses a strong opinion but shows little, if any, recognition of the complexities involved? You might have thought to yourself, “Gee, they have the same vote I do.” This is due to a lack of reading. Talk radio, TV and trending Twitter stories will not make up for this deficit.
The best decision makers in any environment have developed the habit of reading and reviewing a diversity of publications and viewpoints. By doing so, they remain up-to-date and accepting of a wide range of approaches to solving problems. Want to be a smarter decision maker? Make a practice of reading long and deep.