Why You Should Read Non-Fiction Books // I'm Looking At You, Class of 2022

 

 

 

Ok. Here's the secret. It doesn't really matter what non-fiction books you read. I mean, each book has an individual benefit, but the thing that every non-fiction book teaches you? Focus. 

Nicholas Carr wrote an article in 2008 titled "Is Google Making Us Stupid?" For the sake a brevity, I'll sum it up. Carr argues that the internet is made up of short and/or exciting content. It's all geared toward keeping the audiences attention. But it means we're not exercising our minds and our ability to focus and even reading a fairly short article like Carr's will cause us to start skimming through it. 

I highly suggest you read Carr's article or the slightly shorter article over HERE.  

So, occasionally reading a non-fiction is a good way to keep your brain in good mental condition and build your focus skills. For all you high school graduates going to college this fall, this is a SUPER important skill to have. 

Reading a non-fiction is something you can stick a bookmark in and stop after you've read one chapter or even a couple pages and come back to it later. Just setting a goal to read a chapter every week (so you don't just never come back to it) will have a major impact. If you're worrying about losing the train of thought, take notes on a sticky note (or directly into the book if you own it, I won't judge.) 

It'll train your brain to focus on "boring things" and will be a major asset when it's Monday night and you've been assigned several chapters of Bio-Chem readings to finish before Wednesday morning. 

I mean, it's also important for people in general to be able to absorb information. 

So how do you pick what book to read? 

Well, first of all, some books are significantly more dry than others. If it looks like a dictionary or is authored by someone named Kissinger, maybe that's not a good place to start. 

Secondly, pick something that is interesting to you. This could be a book focused on being a better leader or developing mental strength or some other skill you want to gain.

 It could be a biography or autobiography of someone you admire. It can be a topic you're interested in, like African history, or just some random off the wall topic that piques your interest. If this is the way you want to go, I highly suggest micro-histories. 

Do you need to know the history of the umbrella or cod or salt and its impact on the world? No. 

Can anyone stop you from learning it? Also no. 

And you'd be surprised how often random niche topics come up in conversation. People may ask you curiously..."So, why do you know so much about the cod populations off the coast of Canada?" and you can just shrug and meander off. 

One of my favorite ways to pick out non-fiction books is in person, where you can wander through sections and see what feels interesting. This way you can also open it and see if the first couple lines hook you. 

Here are three of my favorites that I think would make good starting points:

PSYCHOLOGY/LIFE SKILLS

Emotional Intelligence by Daniel Goleman

A super important skill to have as a leader or manger and just in general. I like this book because it has an overarching theme (emotions and emotional intelligence) but is chunked up in chapters that can almost be read as their own thing so you don't have to worry about losing your train of thought.

Secret Hack: It's basically Inside Out 2

 

Make Your Bed: Little Things Can Change Your Life...And Maybe the World by William H McRaven

Former Navy SEAL and retired Naval Admiral summed up some life lessons he learned into bite sized and highly motivational advice. It's very short and I'm suggesting it more for the lesson than the "learn to read long texts" skill.

Secret Hack: This is a more detailed version of a speech McRaven gave at a college graduation. If you don't have time to read it (or, lets be real, want to save money and not buy the book) you can listen to his speech on YouTube HERE

HISTORY

Churchill's Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare: The Mavericks Who Plotted Hitler's Defeat by Giles Milton

Several people's stories and contributions to WWII efforts, so you don't have to focus on a single person for the whole book AND literally everyone of them is amazing and a joy to read about it. (It's also very easy to read, word choice and sentence flow wise.)

You've got Vera Atkins, who got hired by the secretive group and basically kept everything running behind the scenes. At one point, they're moving office locations and Atkins is the one organizes everything and makes sure file boxes are carried in and everything while everyone is still standing around confused. Real "the person on the group project who makes sure everything gets done" energy. She was the inspiration for Money Penny when Flemming wrote James Bond (Because guess what? Flemming was also involved.)

You've got the weapons designer who was working on explosive prototypes. He wanted to work on them at his office but he wasn't supposed to because it was right by an important British political building (I believe it was Parliament...)) So what did he do? Carry in a little bit everyday under his arm and when the guard asked if he had anything to declare laughed and said, "Yep! Explosives, I plan to blow up the building." And they would both laugh and he'd carry on. (There was one minor incident when it blew a hole through the floor under someone's chair.)

And you get the picture

Secret Hack: Bro. Did you not read about the explosives and literal James Bond character? What else do you need? A little man who dresses like a Cambridge professor that is an expert in hand to hand combat? A commando who literally ran down a stag? 

Want more non-fiction suggestions? The name of that book about the cod or the umbrellas? Want to tell me about a non-fiction you enjoyed? Drop it down in the comments and let's chat!

-MK