By The Book

The author here champions cultivating a daily habit of reading—even for a period of five minutes—as a way to “unlock clarity, habits, and a mindset for growth,” citing figures from business executives to professional athletes who credit the practice of reading with helping them to succeed in, as Jacobs puts it, “maintaining relevance, fostering resilience, and ultimately thriving in your personal life and career.” He takes readers on brief tour of the history of reading and describes (and then dismantles) some popular misconceptions about finding time for the pursuit, which he refers to as a “catalyst habit: a foundational practice that fuels growth in almost every other area of your life.” Reading, Jacobs asserts, improves thinking, sharpens communication, and can even lead to making smarter choices on the path to becoming what he calls a “deliberately developmental individual.” The author outlines the real, practical benefits of regular reading under the heading of five pillars: Practical, Physical, Perspective, Practice, and Performance, elaborating on each in turn. “Books help you find the kinds of problems you want to have,” he writes, “and give you the tools to keep solving them with more clarity, confidence, and even a little joy.” Jacobs details his five pillars with the fast pace and confident tone of a personal trainer, and while some may find the author’s entire conception of reading unrecognizably utilitarian (such as when he calls reading “a proactive investment in your well-being”), his happy certainty will likely win over converts to his ideas. “Be the person with a book in your bag,” he encourages. “Be the one taking notes, asking questions, staying curious.” Perennially good advice, and well delivered.