“Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers.”
By Anne Kerhoulas
Harry Truman said, “Not all readers are leaders, but all leaders are readers.” In our day, however, far too many people claim they don’t have time to read. It’s not high on their priority list, it's too time-consuming, and you can’t do it quickly. Reading is all too easy to forego, but as Carey Nieuwhof argues in his article, if you want to be a good leader, you must be a committed reader.
Reading, Nieuwhof points out, has enormous benefits for the leader. Reading is good for your brain, helping you to connect abstract ideas and develop new neural pathways. It offers perspective, wisdom, and instruction from some of the greatest minds in history. Reading also increases our empathy and ability to see the world through other viewpoints. It teaches us to slow down physically and mentally, and focus on one thing. And finally, reading is fun. It can add value to our lives merely by allowing us to dive into a fantastic story.
“A leader should never be caught off guard by the question, “What are you reading?” And they should always have an answer. After all, the benefits of being a lifelong learner and reader are incalculable,” says Nieuwhof.
Christian Union exists to develop transformative Christian leaders. To become influential in a world that often despises Christians, these leaders must be able to understand other viewpoints, practice spiritual rhythms, and learn from the great thinkers who have gone before them—all things that flow out of a life of reading. Christian Union encourages such intellectual rigor through its Bible courses and leadership lecture series on campus, through salons, forums, and book groups in the CU Cities and CU Society ministries.
Read the full article here.
