Wednesday, December 21, 2011

How can I writer sacrifice reading time?

In yesterday's blog, I asked what one would need to sacrifice in order to win.  One of the things I mentioned was reading.

But, Mark, I'm a writer.  Writers can't possibly give up reading.

True, but one may have to cut back on their reading.  When I was in college, someone mentioned that one needs to spend an hour of writing to every hour of reading.  I think, for the professor, he was stressing the importance of continual reading.  But a one-to-one ratio is extremely high.

Famed motivational speaker and author Earl Nightingale, in his Lead The Field audio program, prescribed that one has to always be learning.  He said that if you devote 30 minutes a day for 5 days a week, that would equal about 130 hours of learning towards your specific field.  How much time does one spend in college to get a degree?  I mean, actual classroom learning?  It pales in comparison.  What if you devoted 30-60 minutes a day to reading and the rest of your time--time that is set aside to working on your craft--writing?

I'm not saying to completely eliminate reading altogether.  That would be silly.  But instead of reading for 3-4 hours a day, chop that down and devote the other time to writing.

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