It’s never a bad time to refresh your reading goals! Perhaps you’d like to step out of your comfort zone and try out some unexplored genres. Perhaps you’d like to read more diversely. Or maybe you simply want to read more! Whittling down our towering TBRs is a pursuit many bookworms aspire to (no matter how far-fetched it may seem). But instead of merely aiming to read more, what if we could also aim to read better?
For many, reading offers a respite from the stressors of everyday existence. But with the right approach, rather than escapism, reading becomes a tool for crafting the reality we want to live in. How can creating intentional reading habits transform your life for the better? That’s the question Nick Hutchison wants us all to ponder in his new book, Rise of the Reader.
Introducing Nick Hutchison
Nick Hutchison is the founder and CEO of BookThinkers, a book marketing agency that helps connect authors with their ideal readers. He also hosts the podcast BookThinkers: Life-Changing Books, where he interviews authors like Alex Hormozi and Lewis Howes. As an author and speaker, he teaches readers how to apply the information they learn through reading to meet their full potential and live more fulfilling lives. His debut book, Rise of the Reader, is an instruction manual for mastering your reading habits and getting the most out of what you read.
About Rise of the Reader
The best investment you can make is in yourself. The most cost-effective investment in yourself is not a formal education, a week-long retreat, or an online course…it’s a book. Why? Books only cost $20 and take just a few hours to consume, yet they hold the same power to change your life as any of those other resources. The potential return on investment (ROI) is insane!
— Nick Hutchison, Rise of the Reader
Rise of the Reader: Strategies For Mastering Your Reading Habits and Applying What You Learn by Nick Hutchison is a must-read guide to turning information into impact.
Self-help books are a powerful resource for personal growth — but only if you use them right. The key to self-development is understanding how to take a book’s lessons and implement them in your own life. Easier said than done, right? Luckily, Nick Hutchison has distilled his years of experience with self-help books into a simple framework for reforming your reading habits, ergo, your life. The best part? It only takes 15 minutes a day! Through engaging anecdotes and actionable tips, Rise of the Reader will help you apply what you learn, build healthy habits, unlock your full potential, and achieve your dreams.
What to Expect
In Rise of the Reader, Nick Hutchison asks his audience to interrogate why, how, and how much they read to form more conscious reading habits. The value of reading doesn’t come only from the book itself but also from how we approach the reading experience. The key? Intention:
It’s surprising how often I encounter a blank stare when I ask someone about their current read and the reason they’re reading it. It’s important to know your motivation for reading a book, as it serves as a compass for the direction of your personal growth. Understanding why you’re reading something allows you to actively engage with the material, reflect on its relevance to your life, and ultimately, make meaningful connections that can create growth and development.
— Nick Hutchison, Rise of the Reader
Books are a vehicle for education, enrichment, and growth — but we only get out of them what we put in. In Rise of the Reader, Hutchison urges readers not to skip the challenging parts of self-development. Reading about personal growth is only the first step. For change to truly take root, we have to extract insights from the page and bring them into our real lives:
You can read every book that has ever been written about push-ups, but if you never get down on the ground and do them, you won’t grow muscle. No one else can do your push-ups for you.
— Nick Hutchison, Rise of the Reader
Like any skill, reading is a muscle that gets stronger with practice. Here, Hutchison lays the foundation all readers need to construct a productive reading routine. He breaks it down into three major steps: choosing the right books to read, implementing effective reading strategies (taking notes, setting a schedule, etc.), and applying what you read to your own life. Under his guidance, you’ll unlock the full power of your reading material — and yourself:
Reading a great book is no different than watching Netflix or playing video games when you fail to use it to positively change your life. In that scenario, the book becomes a form of entertainment, not education. … Knowing these books can change your life and choosing not to implement what you’re learning is like knowing you’re guaranteed to win the lottery but choosing not to buy a ticket.
— Nick Hutchison, Rise of the Reader
Final Thoughts
In Rise of the Reader, Nick Hutchison synthesizes his vast knowledge of the self-development genre, offering readers a crash course in personal improvement. Packed with illuminating insights and tangible takeaways, Hutchison’s book provides the motivational nudge you need to set your dreams in motion. To close, I leave you with Rise of the Reader’s guiding principles:
Reality is negotiable. Reality is limitless.
The right book at the right time can change your life.
— Nick Hutchison, Rise of the Reader
If you’re in the market for a life-changing self-development handbook, Rise of the Reader is a must-read! Purchase your copy today on Bookshop, Barnes & Noble, Books-A-Million, or Amazon.
To learn about another phenomenal nonfiction narrative, check out our feature on Oh, God! My Skeptical Journey Through the Bible!
Find Rise of the Reader and more illuminating reads on our Nonfiction Titles for the Enlightened Mind shelf on Bookshop.org.
