Episode 11 – Increasing thinking vocabulary with reading
The Hosts, Ravi & Rajesh talk about the importance of reading. It is not just about reading but a balanced sense of reading. Learn how reading can widen your thought process too, they also call is ‘Thinking Vocabulary’. Improve your brain power, instantly
Podcast Transcription
Ravi: Hello there, welcome to episode number 11 of Spontaneous Conversations. This is Ravi Gundlapalli, founder, CEO of MentorCloud.
Rajesh: And this is Rajesh Setty, I’m a serial entrepreneur in the Bay Area.
Ravi: So Rajesh, when you asked me what topic to pick, I just looked at the book, and I said, why don’t we talk about reading? The importance of reading in everyday life.
Rajesh: It’s a great topic. And I’m sure that when they said reading, you are not thinking about murder mysteries and those kinds… because that’s also reading and I also know that you didn’t talk about scandals and [crosstalk 00:39]
Ravi: Yeah, I was looking at some of the business books and thinking wow, how important it is to continuously feed your brain with good ideas.
Rajesh: Yeah. Very good. So, let’s focus on reading that lifts you in some level. Upgrade you, give you an upgrade in some level. For me, you know that I read at least one book a week, and I have done that for more than ten years. Would I have done anything other than it? Probably not, because it has been such an elevating experience. And there were two or three kinds of reading that I do. One is just practical stuff, suppose somebody has been doing some social media, they say there’s a better way of scheduling posts, something very very basic. But that’s not long-standing because the tactics will change as the platform states. Second is foundational stuff in the same social media. What about – what kind of mind-set should I have {inaudible 01:43] winning in social media? That’s the foundational stuff on that particular topic. The third kind of reading that I do is basically foundational stuff for life. Like linguistic philosophy, the power of language; physism, those kinds of how to live a good life… those kinds of things. All with that balance, I think… one thing that I realize – normally, I feel more competent and more calm in my composure because most people are not doing it, there are people who read two, three books a week but that’s far and few.
Ravi: So, you’re talking about a very balanced reading. And as you’re talking the thought that came to me is this notion of thinking vocabulary. Right? So because suppose if somebody hires you to do a job, like put a painting up on the wall, and all I have is a knife, I can’t do anything with it. Correct? Whereas, if I have 20 tools, a drill, a nail, a hammer and everything, I can do the painting job in less than five minutes. Now if you apply the same approach to the sort of concepts in your mind – if a solution – if a problem comes up; if your [inaudible 03:00 rep?] books on leadership, books on negotiating, books on presenting, books on creativity, innovation, thinking; imagine how many tools you have in your brain to assembly and covet a solution. So reading, I think actually gives you thinking vocabulary that you can address – attach anything weather it’s from the conversation that we’re having today or to address a problem.
Rajesh: I totally agree with you, and it’s a beautiful [inaudible 03:28] of thinking vocabulary. I was always looking for something like that to describe what, is the power of reading? And honestly like you rightly said suppose we both were not well read, not that we are genius people, but without reading well, spontaneous conversation would be a total dud. Because where is the thing to draw from?
Ravi: Exactly, I mean where is the assimil, right? We have read Robin Shellburn, the ohn Maxwells, so many of these authors that take you to a different world and you start thinking about these [inaudi 04:05] concepts like an adjacent [04:06-04:10] this notion of most important things is such a very powerful concept. And unless you are filling your brain with good concepts that other people are thinking, then it’s all like ingredients to create a good recipe. So, all you have is one [04:29]…how many distance can you make?
Rajesh: First of all, I can’t make any distance. Anything. That apart – jokes apart. But I agree with you. It’s a metaphor that you used in…it’s building. Let me also quickly touch up on reading for the sake of education. Reading for the sake of entertainment in the name of education because a lot of people say they want to have a check list item that I read that book and I’m done with it. But if they don’t act on it, they don’t reflect on it, if they don’t make use of it, then It’s entertainment.
Ravi: You know, that’s… again, interesting concept. The thought that your statement gives me is every book should lead to a behavior change. How about that? Otherwise, you just read, it didn’t mean anything to you, you were Ravi before, you were Ravi after so, what have you done?
Rajesh: Only what you have got is you can intellectually debate on a topic. Which is which is pretty much useless because you have not done anything with it.
Ravi: Correct. Let’s look at Jason Womack’s book. You know, he reads, writes productivity, so first not only do I do a lot of productivity tools I that Jason talks in his book, if I start implementing them, I actually become a better person. I’m actually better at helping people from the behavior change that I made in my life that made me better that create — that make me valuable, actually. People say oh my God, Ravi not only read Jason’s book, he’s actually telling me some good things that I can now implement, and that’s what really helps is when you create a behavior change and then the value you get from it, and you’re able to share it with other people.
Rajesh: Yeah, beautifully said [inaudible 06:23] In fact, there is cone more thing that can happen, It can change your world view [inaudible 06:30] that the world can change. That means that can lead to other things in the future because if you read a book about conversations, how you view a conversation itself is very different. My favorite book; all-time best, which is not very famous and personality because Susan probably does not want to market it. Susan Scott’s book called Fierce Conversations.
Ravi: Yes. You’ve talked about it. I should read that book.
Rajesh: Yeah. It’s one of those books that not only changed my worldview and you mentioned another concept for behavior change. I have not looked at a conversation in the way I was looking at it before I read the book and it has changed me. I cannot unchange myself because now I’m aware of the concept, but those of you who have not read the book, I really ask you to read it, and if I can summarize the whole book in one sentence I’d be badly paraphrasing it, but you’ll get the essence of it is while there is no guarantee that any single conversation might change the trajectory of your life business or career, any single conversation can. [crosstalk 07:40 inaudible] …conversation that has your name on it.
Ravi: Yes, absolutely. I think this was one… in the first episode, you mentioned it. It’s very powerful, every time I hear it sounds, so life-changing, [crosstalk 07:52 Rajesh: “life-changing’] right? Because one conversation can change. But who knows which is that conversation? You can’t pick
Rajesh: You don’t know. Because you don’t know and this particular conversation we’re having might be the one. So, imagine the amount of respect I will provide for this conversation because I don’t know whether this is the one, this may not be the one, but this might be the one.
Ravi: So, you know, because the fact that this might be the one, it is best to put your [inaudible 08:22] instead of doing it as a very tactical thing; okay, I’m supposed to talk to somebody like we do it as a [inaudible 08:29] ritual, because this could be that meeting, this could be that sale, this could be that interaction that can change everything. Imagine, we also talked about the power of being in the moment. Imagine with this view that a [inaudible 08:45] conversation can change and being in the moment to make the best out of that conversation. Oh, my God. Imagine how wonderful life would be?
Rajesh: Exactly. So, now think about it, if I didn’t read that book thanks to one of my mentors, Yakov Soloveychik. He almost gave it as a homework that you had read the book, and I said, I’m not interested in Fierce Conversations, and he said I don’t care. I want you to read it by next week, and I can’t thank him enough for putting this book on my table because I would not have picked up this book on the bookstore because I look at the title and .. who wants to…? I’m a simple person, I don’t need fierce conversations. I would not even have flipped open to see what the book is about. Now that I read it, it’s been 15 years, and I never looked at a conversation in the way I looked at it before and not only the worldliness changed; the behavior has changed towards a conversation. Plus, my power, which I define as the capacity to take meaningful action, has changed in a very, very big way because if I am giving attention to a conversation in the way I am giving the other party will know that I have their attention. And most of the time they’re having conversations with other people, and they know that the other party is not even listening to them because they’re distracted, checking their stuff and all those things. But that has changed the way how things happened in my life on one book.
Ravi: Absolutely, and I think, you know, the power of reading is also that if I wanted to, if you wanted to speak with Susan Scott or Robin Sharma or Jason Womack, it’s going to cost you a fortune and access to the wisdom that they worked a year or two years and really put their best of the best of the best ideas into the piece of paper. I mean, it is your best investment to get access to their wisdom because It is humanly impossible to meet all these people and some of us are lucky. I mean, we, I get a chance to have lunch with Jason. We’re just lucky, but there are so many people I would love to meet. I will never meet in this lifetime, but the least I can do is read their book and improve my thinking vocabulary and become better.
Rajesh: You said it beautifully. And you are right, Susan is a good friend, Jason is a good friend. So, we were lucky, really lucky that… but even if they were not friends, and we got fortunate to get their books. They have put their thinking mind heart and a lot of conversation they have had on the topic and finally come up with a 200-page book with their best thinking packaged and, but ready to be consumed; it’s like 20 bucks. It’s the best deal in town.
Ravi: Exactly, because they’re essentially getting a concise wisdom of somebody’s lifetime work. Like people like a few books and it’s their lifetime of wisdom of their experiences, you’re suddenly at opening up yourself to a library of content that you cannot, you cannot otherwise have access to. Now all of this will make sense. Only if you’ve got to do something about it.
Rajesh: I totally agree, in fact, because we talked about Karma points in the one of the previous episodes, actually many previous episodes, I always take a book if it touches my heart, I just go and buy 50, 100 copies of the book and start distributing because sometimes I don’t know how to pay back. I know that $20 was not the right amount, but it’s my own way of slightly circling back out by buying dozens of copies because honestly the way the books that become very famous, many of them are not really good books, but they’re really marketed very, very well. But the books that are really good books, unless the author is saying, I am going to market like crazy, they’re not going to become very famous. Like a book like mastery, it’s not like a best-seller – it’s one of the best books that is a fierce conversation. Not very best-seller, not big best-seller, but something that everybody has to read. So I always think that it becomes my duty to go and change the equation in some form or fashion.
Ravi: So we both agreed that in the white space that we’re going to create for ourselves, it is very important to read good books that elevate our spirit; that they elevate our thinking, that elevate our worldview, our whole perspective towards life. And then if that can also lead to a change of behavior that leads to something exciting, that’s where the power of reading is.
Rajesh: Yeah, and the last one, I always wonder [inaudible 13:38] you can increase your power. Power in philosophical terms is the capacity to take meaningful action. Suppose something took you one month to do it, with all the reading and learning and conversations and.. it only takes 15 days. You’ve got 15 days back in your life.
Ravi: Yeah, I know, it’s a very simple thing, right? You, it’s impossible for you to know everything about every topic in the world. But last week I was a [inaudible 14:07] by Jason Womack, and he taught me how to create to-do lists. I have been doing to-do lists for eternity, but this guy has spent so much time, has given me his technique in like five minutes. That has done wonders for me. So if I am wise…[crosstalk 14:26]
Rajesh: Maybe you can share a little bit, because [inaudible 14:13] may not be accessible now.
Ravi: Absolutely, you know, one thing that Jason says is that you should always have a notebook. Because when you’re writing, taking notes and I take a notebook, you take a notebook, but he said all the to-do lists right on the back side of the page, because always write only on one side of the page, any notes and all to-do lists only one side. So, you’re going back and looking at your to-do list; you don’t have to search. They’re just there. They only always there in one place. And the other beautiful thing he said is, he said have some note cards for six or seven people that you normally interact with and anytime you have – oh let me ask Rajesh this question – immediately write on a piece of card – ask Rajesh about this. Because there’s no reason to ask at that particular moment because you’re going to interrupt him. So, at the end of the day ask these five questions. The problem with texting and skyping and everything is we interrupt each other and destroy productivity on both ends.
Rajesh: Beautifully said. Because that already is a [inaudible 15:33] that I can already put to use immediately.
Ravi: Exactly. So this is the power of reading is that there’s no way I could have discovered on my own with my own energy or intelligence that God has given. So, the power of reading makes you infinitely intelligent. And I’ve heard from experts over and over again that people who read one book a day and for the people like Terry Gross from NPR, who does Fresh Air, she reads two books a day. You know this person from NPR that does, you know, Forum for San Francisco called Michael Krasny. He reads 400-page books in a day and when you hear them speak, your so… you’re kind of a tactic to them. The words they used, the passion they have, it’s all because they’re well read.
Rajesh: Beautifully said, you know, until told me this I was feeling very good about me because I read one book a week.
Ravi: [laughs]
Rajesh: Suddenly, you cut me to size and made sure of where my place is. Thank you so much for that gift.
Ravi: Yeah, I know, I want to end this with a quote from Mark Twain that I will get reminded of “A man who does not read good books is no different from the man who does not know how to read.”
Rajesh: Beautifully said, Ravi. So, my closing comment is very simple. I think it’s like a no-brainer that people agree that read good books, they are to take action, they are to take action. The comment I wanted to make was to they are to take action very quickly to make the most of what they read either by themselves or people that matter most to them. Let me double-click on it, and they say that suppose you read something really good, immediately write it down. Then I start thinking, who in my network will benefit from this? Because they can’t read all the books. They can be many Michael Karsnys who will read 400-page books in a day. So, we know the limitation that we have. I [inaudible 17:29], but we took the time to read the book, so we will take some one or two highlights and immediately start thinking what ten people that would benefit from it, whether they like it or not, we say, I read this book. Here are some things that I thought were relevant because of blah, blah, blah, and immediately there you increase their power to take many… capacity to take meaningful action. Or you increase the capacity to take meaningful action for other people.
Ravi: And you become incredibly valuable in your network. People look at you as an expert saying, he’s not only consuming, he’s also kind of distributing.
Rajesh: Totally agreed. Totally agreed.
Ravi: So with that closing episode number 11 on Spontaneous Conversations, thank you so much. Please provide your feedback. Again, we pick these topics literally five seconds before we hit the record button. And so thank you for listening. Find out more about Ravi at mentorcloud dot com.
Rajesh: This is Rajesh Setty signing off. More about me on my blog Rajesh Setty dot com slash blog.
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